Pain in the muscles and joints of the legs, muscle cramps

Each of us is familiar with pain in the muscles and joints. So today we will talk about what to do with muscle pain, how to get rid and relieve pain in the muscles and joints of the legs: pain in the shin, knee joint, foot, also consider how to remove muscle cramps.

This is especially true for gastrocnemius muscles, which are a very unpleasant and painful phenomenon from which a person, waking up in the middle of the night, it seems that his muscles and veins in a cramped leg, are about to burst.

Consider the causes, symptoms, principles of treatment and prevention, leg and joint pain. And what needs to be done to reduce and remove severe pain.

Causes of muscle pain

WhenInstitute of occurrence of muscle pain are many, but the most important of them - overload. Muscles can not withstand the strain that you give them( perhaps during training), and react to it in their own way: pain, cramps or stretching.

Muscle pain is most often the result of a physiological process that arises from the accumulation of excess lactic acid in the muscles. Lactic acid acts on the nerve endings of muscle fibers, which causes their irritation and, as a result, soreness.

How to get rid of leg pain after training and injury

In order to relieve muscle pain, both folk and official medicine give the following simple recommendations:

1. , when there is pain in the muscles, stop loading them not sharply, but gradually, at a slow, relaxing pace. If you sharply lift the load from the muscles, then for a few hours the pain will decrease or even disappear completely, but tomorrow it will necessarily return again;
2. if some kind of sport constantly makes you sick, then leave it and do something else;
3. , when there is pain in the muscles and starting edema, attach to the painful area an ice pack and hold it for a while. Most often, after such a procedure, the pain will decrease;
4. If the foot or shin is damaged, lift the leg upwards and hold it in this position for 10-15 minutes. This will prevent or reduce the appearance of swelling and reduce soreness;
5. if after an injury 2 hours passed, then applying to the damaged muscle, the ice is already useless. You need to switch to heat: a heating pad, a warm bath or an underwater massage. Heat is a very effective remedy against muscle pain and seizures;
6. with severe pain caused by trauma, simple drugs such as diclofenac or aspirin bring relief( aspirin should not be carried away by people suffering from peptic ulcer, cores and patients with blood system diseases).In this case it is better to consult a doctor;
7. if you overloaded the muscles, then you can help massage. Since the masseur may not always be at hand, the simplest techniques of massage should be studied independently and, if necessary, applied;
8. if you are doing sports on the street in cold weather, then you need to dress warmer. So you reduce the possibility of muscle pain;
9. doing physical work, try to adjust it in sequence: heavy - light, heavy - easy. The same can be said for athletes - a day of hard training should be alternated with a day of training that requires less energy. Remember that for the restoration of muscles to work, you need 48 hours;
10. pain in the muscles of the foot, back, shin can be caused by tight or uncomfortable shoes. Therefore, always try to ensure that shoes are familiar and comfortable;
11. sometimes the pain in some muscle group becomes permanent. The cause may be your overweight. Therefore, always try, whenever possible, to lose a few extra pounds;
12. try to change the work of individual muscle groups from time to time. If you are riding a bicycle, then combine it with swimming or look for other options.

Cramps of the calf muscles: what to do and treat

1. Dehydration of the body plays an important role in the development of muscle cramps. Therefore, when they occur, you should drink more fluid, especially before, during and after exercise.
2. If there is a cramp in the leg or foot, just stand up and focus on the leg in which the seizure occurred. Do some sit-ups. Most often after this cramp stops.
3. If a cramp in your leg occurs during sleep, put your foot in the back of the bed or wall and hold on for 10-15 seconds. Repeat the exercise several times.
4. When working on a computer, try to change the position of the hands more often, the load on individual fingers. You can change the slope of the keyboard, the distance to it. To prevent the occurrence of seizures in milkmaids, you should occasionally bandage your wrists with a bandage. Bandage should not be too tight so as not to disturb the circulation in the hands.
5. When cramping in the calf or any other muscle, try to relax and ask someone to massage the tight muscle. A five-ten-minute massage often relieves muscle spasm.
6. For pain and spasms, try to bandage the limb for a few minutes with an elastic bandage - this can relieve the convulsive state of the muscle.
7. Frequent muscle cramps can be the result of developing phlebitis( inflammation of the veins).If deep veins are involved in the process, the disease becomes life-threatening. Therefore, with frequent cramps, you need to see a doctor.
8. Sometimes the cause of nocturnal cramps can be a heavy blanket that presses on the muscles of the legs. Therefore, with frequent cramps at night, try to replace the blanket.
9. To prevent nocturnal cramps, it is recommended to sleep on the side with legs bent, but not on the abdomen with strained muscles.
10. Sometimes the cause of seizures may be a deficiency of calcium in the body. Keep this in mind, but before you add supplements to your diet, talk to your doctor.

Shin ache

Causes of pain in the leg muscles can be flat feet, incorrect technique of running and walking( for athletes), uncomfortable shoes, etc. Especially often the shin pains appear in athletes. Thus, in aerobic patients, pain in the lower leg is observed in 22% of cases, for long distance runners - 28%, for skiers - 35%.Pain may be indistinct, persistent or temporary, dull or acute.

Folk and official medicine are advised for pain in the shin area:

1. If you have pain in the leg muscles during aerobic exercise, first of all pay attention to the hardness of the coating on which you are engaged. Try to avoid concrete floors - preferably a wooden floor or mats. Runners should not run on an asphalt or concrete road, but on grass or ground.
2. When running or doing sports, your shoes should be depreciated. If not, change your shoes.
3. If you have pain in the shin, take the following measures: rest, ice, pressing bandage for 15-20 minutes and elevated leg position.
4. Contrasting foot baths( 1 minute with ice, 1 minute with water, the temperature of which reaches 40 ° C, alternate 4-5 times) in the vast majority of cases relieve shin pain and significantly improve blood supply to the muscles.
5. The cause of shin pain may sometimes be a high arch of the foot or flat feet. Correct these defects with special exercises. Consult an orthopedist.
6. For pain in the front of the lower leg, massage the lower leg, but not over the bone, but near the edge of the shin.
7. With developed Achilles tendons, pain in the lower leg usually does not occur. Therefore, stretch the Achilles tendons with constant training, for example: stand on the floor, feet shoulder width apart. Bend your arms in the elbows and legs in the lap forward, while keeping your back straight. Go to the stress point and hold the pose for half a minute. Repeat the exercise 10 times.

Pain in the knee joint

Knees are the most vulnerable joints in our body. With a fall, a car accident, frequent walking on the stairs, the knees suffer first. Knee joints are very vulnerable due to their inability to change their shape under the influence of certain external factors. If your knees often suffer, then you do not need to get acquainted with a few practical tips to help get rid of the pain.

Strengthen muscles and ligaments with physical exercises

The stronger the joint supporting muscles and ligaments, the less you will have trouble with the knees. Choose for yourself a few physical exercises that strengthen the muscles and ligaments of the knee, and do them all the time. For example: sit on the floor, straighten the sore knee. Place under it a cushion or a tightly twisted towel, then strain your leg muscles without moving the knee. Hold the muscle in the contracted state for up to 30 seconds, then relax. Exercise repeat 20-25 times. This exercise strengthens the front muscles of the thigh.

If you have weak knees and want to strengthen them, then accustom yourself to doing the following daily exercise: lifting your legs in a sitting position. Sit down and rest your back on the wall( you can put a pillow under your waist).Tighten the leg muscles( count to 5), then lift the leg slightly upwards( count to 5).Lower your foot and relax. Exercise do 5 to 10 times.

Strengthening the hamstring: Exercise

Lie on your stomach, place your chin on the floor. Put on your ankles some cargo( a bag of sand, dumbbells, a light bar) and, bending the leg in the knee joint, lift the shin 20-30 cm from the floor. Then slowly lower it back down. Before touching the floor, hold the movement for a few seconds. Repeat the procedure 5 times. If, after doing the exercises, you feel discomfort or pain in the knee joints, - reduce the size of the load and the number of exercises.

Try to lose weight

In full people, knee joints ache more often than in lean joints. This is because each kilogram of weight creates a six-fold load on the knee. If your weight is 10 kg more than normal, then it follows that your knee joints are loaded with extra 60 kg.

Wear patella

People with severe physical activity that can damage knee joints should wear patella. This applies to excavators, runners, skiers and others. Patella protects the knee joints from bruises and injuries. Patellers do better themselves than buy ready. The fact is that the patella made individually, will protect your knee joints much better than the purchased ones, which simply may not fit you in size.

Use analgesic ointments

Almost all rubbing and ointments help to keep heat, and heat greatly reduces pain. Therefore, if the knee is bruised, a good grinding will significantly reduce painful sensations.

Rest and ice

After a bruise of the knee joint or any heavy physical exertion on it, let the joint rest, put ice on it and give the foot an elevated position for 10-15 minutes. After that, you will feel a significant improvement.

Affect the pain point

Every person on the thigh has a point, when affected, the pain decreases. To find this point, move your hand from the top of the knee straight up the front surface of the thigh to 8-9 cm, then slide it inward by 5-8 cm. With the tip of your thumb, press down firmly on the point and hold your finger until you feel it, that the tension in the joint and the pain go away. This will take about one and a half minutes.

Pain in the foot

Often we remember our feet only when they get sick. To the signals they give us, we almost do not listen, but we must do it.

So, when should you pay special attention to your feet?

• If already in the morning your feet are very sore, and you hardly make the first few steps.
• If the feet are constantly aching and this pain does not decrease during the day, but increases.
• If you find it difficult to wear shoes.

When you have brought your legs up to the onset of one of these symptoms, you should immediately consult a doctor.

Doctors-orthopedists recommend to be more attentive to their feet and give the following tips for caring for them:

1. after a hard day's work or a long walk, lie down for a while, lifting your legs to the back of the bed;
2. take hot foot baths with a strong tea infusion( you can cook a strong infusion of chamomile or mint and hold his feet 5 - 10 minutes);
3. so that the feet do not hurt with prolonged walking and hard work, you need to change the height of the heel more often. This is especially true of women;
4. contrasting foot baths relieve fatigue and give new energy. Sit on the edge of the bath and hold the feet for 5 minutes under a stream of hot water and 5 minutes - under a cold stream. Do this several times and you will immediately feel how your feet come to life.

Well revitalized tired feet warm foot baths with the addition of ordinary table salt. Some herbalists recommend the following composition for foot baths:

1. rosemary oil - 6 drops;
2. eucalyptus oil - 6 drops.

In a basin of hot water, drip the ingredients listed and strew your feet for 10 minutes. After this procedure, make a contrasting douchement of the feet.

Foot massage always has a good effect with tired legs. You need to massage the entire foot and every finger separately;

For training your feet it is very useful to walk barefoot on small pebbles, pebbles, on dew and soft grass.

To improve blood circulation in the foot, experts recommend every day to perform a number of simple exercises:

1. scatter on the floor 5-7 pencils and lift them with your toes;
2. lying on the couch, shake your feet several times a day in the air( just as you shake your hands).After that, stir your toes for 2-3 minutes;
3. sitting on a chair, stretch your legs in front of you and rotate your feet in one direction and the other until you can. Do this exercise several times a day;
4. put a few peas in home slippers and walk around the room. This is a kind of foot massage;
5. put a rolling pin or a small round stick on the floor and roll it on the floor with your feet. This is also a kind of massage.

If you have a burning sensation in your feet, pay close attention to this, since this symptom indicates a lack of blood circulation and can be a sign of such serious diseases as obliterating endarteritis of the vessels of the lower extremities, diabetes, anemia, thyroid disease.

In this case, do not delay the cases in a long box, urgently consult your doctor.

Source:

1. Related Videos.
2. Nasogov GN Official and traditional medicine. The most detailed encyclopedia.- Moscow: Izd-vo Eksmo, 2012.