How to prevent leg cramps when playing basketball

Exercise Associated Muscle Cramps | Coach Brock Bourgase

Exercise Associated Muscle Cramps (E.A.M.C.) affect athletes when a muscle involuntarily contracts and does not relax.  These forcible contractions (when the muscle shortens) are usually linked to overexertion.

Where?

• E.A.M.C.s commonly occur in single, multi-joint muscles utilized by basketball players (triceps, quadriceps, calves and hamstrings).

When?

• Fatigued muscles which are already shortened are more prone to cramping.

Why?

• There is not unanimous agreement about the causes of E.A.M.C.s so watch for triggers that may impact you more than others.

• Once muscle cramps occur during a workout, practice or competition, it is difficult to return to action.
• An E.A.M.C. may range in severity from a brief twinge to excruciating pain that lasts for several minutes until the muscle relaxes.
• Be proactive by staying fit in order to better resist cramps:
  • Drink water evenly throughout the day
  • Develop flexibility and range of motion (including dynamic movement, massage and stretching)
  • Consume potassium, sodium and calcium before the activity
  • Fuel your energy stores with low Glycemic Index carbohydrates
  • Avoid sudden changes in intensity level when fatigued

• While adequate hydration will not prevent all cramping, there is consensus that it is the best strategy to avoid E.A.M.C.s.
• Elite basketball players can lose between 1.5 and 2.5 litres of fluid during a typical game or training session (0. 8% to 1.8% of body weight).
  • When an athlete loses more than two to three percent of their body weight, they are susceptible to cramps.
  • Weigh yourself before and after a typical session to understand how much fluid you lose while playing: Fluid Loss = Starting Weight – Ending Weight + Fluids Consumed
• If the body is dehydrated, nerve endings can become overexcited and spontaneously discharge, creating a muscle cramp.
• Sip fluids on a regular schedule before competitions and intense workouts, even if you are not thirsty.
  • Athletes can tolerate a fluid intake of 1.8L per hour.
  • Carrying a water bottle throughout the day serves as a reminder for athletes to hydrate before exercising.

• Low Glycemic Index carbohydrates will last throughout long exercise periods.
  • Good low G.I. choices include: whole wheat pasta, multi-grain bread, brown rice, oats, apples, carrots.
  • Avoid processed grains and refined sugars.
• A well-balanced diet should include vitamins and nutrients.
  • Sodium: cereal, cottage cheese, beans.
  • Calcium: dairy products, soy, orange juice.
  • Potassium: bananas, green leafy vegetables, yogurt.

• A succession of quick deep breaths introduces oxygen to the body relieves E.A.M.C.s caused by lactic acid.
• Soft tissue massage, stretching and application of heat can stimulate blood flow to the cramped muscle and alleviate pain.
• Although consuming a sports drink/gel, banana or salt tablet may help, electrolytes require thirteen minutes to be absorbed into the system.
• Frequent cramping may require a visit to a sports medicine doctor.

• Athletes who have developed their aerobic energy systems will be less fatigued towards the end of games and practices and less likely to cramp.
• Rest properly between physical activity sessions so that the body can recover.
  • Active recovery during and after exercise disperses lactic acid.
  • o Do not exercise – or make players exercise – to the point of exhaustion.
• Push yourself during training to simulate intense games.
  • If practices are as hard as games, the body will not need to adjust when facing tough competition.
• Warm-up thoroughly; even if you are not a starter you must be ready to enter the game when required.

• BallnRoll. (2014, June 10). How To Prevent Muscle Cramps While Playing Basketball. Retrieved May 20, 2015, from BallnRoll: http://www.ballnroll.com/fitness?post=1199.
• Miller, K. C., Stone, M. S., Huxel, K. C., & Edwards, J. E. (2010, July). Exercise-Associated Muscle Cramps: Causes, Treatement, and Prevention. Sports Health, 2(4), 279-283.
• Weber, K. (2008, January 18). Cramping. Retrieved May 20, 2015, from Ask the Docs: http://www.nba.com/bulls/news/askdocs_080118.html.

How to Avoid Cramps While Playing Basketball

Basketball is one of the greatest sports in the world, and everyone wants to play basketball! This sport will help you gain new friends, improve your body, and be better in the sport.

Still, there is one thing that all basketball players face on the court, cramps.

Come to think of it, even though those cramps won't get you in the hospital, it is still irritating because once your coach has seen that you are having cramps on the court, you will get subbed off immediately!

We all want to last on the basketball court to score hoops, which is why you will find out the effective ways of avoiding cramps while playing basketball.

Having a great diet plan is the first thing you need to remember whenever you're going to play basketball. Remember that this sport is not just all about speed, strength, or the accuracy of your shots; it's having all of these perks in one person.

If you are serious about playing on the basketball court, you need to discipline yourself first by having a healthy diet. It might be tempting for you to try unhealthy foods but remember that regrets can come at the end of the day.

The next important thing is that you need to be active in the gym even though you're just going to play a friendly game on the basketball court.

And no, don't "occasionally" hit the gym just because you're going to have a big game next week. Basketball brings you long-term growth, which is why you need to be serious about taking care of your body, including increasing your muscle mass percentage.

Upgrading your sportswear is the other thing you need to remember if you want to play longer on the basketball court.

Remember that this is not a fashion show; that is why there is no point for you to compare if your sportswear has an authentic brand or not. Aside from buying comfortable basketball shoes and leg sleeves, you need to invest in kinesiology tape.

Kinesiology tapes will help you soothe and support your muscles while you're playing on the court. Guardian Athletic SportGTape™ can effectively support your muscles, tendons, ligaments, and joints, making you stay longer on the court!

One of Kinesio tape's best features is that it puts pressure on your skin, which will control that muscle group's body fluids wherever you get hurt.

That is why if you noticed that most pro basketball players put sports tape on a specific muscle and you will get astonished at how they can last longer in the court without getting injured! The other reason here is that the physio tape stretches their muscles which will always make less impact whenever other players try to hurt them.

Kinesio taping is a great way to avoid injuries, and that is why if this is your first time using a kt athletic tape, then you need to apply the tape in one of these parts:

Knee

Jumping is required in basketball- the higher you jump, the more chances of scoring. What makes jumping dangerous is how you're going to land, which is why it's best to apply kinesiology tape on your knee. Your joints will only receive less damage whenever you have a hard land on the court.

Shoulder

Shooting a 3-point shot is never easy, and that is why you'll notice that pro basketball players have strong shoulders because these will help them increase their shot power. Consistently pushing yourself in shooting with your full strength will bring you immense pain, and to avoid it, you also need to apply kinesiology tape on your shoulder so that you won't feel the sores as you keep on scoring in the court.

Wrist

To make the ball go inside the basket, you need to curve as you throw it with your wrists. Knowing how heavy a basketball is, you need to put pressure by applying kinesiology tape on your wrist so that you don’t strain them.

Even though that basketball players have kinesiology tapes on them, they are still required to go into ice baths to recover immediately. Guardian Athletic SportGTape™ also offers you their Icy Cooling kinesiology tape so that your muscles recover while you're playing on the court!

You are on the basketball court, not on the football field, and that is why you need to limit your pace, or else you will get cramps. Even though you are active in the gym and doing cardio all day, you need to know your limits to avoid suffering from cramps.

It's better to be careful rather than to show off. Still, this is not a marathon, it is basketball. You can make up other strategies in scoring by depending on your jumping instead of your pace, or you can rely on your muscle memory in terms of shooting inside or outside the arc. In other words, you don't have to rely too much on scoring on your own.

These are all the tips that you need to follow to last longer on the basketball court. It might sound easy and simple, but these tips were very helpful, especially to those who aspire to play in the professional league.

Tennis cramps are sometimes scary. It is not clear exactly what causes them, but pickle helps to fight - From the world along the Thread - Blogs

In Australia, we will definitely see them.

This year's Australian Open will be tough for the players as Melbourne's wildfires can cause very poor air quality. But in Australia, players have had a hard time before because of the heat, against which cramps often occur.

Cramps cause players to lose control of their bodies but are not considered an injury

Spasms are uncontrollable contractions of various muscles that are accompanied by pain and can last up to several minutes. Sometimes it looks very scary.

In 2009, Caroline Wozniacki, on a 30-degree day at the final tournament in Doha, fell on the court at the end of a three-hour meeting with Vera Zvonareva. Serving for victory, she suddenly grabbed her leg, collapsed on her back, and then twitched and screamed in pain - all because of the fact that her leg and abdominal muscles were cramping. Despite this, the Dane played a break point in tears and brought the match to victory.

While Wozniacki was lying on the court, the referee gave her a warning for running out of time. It may sound brutal, but it is nothing compared to what happened at the 1995 US Open when Japan's Shuzo Matsuoka suffered a seizure against Petr Korda.

They've been fighting for 3.5 hours already, Matsuoka was leading 2:1 in sets, in the fourth it was 5:5. After the first serve in the 11th game, the Japanese suddenly screamed and fell to the court. According to the rules of those years, even when the referee realized that Matsuoka would not be able to continue the match, they left him lying and screaming for several minutes, penalizing first a point, then a game, and then removing him from the game. Only after that, a team of doctors and Kord rushed to him with ice towels.

Korda later called this rule cruel, and the fans gathered in the stadium hooted in displeasure to protest that no one was helping the Japanese. And it’s not very clear why they didn’t help him: yes, convulsions were considered not an injury, but a lack of physical fitness, so he would have been removed if someone had touched him. But when the referee realized that Matsuoka would not be able to continue, there was no point in tormenting him.

After this incident, the rules were changed, and convulsions were equated with a normal injury. Players got the right to take a medical break because of them at any time. But by 2010, tennis bosses felt that tennis players were too often using medical breaks for other purposes, but to knock rivals off the rhythm. The rules have changed again.

Tennis players are currently not allowed to take medical breaks due to seizures, but they can call the physiotherapist twice during a side change during the match. If a player is unable to continue, he may surrender a few points or games to reach the correct score for the change of sides. At the same time, the physio should determine by touch whether the player has an injury or convulsions. Dr. Tim Wood, former chief medical officer of the Australian Open in 2010, said it was all "very, very subjective."

This is probably why convulsions and interruptions are still a problem. For example, in the Australian Open qualifying, Alessandro Giannesi lost to Dok-Hee Lee in the decisive tie-break, which in Melbourne goes to 10 points. With the score 0:4, the Korean was helped due to convulsions, although according to the rules this was not allowed. Giannesi eventually lost 7:10, did not shake hands with his opponent and scolded the judges for a long time.

Why do seizures start?

Tennis players have been wondering about this for almost 100 years. Back in 1929, Briton Bunny Austin withdrew from a Davis Cup match due to cramps in the fifth set, and after that he was sure that the long flannel trousers that everyone then played were to blame. Austin felt that the feet in them become too wet.

In the end, in 1931, he cut off the legs and thus created tennis shorts. In 1947, American Jack Cramer became the first person to win Wimbledon in them - and in the final he played in front of the British king and queen.

The understanding of seizures has advanced since Austin's time, but the main theory is still related to heat, which leads to electrolyte imbalance in the body. The body's main cooling mechanism is sweating. When we sweat, the body loses fluid and the minerals it contains. As a result, unfavorable conditions arise for the cells that control muscle contractions, and this leads to spontaneous activity.

But now there is a new hypothesis - that fatigue leads to impaired neuromuscular control. The scheme is something like this:

• repetition of the same movements leads to muscle fatigue;

• muscle fatigue leads to disruption of the muscle spindles (controlling contraction or stretching) and the tendon spindles, which are responsible for controlling the level of muscle tension;

• this, in turn, leads to an increase in the activity of alpha motor neurons, which are directly responsible for muscle contraction;

• and the result is a spasm.

In this hypothesis, heat also plays a role, because it can be one of the causes of muscle fatigue, which starts the whole chain.

And under both hypotheses, tennis, with its 2-3-4-5 hour matches and huge workloads, is the perfect sport for cramps.

How to deal with them?

^{Gil Reyes on the right}

One of the most respected fitness coaches in tennis, Gil Reyes (thanks to whom Andre Agassi played until the age of 36), said: “According to my players, when cramps begin, there is almost nothing to do with them impossible. The body sends a pretty urgent signal."

Therefore, the main task is not to stop, but to prevent convulsions. The advice here is banal and time-tested:

• work on physical fitness. But this does not always guarantee a 100% result. For example, Rafael Nadal, who is simply a beast in terms of preparation, had a slight cramp in his forearms at the US Open last year in a match with Diego Schwartzman. And in 2011, he went under the table during a press conference, because, amid fatigue after the match, his leg cramped. (Caroline Wozniacki then parodied this moment - and apologized on Twitter).

• eat right to maintain the right balance of trace elements in the body. For example, Grigor Dimitrov, who often suffered from seizures at the beginning of his career, said that he now periodically takes a blood test in order to choose the most effective diet.

• Minerals and energy must be replenished during matches. For example, Andy Murray's process is so scientific that he went to matches with a whole bag of different bottles. They are mixed with special drinks, and their composition for different stages of the match was different, so, for example, in the fifth set he drank not the same as in the first.

• You need to stretch your muscles - both in preparation and during matches.

In recent years, it has been discovered that one proven method of dealing with seizures may not work as commonly thought. Athletes have long used salt because it was thought to help restore electrolyte balance. For example, last year John Millman explained why he drank brine during the Australian Open match: “It helps with cramps. It has a lot of salt in it."

But now more and more scientists are inclined to believe that in fact salty drinks do not replenish the balance of electrolytes, but trigger a reflex in the mouth that tells the body to stop cramps. True, it is very difficult to verify this: the peculiarities of taste do not allow creating a placebo, which is necessary for a normal study.

It is not known what hypothesis Daniil Medvedev was guided by when last year in Barcelona during a match with Nishikori he poured salt into his mouth directly from the salt shaker. But then he won, and he did not have convulsions.

Photo: East News/Associated Press/East News; Gettyimages.ru/Central Press / Stringer, Paul Kane / Stringer, Mark Dadswell; twitter.com/Tennis

Why does it bring legs together when running. Causes, prevention, life hacks

Do you cramp your legs during or after a run? Soviet Sport Life&Style knows how to solve this problem once and for all. At our request, a professional trainer Ksenia Astrakhantseva , marathon runner, MSMK in athletics, told why she cramps her legs while running and what to do to avoid it.

“Muscle cramps are an emergency, involuntary contraction of a muscle, its spasm. The muscle contracts without interruption to relax, and the result is severe pain that often leads to an inability to continue exercise or even movement.

It can bring legs together both during the running itself and after – during the recovery periods. The good news is that muscle cramps are still quite rare during runs. It happens more often only in case of too high loads - for example, when passing a marathon or half-marathon distances.

“One of the main causes of muscle cramps while running is fluid loss. At high air temperatures or with especially great physical effort, the body loses a significant proportion of water, salts and minerals. Due to their lack, the muscles lose elasticity and the ability to contract correctly - this causes spasm.

Other causes of runner cramps include cold weather, tight running shoes, tight socks or running gaiters. All these factors are associated with changes in blood circulation. Due to weather conditions or improperly selected blood supply, not enough blood enters the muscles: the muscle, experiencing a load, stops working in the normal mode and spasms, begins to contract involuntarily and sharply.

Finally, another reason is the accumulation of lactic acid in the muscles. If the legs cramp on days free from jogging or after running, this, with a high degree of probability, indicates that the muscles have “acidified”. Pain and spasms are caused by decay products that have formed in the muscle as a result of intense exertion.

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“When a muscle cramp occurs, training should be stopped. If your thigh or lower leg is cramping, try to straighten your leg as much as possible and pull the toe on yourself. This will stretch the reduced muscle, bring it out of a state of spasm.

Massage the affected muscle. If stroking and rubbing does not help, try pinching and tapping the skin over the contracted muscle.

In case of regular occurrence of muscle cramps, even without the presence of overexertion, it is necessary to consult a doctor. Blood and urine tests will show the content of minerals in the body, the state of the water-salt balance, and give an idea of ​​the work of the kidneys and other internal organs. This information will exclude diseases of the internal organs as the cause of muscle cramps.

Do not self-medicate if your legs cramp regularly. Various dietary supplements and medications - if taken without a doctor's prescription - can aggravate the "skew" in metabolism. The pain will become progressive."

“Elementary preventive measures if you run regularly are drinking plenty of fluids during training and after, hitting and warming up before jogging, stretching on non-running days.

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