Socks and leg cramps...is this even possible

rick601 · Aug 9, 2017

After a post here, I decided to try a pair of the moto skiveez underwear- very pleased, except walking around is like wearing a loaded diaper, but the ride comfort is so noticeable, I can live with that three year old "mommy I made a poo-poo" feeling- they are THAT effective on the bike.

While looking at them, I saw the moto skiveez compression socks- I didn't really see any claims about leg cramps (I did see one somewhere...not, I think, on the Skiveez site.) They only promised to prevent heart attacks, keep the blood from pooling in my legs, make me rich and desirable to women half my age- the usual product promises. Anyway, in for a penny in for a pound I bought a pair. I took a 100 mile spin today, usually, riding around local, after 30-50 miles, I get leg cramps after a red light stop, when I put my foot back on the pegs...almost unbearable, well today, that was ALMOST non-existent, enough better that it was undeniable that something was better.

I was gonna say I was curious if anyone else noticed this, but I don't think I really am that curious. I DID want to share that ONE anecdotal experience with you guys ....if it saves one leg cramp...

AKsuited · Aug 9, 2017

This has good information: http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/muscle-cramp/symptoms-causes/dxc-20186052

From the article:

Causes

Overuse of a muscle, dehydration, muscle strain or simply holding a position for a prolonged period can cause a muscle cramp. In many cases, however, the cause isn't known.
Although most muscle cramps are harmless, some may be related to an underlying medical condition, such as:
Inadequate blood supply. Narrowing of the arteries that deliver blood to your legs (arteriosclerosis of the extremities) can produce cramp-like pain in your legs and feet while you're exercising. These cramps usually go away soon after you stop exercising.
Nerve compression. Compression of nerves in your spine (lumbar stenosis) also can produce cramp-like pain in your legs. The pain usually worsens the longer you walk. Walking in a slightly flexed position — such as you would use when pushing a shopping cart ahead of you — may improve or delay the onset of your symptoms.
Mineral depletion. Too little potassium, calcium or magnesium in your diet can contribute to leg cramps. Diuretics — medications often prescribed for high blood pressure — also can deplete these minerals.

At the rally in Salt Lake City, I discussed with the First Aid people that I had had some minor cramping in my legs, something I usually do not experience. They suggested dehydration...and had me drink plenty of water...and some Gator-Ade, since drinking lots of water may have flushed some minerals from my system...

rick601 · Aug 9, 2017

AKsuited said:
This has good information: http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/muscle-cramp/symptoms-causes/dxc-20186052

From the article:

Causes

Overuse of a muscle, dehydration, muscle strain or simply holding a position for a prolonged period can cause a muscle cramp. In many cases, however, the cause isn't known.
Although most muscle cramps are harmless, some may be related to an underlying medical condition, such as:
Inadequate blood supply. Narrowing of the arteries that deliver blood to your legs (arteriosclerosis of the extremities) can produce cramp-like pain in your legs and feet while you're exercising. These cramps usually go away soon after you stop exercising.
Nerve compression. Compression of nerves in your spine (lumbar stenosis) also can produce cramp-like pain in your legs. The pain usually worsens the longer you walk. Walking in a slightly flexed position — such as you would use when pushing a shopping cart ahead of you — may improve or delay the onset of your symptoms.
Mineral depletion. Too little potassium, calcium or magnesium in your diet can contribute to leg cramps. Diuretics — medications often prescribed for high blood pressure — also can deplete these minerals.

At the rally in Salt Lake City, I discussed with the First Aid people that I had had some minor cramping in my legs, something I usually do not experience. They suggested dehydration...and had me drink plenty of water...and some Gator-Ade, since drinking lots of water may have flushed some minerals from my system...

Wow, very interesting. I should add some water and minerals to the mix. thanks

lee · Aug 9, 2017

AKsuited said:
Too little potassium, calcium or magnesium in your diet can contribute to leg cramps[/B]. Diuretics — medications often prescribed for high blood pressure — also can deplete these minerals.

..

My wife used to get bad leg cramps then figured out she was low in magnesium. She now takes some magnesium supplements and rarely has a problem.
Besides high blood pressure meds she read cholesterol meds will deplete magnesium.

markaz · Aug 9, 2017

You might want to check with your doc and see about a vein mapping of your legs. It's a quick painless ultrasound procedure. You might be having issues with venous reflux where the valves in your leg veins don't work properly. It can cause cramping and worse as it progresses. The fact that compression socks help might indicate that there is a problem developing. I'm not a doc, just in the middle of a series of treatments for it, but I started out with similar symptoms and that's where it led.

jgoertz · Aug 9, 2017

I've been wearing compression hose daily since 2005. I had a DVT then, and my doctors (I had a ton of them working to determine the cause of my DVT, as I had NONE of the typical symptoms). After the clot was removed (it wouldn't react to typical treatments of Heparin, etcetera), my hematologist suggest the compression hose to keep the blood from pooling and perhaps keep the clots from forming again. Nothing was said about them preventing cramps (and they don't -- when I'm severely dehydrated, I still get leg cramps. Fortunately, not often). I'll keep wearing the compression hose until something better is presented. DVT's are dangerous, and I DON'T want to suffer another!

wbrownell9 · Aug 9, 2017

I bought some MotoSkivees socks at the rally too and they help keep my feet from swelling. There was a period where I got excruciatingly painful leg cramps nearly every night and I was terrified that I'd get one while riding. Never happened (fortunately) but I haven't had them for a while.

As noted, good hydration helps a lot. I have a hydration system that replaces my right passenger footpeg with a holder for a 1/2 gallon coleman cooler with a long drink tube. Fill it full of ice, then add water for a cool drink all day long. On a warm day it's nearly empty by the time I reach the destination of the day (6-8 hours). Stay away from caffeinated beverages - coffee, sodas, tea. They're diuretics and undo whatever good your hydration efforts produce. Plus it increases the time you spend peeing instead of riding. I'm sure you know that if your urine is dark yellow you're not getting enough water.

Some sources say just plain water is enough, no need for fancy extra mineral supplements (Gatorade etc.) because most people get enough in their diet. So far water works for me.

lee · Aug 9, 2017

wbrownell9 said:
Some sources say just plain water is enough, no need for fancy extra mineral supplements (Gatorade etc.) because most people get enough in their diet. So far water works for me.

One day at work I ended up in the emergency room after overheating.
I was drinking plenty of water, but no Gatorade and my jeans and shirt were completely soaked with sweat.
They gave me two IV bags of electrolytes before I knew which way was up.

weschmann · Aug 10, 2017

Lee said:
One day at work I ended up in the emergency room after overheating.
I was drinking plenty of water, but no Gatorade and my jeans and shirt were completely soaked with sweat.
They gave me two IV bags of electrolytes before I knew which way was up.

Same thing happened to me at the rally. Medical there had an er doc. volunteering and said even though I had been using a hydration bag with water in it ,it wasn't enough. With all the water he said I was just flushing out electrolytes so counter productive. He also had me drinking Gatorade to stabilize.

71243 · Aug 10, 2017

Lee said:
My wife used to get bad leg cramps then figured out she was low in magnesium. She now takes some magnesium supplements and rarely has a problem.
Besides high blood pressure meds she read cholesterol meds will deplete magnesium.

Has your wife ever tried the transdermal/topical magnesium spray ? I have read where that is the better way ?

lee · Aug 10, 2017

71243 said:
Has your wife ever tried the transdermal/topical magnesium spray ? I have read where that is the better way ?

There is a spray she has used and seems like it was almost instant relief for her.
Now she takes a liquid each day to make sure her Mag level stays up there.
She has also made changes to her diet to help and also help with her arthritis.

71243 · Aug 10, 2017

Lee said:
There is a spray she has used and seems like it was almost instant relief for her.
Now she takes a liquid each day to make sure her Mag level stays up there.
She has also made changes to her diet to help and also help with her arthritis.

Thanks,.....Arthritis is what I'm chasing. I think I'll ask my doc to check for Mag, in my blood?If a person reads up on it, it can ave a positive effect on many things? From I have read so far...there are little to no negative side effects to having an elevated level ?

lee · Aug 10, 2017

71243 said:
there are little to no negative side effects to having an elevated level ?

Can't answer that one. My wife is the one doing all the research and she's at work now.

crna59 · Aug 10, 2017

Lee said:
One day at work I ended up in the emergency room after overheating.
I was drinking plenty of water, but no Gatorade and my jeans and shirt were completely soaked with sweat.
They gave me two IV bags of electrolytes before I knew which way was up.

Sometimes I work a double shift out on the range as a MSF Instructor. On two separate occasions, I made sure I drank plenty of water (at least a gallon or so). Both times I suffered from leg cramps that were almost unbearable. Recently I have been using Gatorade instead and have never had another leg cramp after hot days out on the range. I swear by it now. It works......

lee · Aug 10, 2017

71243 said:
I think I'll ask my doc to check for Mag, in my blood?If a person reads up on it, it can ave a positive effect on many things? From I have read so far...there are little to no negative side effects to having an elevated level ?

I checked with my wife and you're correct, you will not build up a high level, the body will just pass it out.
She also mentioned the blood test are not always accurate, you just have to give it a try and see if it helps.

powwow · Aug 10, 2017

Lee said:
One day at work I ended up in the emergency room after overheating.
I was drinking plenty of water, but no Gatorade and my jeans and shirt were completely soaked with sweat.
They gave me two IV bags of electrolytes before I knew which way was up.

I ride with a 32 oz bladder in my tank bag and generally stop to stretch about every two hours. If I'm riding in high temps, I'll typically drink water during the cooler morning hours, then down a large container of Gatorade during an early afternoon stop. This process seems to keep me well hydrated and with adequate electrolytes.

snotty54 · Aug 10, 2017

Hydration-arthritic pain

I've been getting stiff in the knees especially after sitting for awhile(driving the car for 1/2 hour) and when I'd get up I'd hobble for the first couple of steps and then it would start to ease off and after about 8-10 steps go away. My Doctor said that was arthritis. An older lady (late 70's) told me eliminating "night shades" eliminated that type of pain for her. I googled night shades and its potatoes, tomatoes, eggplant and bell peppers. I stopped eating those foods and anything made from them (potato chips, french fries, spaghetti sauce, etc.) and the arthritic pain went away. It was hitting me hard after only an hour on the bike before I gave up night shades, now I can run 2-3 hours until my bladder says NO! The bike can go a lot farther than I before it needs fuel ('12 RT).

The other little benefit I've learned lately was from a nutritionist I've been going to for weight loss. I was telling him how little I ate on the road, that I wasn't hungry much, but dehydrated and I drank a lot of Gatorade (I carry a small cooler). He recommended something else as he said Gatorade had a lot of sugar. The other product comes in these little packets that are easy to carry, and you open a standard 16oz bottle of water, pour the powder in, and shake it and drink. It has all the same electrolytes but no sugar, and tastes similar to Gatorade (Gatorade and this drink are good when you're dehydrated and not so good when you ain't). It is called Sqwincher Zero and sells 50 packets in a bag for $17.24 on Amazon. It is good stuff, and a lot cheaper than buying Gatorade on the road. Course, not everyone is traveling for 8-10 days on a bike, but more BMW owners probably do it then cruiser owners.

lee · Aug 10, 2017

snotty54 said:
An older lady (late 70's) told me eliminating "night shades" eliminated that type of pain for her. I googled night shades and its potatoes, tomatoes, eggplant and bell peppers. I stopped eating those foods and anything made from them (potato chips, french fries, spaghetti sauce, etc.) and the arthritic pain went away.

Cutting back on Night Shades helped my wife's arthritis. She found out she can now eat potatoes once in awhile now that shes been taking Magnesium.
She also found avoiding gluten helps with arthritis pain, but that's not easy.

rick601 · Aug 11, 2017

snotty54 said:
I've been getting stiff in the knees especially after sitting for awhile(driving the car for 1/2 hour) and when I'd get up I'd hobble for the first couple of steps and then it would start to ease off and after about 8-10 steps go away. My Doctor said that was arthritis. An older lady (late 70's) told me eliminating "night shades" eliminated that type of pain for her. I googled night shades and its potatoes, tomatoes, eggplant and bell peppers. I stopped eating those foods and anything made from them (potato chips, french fries, spaghetti sauce, etc.) and the arthritic pain went away. It was hitting me hard after only an hour on the bike before I gave up night shades, now I can run 2-3 hours until my bladder says NO! The bike can go a lot farther than I before it needs fuel ('12 RT).

The other little benefit I've learned lately was from a nutritionist I've been going to for weight loss. I was telling him how little I ate on the road, that I wasn't hungry much, but dehydrated and I drank a lot of Gatorade (I carry a small cooler). He recommended something else as he said Gatorade had a lot of sugar. The other product comes in these little packets that are easy to carry, and you open a standard 16oz bottle of water, pour the powder in, and shake it and drink. It has all the same electrolytes but no sugar, and tastes similar to Gatorade (Gatorade and this drink are good when you're dehydrated and not so good when you ain't). It is called Sqwincher Zero and sells 50 packets in a bag for $17.24 on Amazon. It is good stuff, and a lot cheaper than buying Gatorade on the road. Course, not everyone is traveling for 8-10 days on a bike, but more BMW owners probably do it then cruiser owners.

View attachment 63089

Thanks, my Sqwincher Zero is in the mail...just ordered! I usually get gatorade and am concerned about all the sugar 'n stuff.

EvryDayRide · Aug 11, 2017

In the Wildland Firefighting business, we use to preach staying hydrated! (they still do) Ran into some of the same issues with people over-hydrating. Then we started pushing Gatorade and other type liquids. Again, we had people going too far on the sugars and electrolytes. Middle of the road was the answer. 50/50 mix works well. Or, if you drink one Gatorade you drink one water. I like some of the mixes that you put in the your water. You don't have to dump in the whole packet unless you think you need to?

John

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