Doing regular physical activity at least three times a week for 30 minutes is very useful for our leg muscles. Also, wearing very tight clothes is often associated with diseases, such as diabetes, kidney or liver disease.
Muscle cramps are often accompanied with some systemic diseases such as diabetes, kidney or liver disease, but they can also be a result of sitting or lying in the wrong position, nerve damage due to repetitive motion and poor circulation. Also, heart and kidney patients suffer from swollen legs which often leads to cramps.
If you have acute cramps, it helps to stretch the muscles, since interruption of nerve impulses leads to muscle knots. It also helps to slightly bend your knees.
To reduce the frequent occurrence of convulsions, you should increase your physical activity:
- Walk more than usual, take the stairs instead of the elevator in order to strengthen your legs and lose extra calories.
- Walk straight because this reduces the pressure on the back and the joints.
- Stretch for 5 to 10 minutes each day, because this will include all major muscle groups. Flexible joints require less energy when getting up, they increase blood flow and delivery of nutrients to the muscles, and reduces stress.
- Go to a dance or start exercising in the gym, in order to raise your heart rate.
- Do aerobic exercises three times a week for at least 30 minutes. According to studies, there’s a link between regular exercise and immune functions. The recommended amount of exercise is three times a week for 45 minutes.
- Do exercises with weights two to three times a week. Increased muscle mass will speed up your metabolism, give you more energy, and more strength to perform daily activities with less effort.
- Do exercises for both body and mind, like yoga, tai chi and other similar methods of exercise that will help you develop a connection between your body and mind, and remove stress and anxiety.
- Combine workouts: complete fitness program must include aerobic exercises, exercises with weights, and stretching exercises.
THREE TYPES OF TRAINING
Aerobic
Aerobic training causes the body to use fat for energy production. This training does not require too much effort from the muscles. This includes recreational walking, running, swimming, biking, boating, and hiking.
With weights
The roll-out is one of the most effective exercises for the legs. Take two smaller bottles filled with water. The initial position is upright, feet together, arms along the body. Breathe in and breathe out with one foot forward. Lower it so that the knee of the other leg almost touches the ground. Hold the spine upright. If you can, do this exercise 10 times with both legs.
Stretching
Sit on the floor and straighten your right leg. Put your left foot onto your right thigh. Bend slightly forward from the hips, stretching the back side of the right thigh. Find the position where stretching is pleasant and relax. Hold this position for 50 seconds. Your right quadriceps (front thigh) should be soft and relaxed during the execution of the exercise. The right foot should be upright and relaxed. Breathe. Repeat the stretching with the left foot.