08/06/2017
How to Prevent Leg Cramps in Summer
Contraction of one or more of your muscles. Muscle cramps can last anywhere from a few seconds to a quarter of an hour or occasionally longer. It is also possible for a cramp to recur multiple times until it finally goes away.
The muscle cramp may involve a part of a muscle, the entire muscle, or several muscles that usually act together, such as those that flex adjacent fingers. Some cramps involve the simultaneous contraction of muscles that ordinarily move body parts in opposite directions.
Tips to Prevent Leg cramps
If you often get leg cramps, regularly stretching the muscles in your lower legs may help prevent the cramps or reduce their frequency.
You might find it useful to stretch your calves before you go to bed each night. The following night-time advice may also help:
If you lie on your back, make sure that your toes point upwards –placing a pillow on its side at the end of your bed, with the soles of your feet propped up against it may help keep your feet in the right position.
If you lie on your front, hang your feet over the end of the bed – this will keep your feet in a relaxed position and help stop the muscles in your calves from contracting and tensing.
Keep your sheets and blankets loose.
Exercises recommended for leg cramps
prevent-leg-crampsStretching exercises are commonly advised. Most doctors feel that regular calf stretching does help. If exercises works, you will not need any tablets to prevent the cramps.
At first, do stretching exercises of affected muscles for about five minutes, three times a day. Do the last exercise shortly before bedtime. If the cramps ease off, you may then only need to do the exercise once or twice a day to keep the cramps away.
To stretch calf muscles, stand about 60-90 cm from a wall.
Then, keeping the soles of your feet flat on the floor, bend forward and lean on the wall. You will feel your calf muscles stretch.
Do this several times, each time for as long as you can manage.
It may take a week or so of exercises before you notice an improvement. So, it is worth giving yourself a 2 to 4 week trial of regular calf stretching exercises to see if your cramps ease off. The cramps may not go completely, but their frequency and/or severity may reduce. Go ahead and give a try today itself.
Pulse Physiotherapy Clinic Janipur