Key Points at a Glance
- We've all had a muscle cramp at least once—and we know exactly how painful it can be.
- Muscle cramps usually last only a few seconds, but they can feel like an eternity.
- Contrary to popular belief, we can now say with a fair degree of certainty what triggers a cramp.
- But the key question is: What really helps with muscle cramps?
Muscle cramps usually strike while we’re exercising. In almost all cases, we attribute them to overexertion, which, in principle, isn’t wrong. Often, it really is overexertion that depletes the body of minerals and water—and that ultimately leads to muscle cramps. They really hurt, especially when you’re in a decisive moment during a competitive sport.
Muscle Cramps—Here Are the Causes
Imagine it’s the 90th minute of a soccer match, and the forward—who has just completed several fruitless sprints—is running toward the goalie with the ball at his feet and just needs to tap it in to decide the match. And then this happens: a muscle cramp. While this is rather rare in professional sports, it’s actually not that uncommon among amateurs and recreational athletes. And that’s not even counting other sports.
Muscle cramps are almost always caused by overexertion that occurred during a competition. This exertion leads to deficiencies, such as dehydration or an imbalance in mineral levels. However, a muscle cramp is sometimes more than just a factor that determines victory or defeat; it can even be life-threatening—just think of long-distance or open-water swimmers.
This Helps Relieve Muscle Cramps
It’s not entirely true that muscle cramps can be prevented simply by consuming enough magnesium before exercising. Sure, when you sweat, you lose valuable minerals—known as electrolytes—along with the fluid. But this loss alone (primarily calcium and magnesium) is usually not enough on its own to cause muscle cramps.
In addition, dehydration prevents lactic acid—which is produced when muscles work—from being transported out of the muscle tissue, causing it to accumulate there instead. This causes a muscle to become overacidified much more quickly. It is therefore important to drink enough fluids when exercising to prevent cramps.
Water and the Right Snacks
Mineral water with low carbonation (e.g., medium) is very beneficial, as it contains important nutrients. Isotonic and electrolyte drinks are also ideal. In addition to staying hydrated, you should eat small snacks that contain magnesium. These include nuts or bananas, for example. These foods do not put any additional strain on the digestive tract or the body.
If you experience a sudden muscle cramp—such as a calf cramp—while exercising, it always helps to point your toes upward while pushing your heel in the opposite direction. In team sports, your teammates can help with this—you’ve probably seen it on TV.
By the way: We don’t just experience muscle cramps during physical activity. Even at night, while in deep sleep, we’re not immune to (calf) cramps—but these actually only occur when we’ve maneuvered ourselves into a truly uncomfortable sleeping position. Intense dreams are often to blame.
