Cramp when swimming

stu2fly

Hi everyone,
Newbie here, please be gentle! I have signed up for my first sprint triathlon in Liverpool. I am comfortable with the swimming and regularly swim about 1km. I have noticed that in the later part of the swim I sometimes get cramp in either foot. Silly question, but is this normal and how do I stop it happening.
Apologies if this is a stupid question.
Stu

gavinp

Hi Stu

Just guesses as you haven't given us much to go by, but some possible answers for you:

* How often do you swim a week?
If you don't swim regularly then this may be a factor in that you aren't used to swimming the distance enough. Up your training to a couple of sessions a week if you can - and you want to be doing more than 1k if you can broken up into a bit of technique and some speed sets (at this time of year). This will improve your swimming at any rate.

* Do you do any other training the same day that you swim? if so, how close are they in the day?
Excessive training can affect you if you are overdoing it or overtraining (especially if your not used to it) and doing them close together will mean your tired before you even start your swim set. obvious answer tot his is to do one in the morning and one in the afternoon/evening.

* What's your water intake like on the day you swim and do you drink water through the day/week all th e time?
It's possible your not taking on enough fluid in general. Athletes who train a lot tend to need continuous water intake. Also, add a pinch of salt to the water you drink on the day of your swim. This will help you to not cramp up.

Hope this helps.

stu2fly

Thanks for the reply. I aim to swim about twice a week. With one session at least 1km. I think I am probably guilty of not drinking enough. When I am at work I drink loads, but tend to not drink as much when on a day off. I will address that.
I am new to the world of triathlon so my training at the moment is just tailored to getting me through this sprint in one piece!
In answer to your question.. At the moment I train in the gym or swim, not yet got to do both. That will change soon. I am hoping over the next few weeks to build up to running 5km in the gym and then doing the swim (750m).
Thanks again for the response.
Stu

BrentonFord

Hi Stu,

There's no surefire way to avoid cramps. They're common in the swim.

Three things to reduce the chances of getting it are:
- Some salt intake prior to training and staying hydrated throughout the day
- Magnesium supplements have been known to help
- Stretching can be useful

Brent