Best way to get rid of cramps?

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Question:

I find it very annoying getting a cramp in my side when I’m having a good run. Sometimes I just keep running despite being uncomfortable, and sometimes I’m forced to walk it off. I heard putting your hands on your head is a good solution, but it doesn’t seem to work for me. Any suggestions on avoiding cramps? Leth —

Response:

Since starting an abdominal exercise regimen, I have never had side stitches. Going on two years now. -Phil

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Me experience is that doing plenty on situps and curls on a daily basis avoids side stitches / stomach cramps. I’m not sure why this helps me–I guess strengthening stomach muscles must have something to do with it. -Jim

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Leth, Here’s a previous post of mine that might be of help: I’ve noticed when I go out running that the biggest factor as to how fast I can go is my breathing–I can’t seem to breathe fast enough to keep up with a quicker pace, so I end up going slower than my legs can handle. Any suggestions for how to increase my oxygen intake? Also, the past couple of mornings I’ve gotten a terrible stitch on my right side. The only thing I have been going out is 2 glasses of water (16 oz.), but I’ve gotten the stitch even on days without the water. I’ve tried altering my form (holding my stomach muscles tighter, standing up straighter), but nothing seems to relieve this cramp. Help! Diane

Hi Diane, Was just reading some mythology first on Diana and her Greek counterpart, Artemis, goddess of the hunt. A most vindictive person should one get on her bad side. Artemis was the sister of Apollo and spent a great deal of time with her Oceanids and other caretakers hunting and roaming the rugged mountainous areas where they dwelled. There was no mention of her getting side aches, only of bathing in the rivers to assuage her fatigue. While my post reply to Yoga & Running has a good deal about breathing patterns, I believe that your issue is of reverse breathing. You see it in a fighter/ boxer when he get hit in the stomach, as he breathes in he reverses his breathing pattern. As he breathes in he sucks his stomach in. And as he breathes out, the belly is distended. To give you a picture of what I mean, place your right hand on your stomach just below the rib cage. Now place the left hand’s palms on top of the right hand. Now your right hand is your diaphram and your left hand is your abdominal muscles. As you breathe in, let your right hand be pushed away as the belly inflates with the downward contraction of the diaphram. At the same time let the left hand (representing the abdominals) push the back of the right hand back toward the belly. If you would continue to do that you’d cramp your right hand because it can’t go through it’s expansion cycle. You may now get an idea of what is causing your stitch. When I coach people with this similar problem, I have them lay on their backs, knees up and feet flat on the ground. I place a phone book on their stomach, or a lighter paperback so that they get a feel of the abdominals relaxing as the diaphram expands and pushes the book away from the belly area. If no book is available I have them use their hand so that they can feel the rise. If I were to say softly, "Diane, stay relaxed and on the count of three I want you to take a deep breath in. And I quietly say "One." "Two," very softly and slowly to keep your relaxed (oh yes, I have a high speed camera start on two) and on the count of three, I SCREAM ‘THREE’ AT THE TOP OF MY VOICE AND MAY A SUDDEN VIOLENT MOTION WITH MY HANDS CLAPPING TOGETHER…and SCARE the bejezus out of you…when we would play back the videotape, you would see that the scare reflex as you inhaled not knowing you were going to have the hell scared out of you, would show the tightening of your abdominal muscles…and you would end up holding your breath, ticked off that I would do such an unkind thing to you just to show you why you were getting stitches. But you would find that you would get them very seldom and when you did you would relax the abdominals or you would take the fingers of your right hand and place them just under your right rib cage and with the left hand push the blade of those fingers in and upward as your breathed in and felt the diaphram expand and push against the fingers which you didn’t allow to give….and as you exhaled you’d allow the fingers to ride in behind the relaxing diaphram….and you’d notice the stitch subside…and you would say to yourself: Darn, that’s really cool. When we attempt to run faster than what we are used to doing, the scare reflex gets the abdominals working against the diaphram…and you get your proverbial stitch. But again, this is just my folklore. If it doesn’t work for you, find someone who makes sense and whose folklore works for you. — In health and on the run, Ozzie Gontang Maintainer – rec.running FAQ Director, San Diego Marathon Clinic, est. 1975 Mindful Running http://www.mindfulness.com

Response:

Tried every thing the only thing that works for me is to walk them off.

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Response:

When I started running I had a terrible side stitch every time I ran. I modified my schedule to not eat ANYTHING after 1:00 PM and I run after work about 5:30-6:00 PM. As long as I only take in liquids after lunch I don’t have any cramps. Ken – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – I find it very annoying getting a cramp in my side when I’m having a good run. Sometimes I just keep running despite being uncomfortable, and sometimes I’m forced to walk it off. I heard putting your hands on your head is a good solution, but it doesn’t seem to work for me. Any suggestions on avoiding cramps? Leth —

Response:

Deep breathing is often a prevention for side stitches. Many side stitches are causes by carbon dioxide build-up in the lungs, caused by shallow breathing, often seen in runners. About every 3rd or 4th breath, quickly exhale, then resume regular breathing. This simple technique blows off excess carbon dioxide, which is replaced by oxygen. don’t deep breath more often than every 3rd or 4th breath. This may cause hyperventilation. After a while, it becomes second nature. Christi Henderson, KY

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I am the king of side stiches. Three things work for me: 1. While I think its psychological, it helps me to exhale when the foot on the opposite side of the cramp strikes the ground. 2. Belly breathing has never worked for me, it has only made the cramp worse. Instead I do just the opposite. I try to hold my stomach flat, and expand my chest when I breathe. 3. Exhaling forcefully will also help some. None of the above will work if the stich is really, really, bad. I try this stuff as soon as I feel it coming on. Good luck Matt

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Leth, Try breathing very deeply. This takes my side stitches away pretty quickly. Mike

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Thanks everyone, I’ve tried a lot of the techniques that were mentioned and what seems to be helping me the most is breathing through my nose and not my mouth. For some reason it seems like its more natural to breath through my mouth, but I’ve only gotten one cramp when since I’ve tried just taking in oxygen through my nose. Once in a while I quickly exhale my breath like someone mentioned and breath deeply and it seems to help a great deal. I’m up to 4 miles a day now and loving every meter of running it. :-) Leth, Try breathing very deeply. This takes my side stitches away pretty quickly. Mike

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Just to tie this into another thread, a technique that has worked for me is to shorten my stride and pick up my pace. I don’t know why this works (perhaps less stress on the diaphragm muscles due to the shorter stride) but it does the trick for me every time. Regards, John Lively

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