What causes cramping and muscle spasms?

 Doctor Peter Lewis takes the time to answer some of the common fighter questions we get asked here at International Kickboxer.

Q. What are the most common training injuries you see and how do you treat them?

There are several factors that cause cramps. When I was a football club doctor we did an experiment which involved taking blood from players who were cramping on the field, while they were still cramping. We found in every case the player was severely dehydrated. I believe that drinking lots of water is the key to preventing cramps. Magnesium deficiency may also contribute to cramps.

Cramps often occur in a muscle that is ‘tight’ because of pain or discomfort. This can be due to a previous injury that has not healed yet properly. This is often the case with calf muscle strains. The pain or tightness can be due to referred pain, such as sciatica, which is pain that runs down into the hamstring from a pinched nerve in the back.

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