cramp
GillyWigs
Posts: 15
in General Chat
Although I'm quite a strong swimmer I come from an award swimming and lifesaving background rather than racing, so have never been big on front crawl. My usual swim would be a pyramid type session using front crawl, life saving backstroke, sidestroke and breaststroke - not a typical medley form!
But having been drawn in to this multisport malarky (currently waiting for it to be light enough to go out on my brand new Focus Cayo - sitting in the living room for the last week - first time road bike so excited and terrrified ) I have joined the local tri-club and gone along to a couple of their swim sessions.
No problem with the actual distance, but new to drills and finding the fact that everything is FC based an enjoyable challenge. BUT both times I've got wicked cramp in my calves at the end of the session. Is this just that I'm not used to doing 1200m front crawl at a time, or is there a fundamental problem with my leg kick? So far have had feedback about things to tweak on my arm pull, but nothing mentioned about my legs.
Any suggestions before the next (painful) session gratefully received.
But having been drawn in to this multisport malarky (currently waiting for it to be light enough to go out on my brand new Focus Cayo - sitting in the living room for the last week - first time road bike so excited and terrrified ) I have joined the local tri-club and gone along to a couple of their swim sessions.
No problem with the actual distance, but new to drills and finding the fact that everything is FC based an enjoyable challenge. BUT both times I've got wicked cramp in my calves at the end of the session. Is this just that I'm not used to doing 1200m front crawl at a time, or is there a fundamental problem with my leg kick? So far have had feedback about things to tweak on my arm pull, but nothing mentioned about my legs.
Any suggestions before the next (painful) session gratefully received.
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Comments
Due to the unsual action of the ankle while swimming most people get cramp from surrounding muscles. Most people who swim alot from an early age dont suffer with this due to supple ankles!
The cure is to get your ankles supple!!!!!!
How do you do this? Well the answer is quite simple really. The best and easiest way to get and maintain supple ankles is to spell out the alphabet in upper and lower case in mid air with your toes, this action uses all the parts of the foot and ankle you will need to free up for swimming the front crawl.
I hope this helps.
That may well be it - I did sprain both ankles quite nastily about 3 yrs ago. The first one was a legitimate injury running in the woods. I did see the branch across the track 50m or more before I got there - but you know how they have this nasty habit of jumping up at your trailing leg and taking you out The second sprain was just as I'd recovered, when I went over on the other ankle walking TOthe pub . Took ages to recover - needed a spell in an immobilisation brace and the threat of a plaster cast!
Have tried your exercise - amazed at how different the tracks are with the 2 feet.
Still at least I've managed my first bike ride without falling off and doing any more damage.
Presumable the ratio of cries of "Oh ****, this is really twitchy" to " Wow, this is so responsive" won't take too long to reverse!!!!!!
Gill
Sounds like your ankles are just unlucky1
Do that exercise every day and the they will get much more supple.
Good luck.
You have a very similar problem to me, i have had a grade 2 strain of one ankle and a grade 1 & 2 strain of my other ankle, due to me not rehabilitating properly I never retained effective strength and mobility of my ankles. When I started swimming I often got cramp in the bottom of my foot and this was because of this lack of strength and mobility in my ankles, and every time i pushed off the wall or tried to keep my feet streamilned I overused my plantar fascitis rather than the muscles around the ankle, hence the cramp.
I havent done anything specific to work on my ankles the only thing I have done is work on kick drills focusing on keep my ankles plantarflexed and streamlined this has got rid of any cramp issues. I think working on kick drills and working on mobility and strength drills for the ankles will quickly results in your cramp going away.
Woth the kick drills you are often nullyfying the use of the arms and overemphasing the kick and if you are not utilising the soleus to plantarflex the ankle properly you will get no where during the drills and quickly cramp up.
Utilsing swim drills will quickly create muscle memory in the soleus part of the claves to act during regular freestyle swimming, and will act towards reducing an overemphasis on the gastroc or the plantar fascitis
And I thought I just had a sore foot