Cramping Your Style

We gotta talk about cramps. Muscle cramps can really ruin your day, or your workout. First of all, prevention is fairly simple: stay hydrated and don't neglect electrolytes. But sometimes circumstances are such that there's not much you can do to avoid cramps. Extreme temperatures (heat, or cold with poor circulation and improper warmup) and long workouts can contribute to loss of electrolytes and water so that muscle cramps happen. Cramps are more likely to happen in flexor muscle groups (calves and hamstrings in particular), and in the feet. Cramps in the abdomen are generally "side stitches" and we will deal with those as well.

If you get a cramp, there are a few things you can do.

1) Stop walking. Gently stretch the cramping muscle. "Bounce" into the stretch if you need to, but then hold it until the cramp relaxes. I know this can be very annoying to do during a race, but it could make the difference between a personal worst (easy to get over) and a Did Not Finish - DNF (not fun).
1a) If the cramp is in your feet, you may need to remove your shoes to stretch or massage the cramp out. Make sure to accommodate any swelling when you put your shoes back on - you may need to loosen your laces.
2) Hydrate. Plain water is usually a bad idea because muscle cramps are often caused by a lack of electrolytes, and plain water will make that problem worse. Gatorade is ideal because it's a one-step fix, rather than needing water AND something else.
3) Upon completion of the workout, stretch out very well. Massage the muscle. If there is a knot, you can often help release it by pushing/squeezing the knot. Honestly, though, you might want to see a professional massage therapist if it is really bad and you don't have much experience with this type of release.

A side stitch is slightly different because it is tough to stretch such an internal muscle. I got one near the end of a 5K, and a guy gave me the advice to inhale through the nose and exhale forcefully (using my abs to push the air) through my mouth. It really worked wonders, and I recommend it to everyone highly. My mom swears by eating orange slices if you have a side stitch, so you can try that too, if you have easy access to fresh oranges (say, you're walking through a Florida grove).