One of the ladies I skate with (maybe mid to late 40s) has an on-going problem with cramps in her calf (calves) after doing about 15 minutes of warmup. The problem has been going on for the past couple of years and she and her coach can't figure out why. She has seen a doctor in "sports medicine" but they aren't "world class" around here. After she "shakes off" the cramps, she is fine then. Since she is going to be testing next week, I told her I'd ask the experts online!

Has anybody else had a similar problem and found a solution?

I seem to remember something about a vitamin or mineral deficiency that can cause cramps but the fact that it only happen after a 15 minute warmup and not later in the session seems kind of strange.

Any and all suggestions will be welcome!

Dianne

__________________
Dianne
(A.O.S.S.? Got it BAD! )

Does she stretch before she gets on the ice? If not, then she should. One of the stretches that I do that is good for calves (and shins) is to hold your leg out in front of you and point and flex the toes alternately, holding each for a few seconds. You can do this sitting or standing (if you stand, you obviously do one leg at a time and hold on to something). If there are stairs at the rink, you can stand on a step with your toes (with most of your foot off the step) and move the heel down and up and hold each for a few seconds. This is good at preventing shin splints, too.

Maybe not enough salt or something? Maybe drink half a bottle of powerade or gatorade before the session.

Potassium . . . try a banana.

Bananas worked for me when I got leg cramps during my pregnancies. (Potassium)

Tell her to check her shoes that she wears beforehand. If they're a bit worn, your feet tend to get used to them. Then when you put on the super-duper boots, you suffer.

Calf cramps happen to me after I wear heels to work, then skate later on in the evening. If I wear flats or very low heels, I'm okay.

Foot cramps are different. Usually happen because of too-narrow boots.

__________________

My calves naturally get quite tight, so I have to stretch them often. I usually try to stretch them several times a day. When I'm at the rink, I warm up first with light jogging so I'm not stretching cold. I do several stretches:

stretch calf with knee of same leg straight (gets the gastrocnemius muscle)
stretch calf with knee of same leg bent (gets the soleus muscle)
stand close to a wall, facing the wall and put foot at base of wall, with toes against wall and heel on floor (gets achilles tendon and gastroc) (this one can also be done facing the boards with skates on

I also like to make sure I'm walking down stairs at work a few times a day, for a nice active stretch of the muscles back there.

During any stretching, the foot should be aligned straight forward (not rotated out or in), and no bouncing. I have best results when I hold each stretch for at least 30 seconds. On days that I wear high heels, I have to stretch more than usual.

__________________
Ask me about becoming a bone marrow donor.
http://www.marrow.org
http://www.nmdp.org

does her feet pronate?
I have severe pronation and have very tight calf muscle, get cramps a lot.
so i did stretching a lot to ease the pain. orthotics also help.

One possibility is compartment syndrome which essentially is the muscle swells from the increased blood flow and the outflow hasn't caught up. I would periodically get that. As the muscle warmed up more and I changed my skating movements for a few minutes, the cramp would subside.

A second possibility is 'intermittent claudication' where the muscle needs more blood flow (oxygen) and there is some blockage preventing it (arteriosclerosis, or an arterial obstruction.) Usually the cramp subsides as the other vessels take up the slack with exercise. These people usually are put on a walking program. I also have this (: This is a very common problem in people over 40.......

Just some other thoughts to consider.

Some thoughts:

There could be a biomechanical problem that is putting odd muscle strains on the calf muscle. I had this problem when my lower back & pelvis problems were at their worst. My hip (and therefore entire leg) alignment was off, so it caused all kinds of weird muscle things. A decent physical therapist could maybe help.

Her skates could be fitted improperly, and this could be causing odd muscle strain as well.