Calf cramps? page

[invino77]

I am getting cramps in my toes and calves at night and in the morning. Is this related to low carb? is it dangerous? what can i do to combat it?

[Canarygirl]

Increase magnesium and potassium containing foods, and/or use supplements. Dark leafy greens, avocados, almonds, broccoli, banana (not low carb though)...and I take Mg supps before bed if I'm having calf cramps, also I take a packet of "Emergen-C" every day which has 200 mg potassium and other traces in it.

[Mike Alzen]

Increase magnesium and potassium containing foods, and/or use supplements. Dark leafy greens, avocados, almonds, broccoli, banana (not low carb though)...and I take Mg supps before bed if I'm having calf cramps, also I take a packet of "Emergen-C" every day which has 200 mg potassium and other traces in it.

+1

Primal/Paleo significantly reduced the leg/foot cramps my wife was getting, supplementing magnesium seems to have gotten rid of the rest.

[Daemonized]

Right next to my subdivision is a field with lots of grass fed cattle and they have tons of calves running around in there. Man, I wish one of them was mine so I could get it slaughtered to stuff my freezer with plenty of nice and tasty beef! They're all running around in there and I don't think any of them look like they have cramps though and I'm certainly not going to combat any of them.
(Woops, your title threw me off on a tangent)
That doesn't sound like a low carb thing to me. Are you doing some kind of leg workout or have you just started sprinting or something?

[suechef]

I was going to post about potassium too - wondering if the need to ensure more potassium is permanent with low carbing, or just a temporary adjustment period? I definitely have cramping issues when I eat low carb.

[invino77]

Ha ha...I was unsure abou the singular form of the lower leg of the human...calve? calf? oh well! Mine hurt! No strange excersizes, and the cramping started in line with low carb. so i need a potassium and magnesium supplement?

[stockjohn]

I have the same problem. When I'm lying in bed my right calf muscle starts to contract. I have to grab my toes and pull back to prevent it from becoming too painful. I'll try potassium too I guess.

[zdrive]

Happens to me too. Really painful and not fun to wake up to. I'm going to double check my multi vitamin's potassium content.

[DebFM]

Leg cramps do have something to do with being low-carb. I can't remember exactly, so don't quote me, but it has to do with carbs causing the kidneys to retain fluids and certain minerals. When you go low carb, the kidneys are able to release that fluid but they release the extra minerals as well. The cramps are caused by a bit of mineral imbalance.

Lo Salt or Lite-Salt works too - they both contain potassium choloride along with sodium chloride. I quit getting leg cramps when I started using the Lo Salt and added more veg to my diet. I drink more water, now, too. That seems to help as well. I sleep all night, no leg/toe/foot cramps. Nice.

[DianeThePurple]

Multi-vitamins in the US have very little potassium in them. Avocadoes are a good source, tomatoes are even better.

Good luck, I hope this helps!