Stop Leg Cramps In Seconds, Plus 2 Snake Oil Remedies!
- chelsie462
- Jun 24
- 8 min read
This article is a transcribed, edited summary of a video Bob and Brad recorded in July 2024. For the original video, go to https://youtu.be/kv1XytFlMro
Brad: Oh, oh, cramp, cramp, cramp! What do I do?
Mike: We're going to show you how to resolve night cramps so they don't terrorize your sleep.
Brad: It's a problem, and a lot of people have them, and they are painful.
Mike: So, we're going to show you how to stop these night cramps pretty quickly.
Brad: That's right, it's really not that hard, we're going to show you and you're going to be able to do them at home as soon as we get done.
Mike: And we have two non-traditional ways at the end that Brad would like to talk about.
Brad: Why do you say it like that? They're actually legitimate, at least one of them is; we'll talk about that at the end. All right, a little brief explanation about a cramp and what happens, and why they hurt so much. We're looking at Mike's calf muscle. Can you actually flex it?
Brad: Now you can see it's all tightened up. This is maximal flexion of this muscle, actually of the joint, but the muscle's tightening up, it's going into tetany. In other words, it's cramping as tightly as it can go. That is the painful part, and you really need to know how to loosen it, and it's simple. What we need to do is stretch that muscle out. Then the cramp will go away. So that's what we're going to show you for leg cramps because they're the most common cramps in bed, and the most common muscles are the calf muscle and the hamstring. We will cover those in detail. First, we're going to address hamstring cramps. They're very common, and Mike is lying as if he's in bed. Now, if you do experience hamstring cramps at night, I strongly encourage you to practice this and do it before you go to bed. Number one, you're going to know what to do when you wake up with a cramp, to eliminate it. And if you stretch these muscles before you go to sleep, practicing it, the chances of getting a cramp are a little bit less. That's my experience in the clinic anyway. Go ahead, Mike. What we're going to do, this muscle is cramping, it's pulling, and flexing the knee joint. So he's gonna grab underneath the knee with both hands, and he's going to push or bring this leg up that stretches the hamstring group of muscles. There are three muscles there. It stretches them out, and once they get stretched out, the cramp goes away.
Brad: Now, if you're doing this and you're having a hard time, it's cramping hard. You might be able to use this leg and help push up. There you go, how are you feeling, Mike?
Mike: I'm feeling crampy.
Brad: This is a good thing, and it's a good muscle group to stretch regardless. So make sure you practice this before you go to sleep, so you know how to do it when it happens in the middle of the night. You know if there is someone, a family member, anybody available, actually what I've done with patients when they cramp, I'll just actually help them out and stretch, and that really makes a big difference.
Brad: That pain will go right down once the muscle is stretched. Now, if you have been to jump out of the bed and your hammie's all tight and there's a chair to sit on, it's a little easier. Sometimes you push your leg out in front of you, maybe with your hand or your foot, and then you stretch here, you lean forward, and that will stretch that hamstring out and make it go away.
Brad: You could stretch before you go to bed as well. If you happen to have an ottoman or a stool or another chair, you could stretch like this as well.
Brad: Stretch those hamstrings. Don't try to bend your back too much. Keep the back straight. It's not a big deal for this situation, there we go. Nice stretch, feels good one way or the other. Alright, should we go on to the next? Calfs, calf cramps, oh, you can practice the stretch lying down to alleviate the cramp, or we're going to show you an option that actually works better, a little easier if you're able to get up and stand on the floor and use body weight to get it off. So, Mike, do you want to show them how they can get? Now, if you get a cramp in your calf, what's going to happen? Your toes are going to point down as a result of the calf muscle tightening. So the goal is to get the ankle to go up like that.
Brad: That will stretch the calf muscle and eliminate the cramp. Mike, take it away.
Mike: Now, there are many options depending upon the amount of mobility you have in your legs. Some people can possibly get their other foot down there and try to help push up, bringing the toes towards your face a little bit.
Mike: This'll stretch the calf muscle out. Other people maybe can't do that. What you can try to do is possibly heel slide. As you go up more, your foot will go into more of a neutral or slightly dorsiflexed position.
Mike: Sometimes this can help. Other people, if you have mobile enough hips, maybe you just have to get your foot up here and then use your hands to help pull. Basically, you just want to get the foot from a planter flex position down into a neutral or up position like this to stretch that calf out
Brad: Right? Put your leg back down. I just want to mention, if you're able to just pull your ankle up without assistance, that's the easiest way, and that can be all you need to do. But even if you do, you wake up with a cramp and you stretch it out like this, it might be a good idea to actually stand up and do the weight grain stretch just to make sure you don't have the potential to have another one later in the night.
Mike: Oftentimes when I experience a cramp, me being younger, I get relief by simply getting out of bed. Normally, I'm trying not to yell too loudly to wake up my girlfriend.
Brad: What's she doing there?
Mike: She's sleeping. But once you stand up here, then you want to get up, once you're up, and you start to bear weight through it. See, like here, once I start going down, I'm going to start getting a stretch. It might feel a little tight, but oftentimes once I get up, put weight on it, I might limp a little bit for a bit, but after a while it calms down. This is typically the quickest relief for me personally.
Brad: Do you ever add more stretch, like a stretch by the wall?
Mike: Usually not afterwards because I'm tired and I want to go back to bed. But this is a good option to do during the daytime.
Brad: Right, or before you go to bed, use the wall for support, and I'm stretching my left calf. If that's the one that normally cramps up at night, I'm going to push my heel to the floor. Can you point that out, Mike?
Mike: Right there.
Brad: There we go, that's why I'm wearing my red and blue socks. So it's very clear that we have that, and if your foot goes turned to the side, it's not doing anything. Point it this way, stretch it for 15, at probably 15 minimal, up to 30 seconds would be good to help that potential of eliminating the problem. Wow, do you feel better now, Mike?
Mike: I feel great.
Brad: How often do you get cramps at night?
Mike: Not too often right now, but in the summer, a little more. I'm very active.
Brad: Maybe when you're running, training longer distances for your marathon?
Mike: Yeah, or when I'm running around in cleats a little bit more.
Brad: We won't want cleats. What do you run around in cleats for?
Mike: Playing Frisbee.
Brad: Oh yeah, that's right, okay. Okay, two controversial methods, let's get to them. Now, we mentioned two controversial methods to eliminate night cramps. The first one, apple cider vinegar. Now you just don't take a bottle and you know, drink out of it. There's actually a formula for mixing it with water. This is something that we found evidence and studies, and some information on why it does work, but it's not confirmed that it's a cure at all. It's one of those things; it is controversial. We have a video, "Apple Cider Vinegar: Use For Leg Cramp, and More (Updated)." The video explains the studies and why it may work. And there's some nice anecdotal evidence of this actually working.
Mike: Now, the other method Brad had learned from some clientele we used to see in the past is when they're sleeping, they put a bar of soap under their sheets, and they claim it helps. I do not know the science behind this at all, but it's an option some people swear by.
Brad: I don't think there is any science, but I've had a number of patients. Typically, they're older and they swear by it, put the bar of soap in their sheets, and they don't get cramps. I don't know, I'm not going to promote it, but it's interesting what you hear.
Mike: What we do know is often times there are mineral deficiencies, typically in potassium and magnesium. So maybe you can get those levels checked out if you have chronic cramps in your calves.
Brad: That's right. Good luck with your night cramps, and please, good luck with them. We know they're not fun.
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