Ayurvedic and Traditional Chinese Medicine for Muscle Cramp

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Aromatherapy

Ease your aching, cramping muscles with a delightfully soothing rosemary lavender massage. To prepare the blend, combine 3 drops each of German chamomile, rosemary, and ginger; 8 drops of lavender; and a If ounce of almond or avocado oil. Massage the oil into the affected muscles after a relaxing, warm bath. For a different blend, try Roman chamomile, bay, peppermint, and safflower oils. Other beneficial oils include marjoram and clary sage.

Ayurvedic Medicine

In Ayurveda, muscle cramping and spasms are caused by excess vata, which is increased by cold, too much exercise, or poor blood circulation. An Ayurvedic practitioner may suggest massaging the affected muscle with oil of shatavari to relax the muscle fibers. He also may encourage you to soak your feet in hot mustard tea.

Bodywork and Somatic Pradices

Acupressure and shiatsu are excellent modalities to address cramps.

Chiropradic

Specific chiropractic adjustment (SCA) can be especially helpful in decreasing muscle cramps through active stimulation of the nerves supplying the muscles. Electro muscle stimulation and either moist heat or cold applications can decrease muscle cramps. (Moist heat application is typically used for chronic cramping; cold application, such as ice, is typically used for acute episodes.) The chiropractor may also perform or prescribe cross friction. A nutritional consult should be obtained in cases of chronic cramping. For example, patients Who perience chronic charley horses (cramping of the calf muscles) may be deficient in electrolytes.

Hydrotherapy

Try one or more of the following treatments:

Apply hot or cold packs to the affected muscle for 20 minutes several times daily, until symptoms subside. Some people prefer the hot moist heat; others do best with cool compresses.

Take a hot bath-either immersion or sitz-for 20 to 60 minutes as needed.

Use alternating hot and cold compresses twice daily. Apply a hot compress for 3 minutes; replace it with a cold compress for 30 seconds. Repeat the sequence twice. You can add vinegar to the hot pack if desired.

Take a relaxing hot shower

Try a neutral (body temperature) bath

Traditional Chinese Medicine

Acupuncture Acupuncture can be used to relax the muscle and improve the circulation of blood to the affected area. Different acupuncture points and meridians are accessed, depending on the specific musde(s) that need(s) to be treated.

Acupressure Acupressure can be extremely helpful in relieving muscle cramps and spasms. The practitioner usually applies pressure directly to the affected area, and also massages relate acupressure points to increase the flow of blood to the area and balance the person's chi.

Chinese Herbal Therapy Muscle cramps may be treated with a decoction of corydalis (4 to 10 grams daily). Muscle soreness can be alleviated with Zheng Gu Shui, an externallinimeot designed to relieve pain and relax muscles.

Yoga and Meditation

Gentle, regular stretching using yoga poses can help ward off cramps, especially in the hamstring and calf muscles. Try the following poses: Head to Knee, Hero, Posterior Stretch, Spinal Twist, and Standing Angle.

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Finally, Treatment For Restless Leg Syndrome

What is Restless Leg Syndrome (RLS)? RLS is a creepy crawly sensation in your legs that creates and irresistible urge to move them and can almost drive you crazy. As bad as this feels, the less talked about sister disorder, Periodic Limb Movements (PLM's) can be even worse.

Periodic Limb Movement's are an extension of Restless Leg Syndrome that occur after you fall asleep. The are sudden jerky limb movements that prevent you from falling into your deep restorative sleep. This can cause all kinds of adverse side effects such as stress, weight gain, and daytime sleepiness.

I hope you can see why you really need treatment for restless leg syndrome.

What are some of the various treatments for Restless Leg Syndrome?

The number and style of treatments for Restless Leg Syndrome are as varied as the number and style of people inflicted with this terrible disorder.

There are many medications that prescribed to treat RLS. Two of the more popular ones are Requip and Mirapex. I have also heard of people having success with clenazopam and cinemet.

Before considering medications though, many people are successful using sleep hygiene methods. They consume little to no caffeine, eat a balanced diet and exercise in the morning (not before bed which can compound the problem). Many even do stress relieving activities such as yoga.

Once again, everybody is different but improving your sleep hygiene is a good idea before trying medication.

Another preliminary strategy is to have your iron levels checked as some people have had success in treating their Restless Leg Syndrome by regulating their iron levels.

There are also many herb and vitamin 'cocktails' on the market that some people swear by and some people swear do not work.

Once again, the treatment for Restless Leg Syndrome is very individual and takes alot of trial and error to find the right solution.

It is important however to not give up. Restless Leg Syndrome can steal your life both in the daytime and at night.

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Leg Sweeps - Adding Hands Back Into the Martial Equation

Do you do a lot of kicking? Martial-arts leg sweeps, too?

When you focus on footwork, like the sweep, make sure you add the hands back into the equation.

A lot of martial artists separate their leg practice from their hand techniques.

Sometimes, the sweeps are accompanied by arm grabs. The arm grabbing is for judo practice. They are helping the leg sweep by unbalancing the opponent.

In a real situation, make sure your hands perform 'both' independently and in conjunction with your feet....

Possible Use of Hands with Leg Sweeps

* Push your opponent as you sweep the ankles

* Instead of a push, you could strike across the chest.

* Nose control as a take down -- sweep just assists (See "Wrist Locks: From Protecting Yourself to Becoming an Expert")Even the weakest of sweeps -- I mean an almost ineffective one -- will still drop your opponent on his or her head.

(Note: If you do know this control, please be careful. Your partner will drop faster than you can believe. I don't want any accidentally split open heads.)

Striking across the chest as you leg sweep and the nose control used with a sweep are examples of the hands and the sweep helping each other.

Don't forget to consider your hands as independent weapons, as well.

Let your hands do what they do.

Defend yourself as you normally would "up top." When the opportunity occurs, leg sweep. Don't stop what you are doing with your hands ... let the leg sweep happen by itself, when "it" wants to.

It's amazing when your hands can work independently, and you also allow your hands and your feet work together. They switch back and forth without thought.

Use the sweep as a tool. It doesn't need to be the backbone of your technique. Use it as an enhancement.

If you are in a close range for a tight sweep, you'll probably be close enough for elbow strikes and counters. This is a very close range....

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Read an article about kicking speed:

Develop Speed Kicking.

Here's a site about punching harder and faster ...) Punch Harder and Faster

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Running & Muscle Cramps - The Nutrition Factor

Everyone you talk to seems to have a theory about muscle cramps and running cramps in particular - eat bananas, eat oranges, take more salt, eat less salt. For some this may work, for most it doesn't.

Healthy Diet

All of our experts agree that it is beyond dispute that if you have an unhealthy diet it will contribute towards muscle cramps and they will explain in more detail how important proper nutrition is in the long term prevention and treatment of cramps.

Prevention in terms of nutrition comes down to consuming a mostly Fresh Food Diet that is high in minerals and avoiding ‘Empty’ foods that are high in sugar, low in minerals and introduce toxins and antibiotics into our systems.

Fast food of any type, fried food, processed or refined carbohydrates (such as cakes, biscuits and most types of bread), alcohol and excessive amounts of caffeine are all examples.

In terms of cramping, eating the wrong food does the following:

1) Reduces our muscles’ energy reserves and makes cramping more likely

2) Deprives the muscles of minerals required to relax and contract the muscles – particularly Calcium, Magnesium, Phosphorous and Potassium

3) Introduces toxins (preservatives, food colouring and flavour enhancers) that have a stimulatory effect on the muscles and tend to inhibit the relaxation response.

Kinesiologist and Osteopath, David Wells explains it this way:
“When you eat ‘fast’ or ‘junk’ food you are depriving your body of the right fuel but also increasing overall toxicity with flavour enhancers and preservatives which are stimulatory to the brain and therefore tend to produce increased muscle tone (i.e. switching on the muscle contraction), making it more likely that you will cramp.”

“All of these toxins have to pass out through the liver for detoxification and therefore reduce your energy output because the liver burns up your energy reserves trying to detoxify you. This results in you feeling tired and with less energy for your muscles to work."

Sports nutritionist Richard Renton agrees, "Being an athletic trainer and having worked with teams for a long time, after starting with a new team I could tell you after 2 weeks who’s going to get cramps & who’s not - poor diet or a good diet, their habits, whether they sweat profusely, whether they take care of themselves or not, you can tell. If they're drinking a litre of fizzy pop before they work out, and if that’s their only method of drinking water, that’s going to create a lot of problems.”

So a good diet with plenty of fresh food is something everyone who suffers regular cramps should take notice of. Gone are the days, particularly as we get older when you can eat anything you like because you're able to burn off the calories.

Athletes who used to try this suffered worse problems than cramps. Many elite endurance athletes of the 90's frequently suffered 'mystery viruses'. In actual fact these were regular illnesses which we all suffer, but because these athletes had such depleted immune systems they were more susceptible to regular attack.

If you're not eating a healthy diet, exercising regularly and suffering cramps, you're getting the early warning signs of worse things to come, so "clean up your act".

Copyright: www.Running-Cramp-Relief.com

Paul Newland is a health and nutrition consultant, trainer, martial arts instructor, commercial helicopter pilot and author. His Ultimate Cramp Busting Guide is one of the internet's leading health information books and is the definitive guide to preventing, treating and curing cramps associated with exercise. In the Ultimate Cramp Busting Guide Newland speaks with 6 health, sports, nutrition, medical and complimentary health care professionals and explains why you get cramps, the best ways to treat them and how to prevent them from happening again.

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