Leg Cramps Part 1

     At some point in a runner's life they have probably gotten some type of cramp in their leg that is just unbearable and cannot be tolerated. Usually you just run through the pain, trying to shake it off a bit, but in your head you know you're thinking that this could not in any way get any worse than it possibly is at this very moment.
     Chances are, you've complained to at least one another person about how awful they are. And said person probably responded to your situation with something like: "eat bananas!" or "eat mustard!" If you're anything like me, those words went in one ear and right out the other before I could even give myself a chance to consider it. Who comes up with those ideas, anyways?
     The problem with cramps in your legs is it's hard to tell what causes it. You can't feel them coming on, they're like an ambush on your muscles. Much like an ambush, you're caught off-guard, with little protection to counteract the blows you're facing.
     Even scientists have trouble researching leg cramps. It's for that exact reason, too. They're too un-predictable. There's not really an immediate cure, either. If you're like me, I massage the part of my leg that's giving me trouble to try to get the muscle to settle down. If that doesn't work, I apply the same theory that those you suggest you "eat/drink mustard" use. (My theory on that is that eating disgusting things does not fix the problem, but distracts you enough to let the cramp do its damage and leave like it was never even there.) I pinch myself. I do this when I'm in any sort of pain. It doesn't fix it or make the pain go away, but it distracts me. By distracting yourself with another sort of pain you can convince yourself that your leg doesn't hurt simply because you're focused on the pain you're inflicting on yourself.
      It's possible that by not drinking enough water you could heighten your risk for cramps. When you start to become dehydrated, your muscles get tired. I don't know the scientific correlation between the dehydration you face and muscle fatigue that causes cramps, but I do know that studies have shown that runners tend to cramp in the last half of the race or directly after a race. I can't disagree, in the first half of my races I'm tight, can feel my legs burning. But during the second half and especially after my races my legs begin to cramp, not so much of a fire burning feeling, but like an ache, every step more painful than the last.