Last Monday I did an hour of bootcamp. The same night I woke up with cramps and sore muscles. The Tuesday after I ran with a limp and I had really strong muscle pain. I expected even more muscle pain on Wednesday because it is usually the worst two days after exercise, but I did not have any problems anymore. How is it possible that I had such a strong pain burden, but it was quite short?

-Ilona

 

Mark Chen, physiotherapist

A muscle cramp is a relatively normal and common problem, but in most cases perfectly preventable. The cause of a cramp is simply because too many muscle fibers contract at the same time and then “hold on” to each other. That is painful, and produces enormous tension in the muscle, but in most cases it is not harmful. There are several factors that can influence the risk of cramps.

One of the contributing factors is the internal environment of the muscle, for example:

– low glucose (sugar) content in the muscle
– poor fluid balance (too little fluid intake before, during or after training)
– a mineral deficiency

The muscles have an excellent circulatory system, so if the problem is metabolic in its nature, you will often no longer suffer the next day. As seems to be the case with you.

Circumstances and sportswear also have a strong influence. Have you had very tight footwear or stockings that could impede blood circulation? Or did you, for example, train while it was very cold outside? These are also factors that can play a significant role.
Just go for a walk through cold water and then immediately go jogging again. Very uncomfortable!

Also, do not underestimate that some boot camp training can be very heavy. If your physical condition is not good enough to “keep up” with everything, muscle fatigue can simply be the cause.

The question is, was this an incidental problem? Then maybe you just had bad luck, or trained a little too hard. Do you often suffer from cramps? Then it will probably be worthwhile to look at your fluid intake, diet and other factors above.

 

Hope that helps!

 

Mark

My question is about training the abdominal muscles. I train in a gym and I know that between sports I have to take a day off. But does that also apply to your abdominal muscles? Or can you train it every day?
-Damian

 

Mark Chen, physiotherapist

A certain rule applies to muscles: after a considerable training load, they need 24 to 72 (!) Hours to fully recover. This applies, in contrast to what some sources mention, for the abdominal muscles as well. When you wake up after a heavy workout with strong muscle pain, you’ll often feel and know that you need a day of rest!

The intensity of the training is the decisive factor here. You can load your abdominal muscles every day if you do not fully exhaust them, but the question is whether it is the most efficient way of training. In addition, there are numerous ways to train your abdominal muscles. I see many people doing sit ups almost exclusively, whereas in my opinion this is one of the least valuable exercises for a strong core.

The abdominal muscles are power suppliers for movements of the trunk, but they are also important stabilizers. This means that when they work well together with the back muscles, they ensure a good and strong support of the spine. So if you are working on exercises in which your whole body has to work together, like a squat or a dead lift, the abdominal muscles are also fully active. That way you can train your whole body including your abdominal muscles, without having to do sit ups! Ideal right?

 

Hope that helps,

 

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