Cramping on long rides

gbminigirl

I haven't been able to complete my last two rides due to quad cramping. I get to 45-48 miles and can't go any further. A few weeks before, I was able to do 50 with no problems. Any thoughts? (Yes, I'm hydrated, eating bananas, taking magnesium, etc.)

Cyclink

What are you hydrated with and how much? Magnesium is just one electrolyte and it you are drinking plain water, it might not be enough to keep you from cramping.

scott091501

Are you going harder effort wise than before? I find that a few of my athletes cramp due to hydration/nutriton problems but most cramp due to trying to perform above their current fitness level.

Evachiquita

I wish I had an answer for you, and for me! Sometimes I get cramps on short rides and sometimes I can ride 80+ miles in heat without cramps. I'm not sure if it has something more to do with intensity, probably it does. I have always been prone to cramps, and even get severe charlie horses in the middle of the night. Another thing that has been happening to me is random muscle twitches, sometimes in my bicep, sometimes my hand or eyebrow. Last summer I was eating plenty of potassium and drinking plenty of fluid (clear and copious urination!) but still getting cramps sometimes. So I increased my sodium intake (I eat practically no processed food so my sodium intake is VERY low; well below the 2500mg RDA value) and my cramps subsided. I also have to be religious about stretching to prevent/manage cramping. See this link with a table for water/electrolyte imbalances and their effect. I think I am often slightly in the "hyponatremia" state where my hydration is ok but my electrolyte level is low.

http://www.succeedscaps.com/articles/water_electrolyte_balance_table/

Check out this podcast, it's very interesting. I know we have always been told that cramping is a result of some water/electrolyte imbalances; this podcast suggests that it's actually electrical impulses in the muscle and those impulses are triggered by exhaustion. Maybe it has something to do with both things, and not exclusively one. And oh how I wish I could afford a massage every week, or after every work out!!

http://trailrunnernation.com/2013/03/dr-tim-noakes-are-we-waterlogged/

The podcast and the article seem slightly conflicting but the link to the article is on the website where the podcast is.

I have also noticed that when I'm sucking down water because I THINK I should be drinking I end up all bloated and gross feeling and I end up with "poor food acceptance". Again I think, for me, this is somewhat related to intensity and it happens at higher intensity/stress situations like races or hard training rides, not so much on long, slow, endurance rides. The bloating is more than a feeling, as my stomach gets visibly distended and my shorts fit tighter. It then takes a day or two for my body to come back to a comfortable, normal place.

lpherman01

Interesting. I tend to get cramps when it is cold out. I do drink an elctrolyte fluid (enduralite) and eat balanced meals, but it just seems like I occasionally cramp when it's cold & I go over 40 miles. When it's hot, double that mileage with no problems at all.