I get a lot of cramps. It’s NOT due to dehydration. I drink lots of water and also drink a supplement called endura. I do not have to be doing anything physical to get them. The worst places are in my abs and in my back up under my shoulder blade. When I get these my day is ruined. They are hard core, think you are dying cramps! And they don’t just cramp and then go away, they come back again and again. You can see the cramping muscles in my abs and it feels like the alien is trying to get out like the movie! My doc has no clue nor does my chiropractor. Any suggestions would be very much appreciated!
What is your diet like?
Potassium deficiency?
Low potassium and magnesium leads to cramping. Perhaps your mineral levels are low. Maybe you have trouble absorbing these minerals in general?
My diet is good now and I still get the cramps. I take a supplement called endura that has lots of magnesium and potassium and it helps but doesn’t get rid of them completely
Is there anything out there to help with absorbing those minerals?
You can try Magnesium before bed.
It helped me a lot with muscle cramps and also provides a deeper sleep.
Or you can just try ZMA.
The guy above said it could be Potassium deficiency which is true for some people.
Run a blood test to be sure 
For literally years, I utilized high K+ food sources* – kiwi, avocado, figs, coconut water etc – to avoid cramping on leg days or after hours of hoop.
But the issue never fully disappeared until I added in Ca++ supps (ie. 600mg, 2-3x / week) alongside that regular intake of high-K+ foods.
*note: bananas are quite overrated in this respect
What is Ca++sups?
Calcium.
I use Costco’s Kirkland brand, which is 600mg per.
Lack of calcium causes cramps. Confirmed by my own personal experience. Start drinking that milk and eating lots of broccoli and see if it makes a difference.
Thanks for the info. I’ve never heard of the calcium having anything to do with cramps. Guess it couldn’t hurt to try it.
Calcium supplements are probably a major cause of arterial plaques. Same with getting too much Calcium from plant sources. (My wife is a cardiologist and there is a big push to curb the use of calcium supplements now.) I personally would never take a calcium supplement now.
Water without electrolytes actually acts as a mild diuretic. Potatoes are good for potatassium. Pickle brine. Salt. If you don’t get too much sugar you are fine getting 3000 mg of sodium a day. Sugar plus sodium plus NSAIDS raise blood pressure, but most people can take salt to tolerance if they control sugar.
[quote]mertdawg wrote:
Calcium supplements are probably a major cause of arterial plaques. Same with getting too much Calcium from plant sources. (My wife is a cardiologist and there is a big push to curb the use of calcium supplements now.) I personally would never take a calcium supplement now.
Water without electrolytes actually acts as a mild diuretic. Potatoes are good for potatassium. Pickle brine. Salt. If you don’t get too much sugar you are fine getting 3000 mg of sodium a day. Sugar plus sodium plus NSAIDS raise blood pressure, but most people can take salt to tolerance if they control sugar. [/quote]
What is the interaction of salt + sugar?
[quote]Ripsaw3689 wrote:
[quote]mertdawg wrote:
Calcium supplements are probably a major cause of arterial plaques. Same with getting too much Calcium from plant sources. (My wife is a cardiologist and there is a big push to curb the use of calcium supplements now.) I personally would never take a calcium supplement now.
Water without electrolytes actually acts as a mild diuretic. Potatoes are good for potatassium. Pickle brine. Salt. If you don’t get too much sugar you are fine getting 3000 mg of sodium a day. Sugar plus sodium plus NSAIDS raise blood pressure, but most people can take salt to tolerance if they control sugar. [/quote]
What is the interaction of salt + sugar?[/quote]
I don’t know, I thought they just both produced osmotic pressure that increases fluid pressure in blood vessels.
[quote]mertdawg wrote:
Calcium supplements are probably a major cause of arterial plaques. Same with getting too much Calcium from plant sources. (My wife is a cardiologist and there is a big push to curb the use of calcium supplements now.) I personally would never take a calcium supplement now. [/quote]
Good point, and one that needed mentioning.
Still, I’m not as eager to equate correlate Ca++ supplementation with atherosclerosis. After all, these plaques aren’t purely calcified desposits. Another mystery is how marathoners’ atherosclerosis seems to happen despite lower levels of coronary calcium. - http://eurheartj.oxfordjournals.org/content/29/15/1800.long
In short, we don’t have complete understanding here.
And if you’re exercising/sweating frequently – note how this EXCLUDES the vast majority of advanced heart disease patients – then certainly your electrolyte levels (Na, K, Mg, Ca) will fluctuate to a greater extent.
[quote]chillain wrote:
[quote]mertdawg wrote:
Calcium supplements are probably a major cause of arterial plaques. Same with getting too much Calcium from plant sources. (My wife is a cardiologist and there is a big push to curb the use of calcium supplements now.) I personally would never take a calcium supplement now. [/quote]
Good point, and one that needed mentioning.
Still, I’m not as eager to equate correlate Ca++ supplementation with atherosclerosis. After all, these plaques aren’t purely calcified desposits. Another mystery is how marathoners’ atherosclerosis seems to happen despite lower levels of coronary calcium. - http://eurheartj.oxfordjournals.org/content/29/15/1800.long
In short, we don’t have complete understanding here.
And if you’re exercising/sweating frequently – note how this EXCLUDES the vast majority of advanced heart disease patients – then certainly your electrolyte levels (Na, K, Mg, Ca) will fluctuate to a greater extent.
[/quote]
Interesting on the marathoners. I do know that the chance of heart attack starts to rise in runners when they average more than about 25 miles a week which a lot of runners do in their sleep. And I assume that’s just from free radicals and oxidative damage. Are their plaques different or are they still calcified plaques? I know that osteoporosis is related to calcium plaques and the theory is that calcium is leached from the bones to the blood. Also has been suggested that vitamin D and sunlight will prevent or reduce this, but newest studies don’t support high vitamin D now.
Any knowledge on the morphological differences in plaques in runners?
Anyway, my working model is that oxidative damage (to much aerobic work, PUFA’s and sugar) start the cell damage, calcium comes next and then and only then is cholesterol a problem when its already too late for the Cholesterol to act as a healing agent.
So is there anything else any of you have ever heard of that can cause these cramps?
[quote]mertdawg wrote:
Interesting on the marathoners. I do know that the chance of heart attack starts to rise in runners when they average more than about 25 miles a week which a lot of runners do in their sleep. And I assume that’s just from free radicals and oxidative damage. Are their plaques different or are they still calcified plaques? I know that osteoporosis is related to calcium plaques and the theory is that calcium is leached from the bones to the blood. Also has been suggested that vitamin D and sunlight will prevent or reduce this, but newest studies don’t support high vitamin D now.
Any knowledge on the morphological differences in plaques in runners?
Anyway, my working model is that oxidative damage (to much aerobic work, PUFA’s and sugar) start the cell damage, calcium comes next and then and only then is cholesterol a problem when its already too late for the Cholesterol to act as a healing agent.
[/quote]
Interesting info as usual.
For the record, I’m only sharing ‘ancedotal experience’ here and that mertdawg’s recommendations are obviously well-informed.
Sounds like myofacil trigger points maybe on your rsctus abdominus or serratus. Google the referral patterns for these mtrp and see if it matches your pain.
Go get your blood work done. I was getting massive cramping and it was actually due to hyperkalemia (too much potassium). i kept taking more electrolytes to prevent the cramping but was actually making it worse. My diet was super alkaline and most alkaline foods are very high in potassium. This combination landed me in the hospital and seriously sucked.