Exercise plays an important role in your overall health, whether it be helping to keep your weight under control or reducing your risk of chronic diseases like heart disease or diabetes. However, too much exercise can actually be damaging by placing excess stress on the systems of your body as well as your muscle tissues. One of the consequences that can occur with excessive exercise is muscle cramps.
Hydration
When you over exercise, your body produces more sweat than at rest or even during regular exercise. If you continue to sweat without replacing lost fluids, the blood volume in your cardiovascular system can get too low, and electrolyte levels of potassium, magnesium and calcium can become unbalanced. When these levels remain low and unbalanced for an extended amount of time without being replenished, the muscles react to help stop the effects of dehydration. They do this by contracting the muscle and not relaxing. Dehydration is why cramps are more common if you are exercising outside on a hot day, since the additional heat increases sweat output.
Oxygen Supply and Waste Products
When you over exert your body through excessive full-body exercise, you increase the need for energy and oxygen in muscle cells at a rate that is hard for the body to keep up with. When you exercise, your respiratory and heart rate increase in order to both increase the amount of oxygen available for energy creation as well as increase how fast the body can eliminate the waste products from energy creation. When you exercise too much at one time, oxygen levels are too low and waste products build up, thus resulting in muscle spasm.
Pre-existing Conditions
Over exercising may also aggravate pre-existing conditions that could result in cramps throughout your body. Conditions that may put you at a higher risk for body cramps include alcoholism, metabolic syndrome, kidney disease, hypothyroidism, pregnancy, or generally poor circulation in your muscles. If you experience regular cramps, even without excessive exercise, see your doctor as this may be a sign of a more serious underlying problem.
Treatment
When experiencing muscle cramps, there are a few remedies you can try to both stop cramping and prevent future cramps. Hydration is key when dealing with cramps, as water both increases blood serum levels, which in turn helps prevent imbalance with the electrolytes needed for your muscles to work properly. Stretching your muscles after exercise can also help by loosening the muscle fibers and preventing the buildup of waste products in the muscle tissue. Massage may also help encourage waste products to leave the muscle tissue, as well as help increase circulation to the affected area.
References
- American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons: Muscle Cramp
- Medline Plus: Charley Horse
- National Institutes of Health: Muscle Cramps
- Cycling Performance Tips: Exercised Induced Muscle Pain, Soreness and Cramps
- New York Times: A Long Running Mystery, The Common Cramp
- University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics: Charley Horse: Muscle Cramps
