Somebody help!

[HermDogg]

Agh... I was lying down in my bed, pushed myself forward to turn off my computer and the minute my ankle went from a 90 degree angle down i got the tightest muscle contraction on the back of my calf ever. Anyone know what I can do to stop it?

 

[TechnoKid]

Originally posted by: HermDogg
Agh... I was lying down in my bed, pushed myself forward to turn off my computer and the minute my ankle went from a 90 degree angle down i got the tightest muscle contraction on the back of my calf ever. Anyone know what I can do to stop it?

they call 'em charlie horses...bite your upper lip or pinch it hard. sometimes this works for me.

 

[n0cmonkey]

Stand up. 😛

 

[HermDogg]

Standing up only made it worse... Fun experience though. I just pulled out the ol' electric blanket that was next to the bed, flipped it on high and put it on there till it relaxed. Thanks though.

 

[wfn]

walk it off or:

text

 

[thomsbrain]

grab your foot and pull it back up with your hands. this will fix it. stay still for a minute though, cause sometimes they come back on you. the first i had one, i woke up with it and went into total panic. i was still half asleep and couldn't figure out what was going on. but i pulled my foot up and that fixed it.

edit: by "foot" i mean the front of your foot, grab it by the toes to rotate it back up at the ankle.

 

[NikPreviousAcct]

You need to stretch out the muscle that's cramping.

 

[vailr]

Muscle cramping can usually be traced to a vitamin or mineral deficiency of some kind; such as vitamin D, potassium, calcium & magnesium.

Text

More info on "tying up" (referring to horses):
Text

CAUSES OF TYING UP:

* Altered carbohydrate metabolism in the horse
Recent work has identified abnormal carbohydrate metabolism as a cause in many breeds of tying up.
* Hypotension / Nervousness
* Electrolyte imbalances
Horses which tie up during or following exercise frequently have electrolyte imbalances. These imbalances cannot be diagnosed with simple blood testing.
* Mineral deficiency (Ca, Mg, P, K and Se)
* Lactate build up
* Too little oxygen getting to the muscles
* Vitamin E \ Selenium deficiencies
* Hypothyroidism
* Hormone imbalances
* Dehydration
* Ca : P Ratio imbalanced
* Imbalanced mineral ratios in diet
* Over exertion in training
* Dramatic changes in training
* Genetic Inheritance

 

[richardycc]

eat a banana?

 

[Encryptic]

Originally posted by: HermDogg
Agh... I was lying down in my bed, pushed myself forward to turn off my computer and the minute my ankle went from a 90 degree angle down i got the tightest muscle contraction on the back of my calf ever. Anyone know what I can do to stop it?

Put your foot against the wall. I have that happen occasionally as well when I'm laying in bed and stretch my legs out, but if I get out of bed and put my foot against the cold wall, it stops the contraction almost immediately. I heard this somewhere and I don't know why it works, but it does.

 

[SaltBoy]

Originally posted by: n0cmonkey
Stand up. 😛

Yup. This works every time for me.

 

[Fritzo]

Originally posted by: richardycc
eat a banana?

I always heard that too. Muscle cramps could be caused by potassium deficiencies.