Causes of Thigh Cramps

Muscular cramps are one of the most common medical problems. A muscle cramp is a condition where the muscle experiences a spasm or an involuntary tightening due to prolonged unconditioned activity or tightening of a muscle.

A person suffering from muscular cramps has no control over their occurrence. However, a light stretching exercise may help reduce the pain and bring the muscle back into its normal position.

• Embarking on a sudden, rigorous exercise program is one of the primary cause of thigh cramps.
• In such a case, the muscle fibers (that are usually not used to this kind of action) suddenly find themselves overworked.
• At the same time, if you start a tough workout program without warming up, cold-starting the leg muscles too, may cause painful cramps.

• When you overwork your body, especially in hot and humid climatic conditions, the sweat glands release a lot of sweat to keep your body cool.

• Hence, the body loses the water (this condition is known as dehydration) that was supposed to be supplied to the muscles.
• Along with water, the body also loses other minerals, like potassium, calcium, magnesium, and sodium, which leads to cramping.

• Sometimes, sitting, standing, or sleeping in an uncomfortable position may lead to cramps at night.

• An incorrect posture is one of the most common causes of thigh cramps in bed.
  When you sleep in an odd position, the circulation gets disrupted; hence, the lack of oxygen supply to the thighs leads to muscle cramps at night.

• Problems like atherosclerosis leads to narrowing in the arteries, and hence, there may be a shortage in the supply of blood and oxygen to the thigh muscles.

• Another cause is low levels of potassium in the body (known as hypokalemia).
• The usage of certain medications, like birth control pills and use of diuretic medications for high blood pressure is also a cause for thigh cramps.

• Thigh cramps during pregnancy are a fairly common occurrence.
• A woman experiences them during pregnancy due to factors like hormonal changes, which lead to an imbalance in the levels of calcium and phosphorus.

• The most common way of avoiding thigh cramps is to consume enough water. Loss of water from the body leads to cramps; this and hence the loss of water must be compensated.

• Always warm-up your muscles before exercising. Get the muscles ready for the exercise program, and do not rush them into it. This will avoid both, muscle pain and muscle cramps.
• Always sit or sleep in correct posture. Make sure you do not put undue pressure on the muscles at 'rest' positions.

• If the muscle cramps are due to a chronically low levels of calcium, magnesium, or potassium, see a doctor and take the prescribed medication for it.

So these were some of the reasons your thigh cramps up and how to avoid them. If you need treatment, then you should go to a professional doctor who will prescribe you some medication.

Disclaimer: This post is for informative purposes only, and should not be used as a replacement for expert medical advice.