Ab cramps in the off season

[Simon90]

Anyone else get severe ab cramps in off season during or after training them.

Never happens when I’m lighter or dieting, they are brutal! I’m not cramping anywhere else it’s just the abs after crunches or leg raises. If it was electrolytes issue which I’ve had in the past I’d imagine I’d be cramping in more muscles like last time. I think it is something to do with so much food and pressure in the midsection but not sure how that would correlate

 

[TheOtherOne55]

This used to be a huge problem for me. On my off days, i would always hit abs and calves pre-cardio and it was debilitating where I would honestly dread training them KNOWING i was going to have crazy cramps in my core.

This year has been much different. 1. I'm basically ONLY doing vaccums and planks for core now. No weighted core exercises at all. And 2. I have realllly concentrated on keeping my sodium and potassium very high this year. I stopped buy electrolyte mixes and just started making my own concoction. That alone has helped huuugely. Every offseason I would go thru pretty severe cramping problems and this (as well as just more fluids) has made it a thing of the past. How heavy are you right now @Simon90 ?

 

[Splitzz]

I get them, sometimes just when doing seated bent over rear delt raises. Lower abs will start locking up, so now I do them standing lol.
Have a feeling for me the Telmisartan is causing it

 

[traininsane11]

Anyone else get severe ab cramps in off season during or after training them.

Never happens when I’m lighter or dieting, they are brutal! I’m not cramping anywhere else it’s just the abs after crunches or leg raises. If it was electrolytes issue which I’ve had in the past I’d imagine I’d be cramping in more muscles like last time. I think it is something to do with so much food and pressure in the midsection but not sure how that would correlate

I hear you! Last time it hit it still felt sore/strsined 4 days later

I get PSD when thinking about training them

 

[TrippplePPP]

Are you training your core less during the offseason? I used to have this happen to me when I would train abs sporadically or really do above and beyond my regular routine. I recall several times being fearful of getting up from the floor in fear of huge horrible ab cramp while in the middle of a crowded gym. Doing the yoga pose where you are in push up position and let your pelvis drop to the floor while looking up like a seal extending your spine stretches your anterior chain in that area to alleviate the cramp.

 

[Massivekaos]

I’ve suffered with this my entire workout life. In recent years I’ve found stretching my abs to be a big key and they go away with some consistency in doing abs but after a break they come back with a vengeance.

So pretty much easing back into ab training if you skipped it for a while, keeping up the consistency without too much volume right off the rip and doing stretches for abs where your kind of trying to bend the other way as much as possible has helped significantly (like laying back on a bousou ball and getting a big stretch). That stretch has even helped get rid of ab cramps mid session completely.

 

[Heady Muscle 2]

This crazy that so many people are having this issue including me. My ab cramps while doing abs, I cannot straighten up, I cannot breathe and the pain is so excruciating that I get nauseous.

I pound tons of water, I feel my diet is balanced especially with sodium and potassium.

Great thread.

 

[Simon90]

This used to be a huge problem for me. On my off days, i would always hit abs and calves pre-cardio and it was debilitating where I would honestly dread training them KNOWING i was going to have crazy cramps in my core.

This year has been much different. 1. I'm basically ONLY doing vaccums and planks for core now. No weighted core exercises at all. And 2. I have realllly concentrated on keeping my sodium and potassium very high this year. I stopped buy electrolyte mixes and just started making my own concoction. That alone has helped huuugely. Every offseason I would go thru pretty severe cramping problems and this (as well as just more fluids) has made it a thing of the past. How heavy are you right now @Simon90 ?

I think I’ll try what you’re doing and stick just with the vaccums and planks only. I have been keeping these in since prep and they don’t cause any issues. It’s just the crunches and raises.

I also track sodium and potassium and magnesium. From both food and added. I eat the same food every day and then top my sodium and potassium up using a mix of pink salt and lo salt. I weigh it into a tub for the day then split it evenly over each meal and intra. This has dealt with the other cramping I experienced last year but not touching the abs.

I am hovering between 265 and 268 right now. And feeling every lb haha

 

[Simon90]

I get them, sometimes just when doing seated bent over rear delt raises. Lower abs will start locking up, so now I do them standing lol.
Have a feeling for me the Telmisartan is causing it

Brutal aren’t they!!! I’ve heard that can cause it through elevated potassium levels in the blood

 

[Simon90]

I hear you! Last time it hit it still felt sore/strsined 4 days later

I get PSD when thinking about training them

Ffs! This is me after last night. Think I’ve also strained lower right ab Which prompted me to make this thread lol.

Didn’t even make it through my first set usually I’ll get 2 or 3 set before it happens

 

[Simon90]

Are you training your core less during the offseason? I used to have this happen to me when I would train abs sporadically or really do above and beyond my regular routine. I recall several times being fearful of getting up from the floor in fear of huge horrible ab cramp while in the middle of a crowded gym. Doing the yoga pose where you are in push up position and let your pelvis drop to the floor while looking up like a seal extending your spine stretches your anterior chain in that area to alleviate the cramp.

I’ve been consistent with it since start of prep. Vacuums and planks morning which don’t cause me any issues then alternate crunches and leg raises after every other weights session.

It started off just now and then, then every session but towards the end and now like last night for example I couldn’t even get through one full set.

I also looked odd trying to get out of the crunch machine without straightening my torso I did do that stretch and it does help but any slight crunch movement or sitting down and it’ll cramp straight back up

 

[TrippplePPP]

I’ve been consistent with it since start of prep. Vacuums and planks morning which don’t cause me any issues then alternate crunches and leg raises after every other weights session.

It started off just now and then, then every session but towards the end and now like last night for example I couldn’t even get through one full set.

I also looked odd trying to get out of the crunch machine without straightening my torso I did do that stretch and it does help but any slight crunch movement or sitting down and it’ll cramp straight back up

Do you ever just hang from the pull up bar and let your waist dangle? Something like this or an inversion table can stretch your core a bit. I personally would reduce the volume of training your abs if you do them that frequently and add in more ab stretches. Keep us updated.

 

[Splitzz]

Brutal aren’t they!!! I’ve heard that can cause it through elevated potassium levels in the blood

Heard this as well. Potassium came back in range but a a few decimals lower than my normal

 

[TheOtherOne55]

I think I’ll try what you’re doing and stick just with the vaccums and planks only. I have been keeping these in since prep and they don’t cause any issues. It’s just the crunches and raises.

I also track sodium and potassium and magnesium. From both food and added. I eat the same food every day and then top my sodium and potassium up using a mix of pink salt and lo salt. I weigh it into a tub for the day then split it evenly over each meal and intra. This has dealt with the other cramping I experienced last year but not touching the abs.

I am hovering between 265 and 268 right now. And feeling every lb haha

Ok but just a reminder that the level of electrolytes you need as a prep lean athlete is vaaastly different than what you need as an offseason guy. Shit should be increasing as your BW increases.

 

[b-boy]

Anyone else get severe ab cramps in off season during or after training them.

Never happens when I’m lighter or dieting, they are brutal! I’m not cramping anywhere else it’s just the abs after crunches or leg raises. If it was electrolytes issue which I’ve had in the past I’d imagine I’d be cramping in more muscles like last time. I think it is something to do with so much food and pressure in the midsection but not sure how that would correlate

I'm am the opposite, in the offseason they cramp but when I'm dieting they don't

 

[Bio]

Ab cramps are the worst type of cramp ever! It just locks you in place. I started carrying 200mg of Magnesium Citrate with me. I just take that with any muscle cramp and in a very short period the cramp is gone and I don't have to worry about it coming back. I have Magnesium Glycinate too, but I noticed it makes me more tired than Citrate.

 

[fisther69]

I think yall have cervix polyps