Outdoor Class: Causes and Treatment of Cramps During Cycling Exercise

The most common phenomenon in sports injuries is cramps. When supporting the Athletics Association's marathon races at all levels, there have been records of more than 1,000 people suffering from cramps. This shows how common cramps are in the sports world.

What exactly is a cramp? A cramp is actually a muscle spasm, which refers to the phenomenon that the muscles in a certain part of the body contract forcefully and involuntarily and cannot relax quickly. Cramps most commonly occur in the back of the calf, back of the thigh, and front of the thigh. In addition, cramps can occur in the small muscles of the feet, fingers, arms, abdomen, and even between the ribs.

When you cramp, the entire muscle becomes hard, and sometimes you can even see the muscle twitching under the skin. A muscle cramp may last for just a few seconds or may last for more than 15 minutes. If not dealt with promptly or the original exercise is not interrupted, it may recur again and again in a short period of time. The exact cause of cramps during exercise has not yet been determined, but it is generally believed that this is caused by the interaction of many factors.

The phenomenon and causes of cramps

1. Lack of sufficient stretching before exercise;

2. Muscle fatigue due to overuse;

3. Exercise in a very hot climate;

4. The ambient temperature changes suddenly;

5. Too much water loss;

6. Electrolyte imbalance;

7. Incorrect exercise posture;

8. Being too nervous;

9. Unbalanced diet, side effects of drugs, etc.

Treatment of cramps

1. Immediately interrupt the ongoing exercise;

2. Go to a cool and ventilated place and replenish water, especially sports drinks;

3. Slowly stretch the cramping muscles, or give moderate massage to the cramped area;

4. During the treatment, heat therapy or cold therapy can be used as an auxiliary. Whether it is sports spray or hot or cold compress packs, they all have good effects.

Preventing cramps

During the warm-up exercises before and after exercise, strengthen the stretching movements. During exercise, while replenishing water, you can also replenish sodium (salt) and electrolyzed water to balance the potassium and sodium in the body. Drinking sports drinks can not only replenish sodium and electrolyzed water, but also allow the gastrointestinal tract to quickly absorb water, reducing the weight burden on the gastrointestinal tract.

Appropriate and gradual exercise. Cramps are the body's way of warning us that the current amount of exercise has exceeded our capacity. In other words, we don’t exercise enough in our daily lives and we need to practice more. When cramps occur while riding a bicycle, in addition to the emergency treatment mentioned above, you should apply hot compresses and massage for at least a few days after returning home to dilute the ethos, otherwise the cramps will easily recur.

Special causes of cramps during cycling

Gear ratio: Gear ratio is also one of the causes of cramps. You can try a lighter gear ratio (UCI stipulates that the gear ratio for teenagers is lighter than that for adults, in order to protect the development of minors). Therefore, it is definitely the right idea to try a lighter gear ratio and practice the number of revolutions diligently. When climbing steep slopes or bumpy terrain, choosing a lighter gear ratio will have unexpected advantages. However, the light gear ratio may make you feel impatient sometimes. As long as you are not in a hurry, you will slowly appreciate the benefits of the light gear ratio.

Improper riding posture: The seat is too low, too forward or too far back, which will cause unbalanced burden on the knees or muscles. There have been cases where the cruciate ligament in the knee has been ruptured as a result.