Ultimately, we become aware of most of what is going on within us mainly through the muscles. - Moshe Feldenkrais
Muscle Cramp - that tightening feeling in the belly of a muscle
in places like your calves or your thighs that is accompanied by pain!!
Muscle cramps
occur when a muscle or group of muscles involuntary contracts and will not
release, or relax. There is no reason for the contraction to occur. The muscles
do not have any work to do, yet they act as if they are being called to action.
Muscle cramps
can occur at any time - whether we are awake or asleep - and for a variety of reasons. The type of
muscle cramps that dancers suffer from are exercise associated muscle cramps.
Science has yet to determine the exact cause of exercise associated muscle
cramps, but there are two possible theories that are being studied.
One possible
cause is overuse and fatigue. Muscles, like the rest of our body parts, grow
tired after use and stop working correctly. For a muscle to work correctly, the
body depends upon clear communication between the brain and the muscle.
Messages are sent back and forth along a string of nerves called a neural pathway. The brain sends a message to the muscle for a contraction to occur and
waits for the muscle to supply the brain with feedback to know whether or not
an action has been accomplished or if another message must be sent to continue
or increase the muscle contraction. An example of this situation would be the
varying degrees in which a dancer can rise up into a relevé position. A dancer
may choose to rise onto demi-pointe or
full-pointe.
Each of these positions requires a different degree of contraction in the calf muscles. The brain depends upon muscular feedback to know if the position has been reached. When a muscle and a neural pathway are overused or tired, an imbalance occurs between the signals sent to the muscles and the feedback provided to the brain. This imbalance causes the brain to continue to signal the muscle to contract and causes a cramp and an involuntary contraction that will not release. When this cramp occurs, it is best to gently massage and stretch the muscle while keeping it warm until the contraction releases.
Another
possible cause of exercise associated muscle cramps is dehydration and a loss
of electrolytes. Electrolytes are minerals found in fluids in your body that
keep the body functioning. Some examples of minerals that are relied upon for proper muscle contraction are sodium, calcium, and potassium.
When we exercise, we lose water and some of these minerals through sweat. A way
to eliminate dehydration and electrolyte loss as a cause of muscle cramps is to
stay properly hydrated when dancing and to snack on healthy, nutritious food
that will keep minerals at optimal levels.
Understanding what happens in your body when muscles cramp can help you to minimize their occurrences and, hopefully, recover from them before you find
yourself in too much pain.
Miller, K. C., Stone, M. S., Huxel, K. C., & Edwards, J. E.
(2010). Exercise-Associated Muscle Cramps: Causes, Treatment, and Prevention. Sports
Health, 2(4), 279–283. doi:10.1177/1941738109357299
Schwellnus, M.P. (2009) Cause of exercise
associated muscle cramps (EAMC)--altered neuromuscular control, dehydration or
electrolyte depletion? British Journal of
Sports Medicine, 43(6), 401-408.
