How to Stop a Leg Cramp in 15 Seconds

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[whatwouldhousedo]

Never tried the technique in the video, but the thing that really works is to contract the opposing muscle(s). So if your calf is cramping, you simply pull your toes/foot up towards your head (dorsiflexion)- this is contracting the muscles of the anterior compartment of the leg, which sends a signal to your brain to relax your calf. It's called "reciprocal inhibition", and the reason it works is because your brain does not want to contract two sides of a limb at the same time. It's a reflex that allows you to do things like lift a weight with your elbow bent, for example doing arm curls. You tighten the muscles and your elbow bends, lifting the weight, and your triceps HAS TO relax to allow that to happen. Next time you have a calf cramp, try pulling your foot forcefully upwards, and when the cramp stops, then stretch the calf if you need to. I'm a Registered Massage Therapist and we learned this in college.

[denniskee]

Dr Michael Ryan I thank you so much, I am from Singapore and out of a sudden, the muscle cramps strike for about 5min and just do not go away, the pain is so unbearable until I find your way of doing the massage, and the muscle slowly ease off so is the pain also goes away! I feel so much relief now. Glad that I find you and it really work!

[WillNGo]

I stand up and put as much weight on the cramped leg as possible. That seems to be the most common method. With a foot cramp in bed sometimes all I have to do is press against the sheet and comforter. I don't need to know where the tendon is.
I once got a big cramp once in the middle of dinner (these were more common when I was younger and running Cross Country) my friend Willy told me to take off my sock and shoe and stand on something cold. I opened the back door and stood on the concrete step.

[RamblinRick_]

I used to suffer from leg cramps at night (sometimes feet cramps). A physical therapist told me to take Magnesium pills. Originally, I took 250mg per day, and still had ocassional cramps. I was told to increase that to 500mg daily. Have not had cramps since. Potassium was never really effective for me.
Thank you for this video. I'm sure I'll use it sometime in the future.

[jjohnson]

Dear Doctor,

I stumbled across your video, and found it very interesting. Subsequently, I have used your technique to my great relief.

At the same time, I thought if the technique was curative, it could also be *preventative.*

As a result, I have been massaging my tendons several times during the day. When I'm finished, I feel a *definite* relaxation of my calf muscles.

As a result of my preventative actions, I have had not *one* night time muscle cramps -- I sleep, undisturbed, throughout the night.

I thought you should know, I am grateful for you video regarding this matter.

[Tango_Alpha_Charlie]

I rarely have leg cramps but yesterday I ate a lot of potassium-rich foods, and I watched your video. Early this morning, I woke up due to a leg cramp. I followed your advice and it went away quickly. Thank you so much!!

[colincrooky]

Stretch leg out and point foot and toes up - magic! Thank you for the video and hope you are feeling better now.

[srinivasansridhar]

Excellent advice. It works for me. Once I got a cramp in the hand at the same time besides the leg, but I kept pressing and got rid of both cramps. Train to fix the cramp on impulse, even when half asleep.

[randystone]

Thanks Doc, I'll try this and in the meantime I'll keep a packet of mustard handy which typically releases the cramp in 3 to 4 minutes. I have had very painful cramps lasting 15 to 20 minutes only relieved by walking. A hot shower with alternating cold water has also helped me.

[brendapalmer]

Great advice. My mom says hers happens when she reclines back in her chair but if she is setting up it does not do it. We’re trying to encourage her to have better blood flow with reclining, but due to cramping she does not like to recline, and have her legs up . 😢

[-just.the.facts-]

The simplest, and instantly effective way of getting rid of a leg cramp for me is to jump out of bed immediately and exercise the muscle or if you’re in a chair, just stand up and exercise your leg, stressing the muscle, where the cramp is. If it is my calf or foot, I will simply do push-ups from my toes to a tiptoe position. If it’s in my calf, I will put my foot on the floor and pull back with my leg. I thought most people knew this technique. Just exercise the muscle.

[harrybarrow]

There is another technique you can use…
Muscles come in pairs, with a flexor muscle and an extensor muscle that operate a joint in different directions.
The interesting thing is that these muscles inhibit each other, in normal use.
So if you have a leg cramp, try to use the leg and walk with it. The cramping muscle will be inhibited as you walk.
It is not easy to walk when you have cramp, but walking does seem to ease it.😅

[TurpInTexas]

My usual technique is to launch myself straight out of the bed, and once I hit the floor I jump up and down like I am surrounded by alligators, and cuss at the top of my lungs until it goes away. While it seems to work eventually, my wife who was sound asleep only moments before, is sitting straight up in the bed bewildered as to what just happened. Thank you for taking the time to post your remedy, I will give it a shot for both me and my wife and I will update this thread with my results. Cheers!

[dakrontu]

What I do is vigorously shake the cramping leg as soon as the cramp comes on. Try it. It works a hell of a lot better than withstanding the pain so bad that it would make me yell and worry about tearing the muscle. No need to look for tendons etc. No hands or acrobatics needed. Just shake vigorously.

[ScottChristensenabc]

These techniques and all the posters’ comments all work in some capacity but I’ve found a significant compliment to physical techniques is to dump a bunch of hot sauce in my mouth or pickle juice or even salt under the tongue. The electrical impulse that fires that cramping muscle can be disrupted if you dump something in your mouth that fires a ton of nervous activity which should short circuit that muscular nerve impulse. I used to experience wicked quad or abductor or ham string cramps once a month and since starting epsom salt baths 2 or 3 times a week that frequency has gone down even more. But when I get a wicked one and am passing out on the floor my wife runs to the fridge for the hot sauce and dumps a good dollop in my mouth and it starts to fade.

[AndrewWernick]

It worked....Last night at 4:00AM Thank you....went right back to sleep....

[eagle-eye]

Since I've just started getting leg cramps I appreciated all of the information. Sorry if it inconvenienced the rest of you.

[MichelleLaMonda-lb]

I've told patients/individuals this since I worked with you. This is good information for individuals to have for those legs cramps. Thank you Dr. Ryan for your knowledge in this area.

[ArachnaeFae]

Thank you, I will try this the next time I get a leg cramp.
Pickle juice actually works for me. A few years ago I had to move in with my ex-husband for a few months. One late night I saw him take my pickle jar and pour the juice into a shot glass and drink it. He told me he did that when he had leg cramps. I was an unbeliever and did internet search about it. There have not been any deep studies that I could find, but BYU had an article about it. Something about the vinegar immediately shocks the cramp out of the muscle. It's not known yet how it works but It works for me in about 10 seconds.

[haon]

I'm sure it works well to stop cramps. Even better is try to prevent the cramps. I started eating Liver (and the cramps stopped) and later taking Magnesium supplements.
In my case I was getting nightly painful calf cramps that forced me to stand up out of bed and straighten out my leg.