Fast Running Blog

Why did my calf suddenly cramp up in the middle of the night waking me from a deep sleep?  It's still tight today; is this likely to be a lingering issue as I increase my mileage?  I'm scheduled to run today--better to stick to it or rest a day?  I don't want the injury that puts an end to my BQ to be one I got while sleeping. 

I've had that happen before.  I don't know if it's running related or not.  I would be a little careful like with any other strained sensation...maybe take an easy day if it really hurts or feels like it's in the "going to get injured if I'm not careful" stage, but still run, even if it's slow and easy.

I too have had that happen. I agree with Joe, I would still run, but at a nice easy pace and listen to your body from there. If it feels ok, just keep the normal distance at that nice easy pace. Obviously stop if you feel like you are going to hurt yourself.

I don't know if this is related, but I tend to get charlie's horses a lot in my calves at night when I'm low on calcium. Others in my family have the same problem. And, when it's a tight enough cramp, my calf will feel sore for a day or two. So, if you're a milk drinker, maybe up your milk intake? Or find some other calcium-rich foods and see if that helps?

When I get deep into marathon training, am hitting 13+ mile runs, and knocking out hour long tempo runs I often get these killer calf cramps in the middle of the night, or if i doze off on the couch. The muscle begins to relax from sleep and then I may move my foot or something, bending the toe down slightly and then WHAM! I'm shooting up out of bed reaching for my toes to pull them towards me and stretch out the muscle. Excruciating! I've found the cause is not a low calcium levels but low sodium levels for me. I sweat quite a bit and often my shorts and shirts will have white dried salt all over them during these phases of training after a run. For me I solved this issue by drinking a cup of hot water with a tablespoon of chicken boulion (sp?) a couple hours after the intense workouts. I'd guess your issue is your electrolyte levels. They sell G2 for $5 and 8 pack here. I usually stock up on about 8 8-packs at a time and tend to drink 2-3 a day to keep my sodium and potasium up.

Thanks so much for your similar stories and advice.  (Jeff, what you described is exactly how it happened to me; excruciating is right!) I waited an extra day before doing my next run and have felt fine since.  Major relief!  I probably need more calcium AND electrolytes, so I'll pay attention to both.  Thanks again!