recently i have been starting to ride my bike semi regularly (i can go long periods of not riding due to depression,laziness and weather).
when i go to bed my legs will always start to feel like cramping up or they do (both will stop us sleeping (along with my insomnia). my legs don't cramp before going to bed just the usual feeling of exercise etc that my body isn't used to (see above for reasons).
is there anything i can do to stop getting said cramps?
i will admit now that i don't really eat or drink much when out on the bike (but when it's hot i will drink more water for sure).
have been doing between 20 to 44 mile rides recently (the past few weeks around 5-6 rides at a rough guesstimate).
thanks in advance 🙂
Perhaps ramping the training up too Fast? Drop to 4 rides a week for a few weeks and don't push too hard.
high5 electrolytes worked forme to reduce cramping when i was doing decent training rides.
Electrolyte tablets (and plenty of water) before/after a ride, as others have said. Without that, I'm almost guaranteed to cramp once in bed.
If I have a particularly hard ride, especially in hot weather, I started experiencing really dramatic cramps in my legs - even when in bed at night. I bought some orange flavoured, dissolvable electrolyte tablets from Decathalon. If I take one after a hot, hard pedal, I never experience the cramps.
I was referred to a physio recently as I was cramping in bed - I was worried it was blood pressure related - nothing to do with cycling!
Physio got me on the bench and pretty much straight away said "I can feel what the problem is!". Basically my calf muscles were pretty much solid. She gave me some calf stretching exercises to do - and touch wood - the cramps have reduced massively.
'lytes
I only cramp on the longest or hardest rides, suggesting to me it is just not being accustomed to the effort, or when I was experimenting with Creatine!
Dylan Johnson (a cycle coach on Youtube) presented a bunch of research that suggested there was no link between electrolytes and cramping, although clearly they work for others so who knows. Also my experience with Creatine and cramping suggests something to do with water retention and cramps which maybe contradicts those findings.
You mentioned starting to ride again 'recently' a couple of times so my money is just on getting used to it again, maybe dial it back a wee bit until you DON'T cramp then go from there?
Any medication?
As a kid I cramped in my calves playing football and would take some glucose but it got really bad when I was in beta blockers.
The link between electrolytes and cramping isn't reliably proven but tbh it does seem to work for me. Also, remember that drinking a lot of water has a diluting effect, it's not just about sweating.
Stretching is probably good, pre-bed massage also probably good. A friend of mine swears by poppers as a treatment once the cramp has kicked in, for the muscle relaxant effect. And I understand helps with the stretching 😉
Another vote for electrolyte tablets. Also great for a hangover pick me up.
I've had leg cramps for years if I do a reasonable ride. Worse in summer when I sweat more. I do drink water whilst cycling as well.
Oh another one and maybe TMI, but I normally sleep in my birthday suit. But found that wearing some PJ bottoms when it's colder can keep the leg cramps at bay. No idea why it works as I'd figure a duvet would keep my legs just as warm 🤷♂️
Quinine is supposed to help. Some brands of tonic water still have it in and a can of Schweppes or Fever Tree in the evening wouldn't hurt.
Sadly the biggest impact will be from being fitter
i will admit now that i don't really eat or drink much when out on the bike (but when it's hot i will drink more water for sure).
Why don't you start with that fundamental issue.
A couple of things caught my attention in your post racefacec90 which I'd like to comment on:
- you said you don't eat or drink much on your rides, hence I would suggest that dehydration could well be an issue. Suggest that you drink more water generally and consider reducing coffee and alcohol because of their diuretic effect.
- to help with post ride reset, products to aid hydration (like electrolytes or dioralyte) may be beneficial for you.
- not riding due to life and mental health - totally hear you on this. But from the sounds of things, you're pedalling again! That's awesome! Go you!
Whilst I'm in the camp that believes (led by science...) cramping during a ride is nothing to do with a lack of electrolytes they are still important to muscle function and if someone is regularly under-hydrating and not replacing electrolytes through diet then I can see why that could lead to post-exercise cramping
Sadly the biggest impact will be from being fitter
This 👆
Long time post ride cramp suffer - experimenting with precision hydration tabs at the moment - strong ones because on their website I fall into the Sweaty category! Did a 77 mile ride on Wednesday - was hot - drank more than i usually do and tried the precision hydration tab - only one post ride mild cramp then nothing - so for me that's a result. Tried salt tablets too - they seem to work if i take one pre-ride.
Fish and chips on the way home, plenty of salt and vinegar
Post ride stretching will also help.
Post ride stretching will also help.
That applies to most hard exercises irrespective of whether you cramp! Stretch people!👍
Some ideas:
Stop riding bikes.
Eat loads of fried salt after your ride and wash it down with liquids.
Get fitter.
Obviously, eat and drink more, otherwise (if nothing else) you'll bonk horribly.
Post-exercise cramping for me is about electrolytes/ minerals/ etc. Regardless of so and so youtuber, your muscles use various elements (phosphorous for one) to work, and a good balance of phosphates, potassium and magnesium helps avoid post-ride twitching and can help reduce cramping. I've started taking magnesium every day; I also find meaty flavoured crisps (beef, chicken etc) and bananas help me not cramp and twitch after a heavy workout
Have tried taking magnesium daily? It's worked for me.
I drink plenty and take a mixed bag of raisins/salted peanuts on most of my rides. Peanuts and raisins are both good sources of magnesium, plus I sweat a fair amount so it’s useful to replace the salts (and it’s rare that I get cramps). As an added bonus, I absolutely love salted peanuts! On some rides I’ll also eat a banana whilst doing bike prep.
