During the swim yesterday at MIM I had someone all over my legs. I wasn’t sure if he/she was on them or actually hanging on. No big deal and sure it was incidental, but when that happens I tend to swim with wider stronger arms and exaggerated kicks in order to reclaim my space. While this was happening… BAM… I got a charlie horse to my calve that was horrible. I had to roll over and float on my back to make it settle down so I could finish the swim. If I move just right or press on my calve it still hurts like the dickens. Any suggestions to make this go away a bit faster?
take some charlie or some horse…
I had similar pain once from bad calf cramps after a long run. I thought of it like muscle soreness from lifting weights. I had really “worked” that muscle and it was sore for a few days like you are describing.
HTH, Lori
I haven’t had a charlies horse since I stopped residing in the same house as my brother.
Wow… 2 out of three responses lacked humor or insight… darn.
they are spawn from a lack of calcium/electrolights/ and proper hydration.
Thank you… but could that really be the case 20 minutes into a swim first thing in the morning? Or are you talking about a lack of those things in general (knowing what Memphis is like I have been drinking like crazy for the past 2 weeks).
I have had calf cramps while riding - in the early stages of a ride so I couldn’t attribute it to dehydration/ electrolytes. But I realised this happened when we were sprinting early. I finally put it down to tight hamstrings/ calves. when you start “sprinting”, the muscles tighten up and you get cramps. I could see doing this swimming at a race if you were kicking hard.
Back to the original question… any ideas to make it go away faster? Ice?
ow.
i can feel that.
i get hit with that rarely, but when i do…
i’d opt for the ice over heat. got a cold plunge handy?
I have problems with Charlie Horses in my right calf. The best remedy I have found to shortern their duration is to have someone massage my calf muscle hard while stretching it at the same time. Can be very painful, but the charlie is usually gone by the next morning.
I avoid ice at almost any cost. I don’t like cold… unless it’s ice cream.
those things hurt terribly! and it can happen early on in any workout if you’re already behind on the electrolyte/hydration front. (it is entirely possible to start even a short workout behind/imbalanced in electro and hydration, and feel like shit immediately because of it.)
basically, you had a very deep cramping convulsion, and you’re experiencing muscle soreness from that.
if it ever happens again, go ahead and rub it out. you think it might hurt to rub on it, but this helps work out the cramp. in fact, as i was sleeping last night, i started to get one and rubbed it right away and was able to fend it off.
for the after “treatment” of a bad calf cramp, stretch that sucker out. do plenty of calf stretches today and tomorrow. then you should be recovering no problem. go ahead and rub it too. take some ibuprofen.
lastly, on the nutrition front, you’ve got to make sure you’re loaded on electrolyte and hydration. drink some electrolyte replacement today, and be sure to stay on that during your workout. repeat tomorrow. calcium rich foods will also prevent cramping…and could speed your recovery from it.
some people recommend tonic water to prevent calf cramps. personally, i prefer Infinit because tonic water has no point unless it’s in combination with gin on the rocks…but i digress…