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So, about that weird medical issue that has me wondering if I ought to eat more salt, and other electrolytes.
I get these painful calf cramps once in a while. The frequency is generally in the neighborhood of every 6 months to a year or so, probably sometimes longer intervals. It's hard to be completely sure, since I only started noting down the dates of them for the last couple of times. I'm not even sure how long ago it really started, though it's definitely years. I'm pretty sure it started at some point after I started eating Keto 8-10ish years ago, though not soon enough after to be an obvious correlation.
So far, it's only happened when I'm lying down, and have been for a while. When it happens, it hits with no particular signs or warning, one of my calf muscles instantly cramps up pretty hard. It's pretty painful, and if I grab the muscle, it feels like a brick under my skin. I think it lasts around 10 seconds or so, but it's hard to be sure, since I've never timed it. Afterward, the muscle feels sore, as if I just did a tough workout, which usually lasts for hours, but no other lingering pain or damage. It only hits one leg, and I think it's random which one. If it were to happen while I was standing, I think I'd probably fall down, though it never has yet.
At first, it seemed to happen most commonly after a night of moderate to heavy drinking. After some searching around, I got the idea that it might be related to an electrolyte deficiency of some kind. I started preparing and drinking a glass of electrolyte water (sodium, potassium, magnesium) every time I came home after drinking before going to bed. This seems to have more or less worked, and it didn't happen for quite a while. Then it started happening again, but not after drinking at all, infact no particular correlation to anything I can tell so far. I'm wondering if maybe it is still related to electrolyte issues, and would be helped by consuming more electrolytes in general regardless of activity, or even just more salt possibly.
I'm generally in good health, don't have any other health issues, and aren't on any prescription medications. I pretty consistently do 5k-10k+ steps every day based on my phone's step counter. Eating moderately keto has helped keep my weight in check.
I haven't tried to ask any proper doctors about this. I don't really go to any much anyways. I don't have much confidence that I'd get any kind of useful answer from them on this issue. If there was some way take a blood test immediately after, or even before, one happened, that might give some useful hard information, but it seems rather impractical due to how infrequent it is. Possibly a urine sample from right after would be reasonably practical and useful. Or maybe my attempts to consume more electrolytes will mean it goes away entirely anyways. Just thought I'd post it here in case anyone is curious or might have some kind of insight.
I run, and I've dealt with calf cramps before, and while the literature is still inconclusive on exact causes, electrolyte issues and muscle fatigue are most commonly blamed. Neither alone will fix everything: pounding pickle juice won't get you through a marathon untrained without cramps. It might help to do some minor strength work on the calves (and their antagonists) regularly, especially if you aren't exercising regularly. A dozen calf raises and toe raises a couple times a week seems a modest time commitment, if you're willing to try.
The other thought I have is that it could be related to positioning: I've had trouble with calf cramps while swimming before, which is funny because you don't really use your calves for that at all. But you do point your toes for extended periods, which isn't a very common posture otherwise. When I've had similar calf cramps while sleeping, I've noticed that I sometimes sleep with my toes pointed. If you're doing that, perhaps a change in posture could avoid the issue. There are also products that might help for sleeping (compression socks, ankle braces), but I haven't tried any myself.
I do do that 5-10k steps a day, which is walking at a brisk pace back and forth to my current job in the heart of NYC. It may not sound like that much to some, but when Covid WFH limited my walking for a couple years and I started up again, it was pretty tiring and left me a little sore for the first couple of weeks. I don't do any strength training right now, but I do train Muai Thai roughly once a week.
I don't think I point my toes while sleeping. Once in a while, I do that deliberately to crack my ankle, which I don't think has ever triggered one of these types of cramps.
Speaking of kind of exercise related and weird muscle issues, I also occasionally get a restless or antsy feeling in my quads and I think also calves. It doesn't seem to be related to the cramps, I think. It's basically a physical need to stand, walk, or even run. Once in a while, it feels intense enough that I just need to go outside and run a few blocks. Pretty weird I guess.
Anyways, hopefully consuming substantially more electrolytes daily will help some.
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