Why do I get muscle cramps, and do electrolytes help?
The honest answer is that exercise-associated muscle cramping is not fully understood, and the popular explanation is only part of the story.
Two competing explanations
The older theory is dehydration and electrolyte depletion. The newer one is altered neuromuscular control: as a muscle fatigues, the reflexes that tell it to relax become less effective. Current evidence suggests fatigue plays a larger role than most marketing admits.
Where electrolytes genuinely help
- Cramping during long sessions in heat with heavy sweating
- Cramping that began after starting a low-carbohydrate diet
- Cramping alongside illness that caused fluid loss
Where they probably will not
Night-time leg cramps in people who are otherwise well hydrated, and cramping that only appears at the end of hard sessions, look more like fatigue than depletion. Those respond better to conditioning, pacing and stretching.
These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
