How to Avoid Running Cramps

Video Transcript

"Hello, my name is David Brown and today we're going to talk about how to avoid running cramps. Now cramps are terrible. If any of you have ever had a cramp before, you know that it is very uncomfortable and it'll ruin your day. In fact, most runners know that once they start getting cramps, really their day is over. They're going to have to walk, they're going to have to stretch, they're going to have to do whatever they can to try to get rid of those cramps. So, how do we prevent them? Very, very basic ways of preventing cramping. Number one: hydration. Most cramping comes from the fact that we're dehydrated. Dehydrated could come from a variety of sources, however, it's usually because we don't have enough water in us or we don't have enough electrolytes. So make sure to pay attention to both your water intake and your electrolyte intake to prevent cramping during your run. Now the next form of cramping can be from simply overexerting yourself. If you have been training too much, your muscles might be tired, might be over exerted and you're going to start to cramp. Now cramping, what you should understand about it, is that it's a natural mechanism in your body to prevent you from hurting it. So, if you've been running too much, your body's not recovered, you haven't drank enough water, muscle cramps are probably going to happen. So, go back over how to prevent cramping, make sure that you have a good training program, that you aren't over exerting yourself too much and make sure that you have a good hydration plan to make sure you have plenty of water and plenty of electrolytes in your body and that'll help you get through your next run without cramping."