What Are Cramps?
Cramps are unpleasant, painful sensations caused by contraction or over-shortening of the muscles. They affect almost 40% of marathon runners. A sudden cramping will cause you stop suddenly as your leg muscle seems to curl into a ball, with excruciating pain.

Not every runner however feels a sharp pain associated with the muscle contraction. During a marathon your muscles can tighten up gradually to the point where each step becomes extremely painful. Continuing will only make this worse.

What Causes Cramps?
No one really understands what causes cramps. They are a medical mystery although modern theories believe the reasons are connected to the way nerve signals are sent to our muscles.

There are many theories about causes of cramps, ranging from excessive heat, dehydration, and the loss of electrolytes and minerals, to muscle fatigue, insufficient training, and poor stretching habits. The latest theories focus on the interaction between nerves and muscles. Although dehydration is often named as a cause of cramps several studies have never shown dehydration to be the cause.

One thing we do know is that the tendency to get a cramp increases in the latter part of the marathon. Reasons for this may be overexertion (such as running the first half too fast) or low sodium and potassium levels in the blood. Cramps may also be associated with higher lactic acid levels in the cells, which occurs as we get into the higher mileage.

Other factors for muscle cramps include age (older people are more susceptible), number of years running and body weight.

Preventing Cramps

With all these different theories on dealing with cramps what can we actually do to minimize the chances of cramping up during the marathon?

Train appropriately - this is especially important for marathoners. On race day, running faster than you've trained for will overwork your muscles and make them more susceptible to cramps.

Take time to stretch both during your training and on race day. Pay close attention to the muscles that are most likely to cramp up like your calfs, hamstrings and quads. You should stretch those muscles gently but thoroughly.

Eating foods high in potassium can help prevent muscle cramps. Bananas are great sources of potassium and are fairly easy to digest – eat them during the week prior to the race.

Although there is no scientific proof that electrolyte drinks have any advantage over plain salt and water, you can still take a drink of Gatorade. I also take FRS, which provides extra energy during the run, especially in the later miles. Take these replacement and energy supplements before and during the marathon. Of course you should take plenty of water during the run as well. Even though there may be no correlation between hydration level and cramps you don’t want to end up dehydrated!

Pace appropriately – overuse of the muscles is a major contributor to getting cramps. If you suffer regularly from cramps try running your next marathon (or long run) at a slower pace than you would normally. You might be pleasantly surprised at the result! It is also important to adapt to the conditions on race day, - if the weather is bad be prepared to make adjustments to your pace.

Treating Cramps

If the worst happens and you do experience muscle cramps here are some things you can do to alleviate the problem.

1. Stop running and stretch the affected muscles. You may have to do this several times before the cramp finally dies down

2. Applying deep pressure to the affected muscle can provide relief. Press into the sore muscle with your fingers for about 10 to 15 seconds at a time.

3. Drink a fluid with electrolytes like Gatorade and / or take a salt tablet with water.

4. Slow down or walk for a period of time. You need to relieve the stress on your muscles.

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