charleyd40 Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 I am on day 4 of my first whole thirty. The last couple of morning I have been awaken to terrible leg cramps (charlie horse) in my lower calves. I am wondering if there if something deficient in my diet that I should be eating that I am not. Another somewhat disturbing issue is my hands are swollen in the morning. Again, is there something I should be doing or not doing to stop the swelling. Any help and suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msssjenna Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 I used to get bad charlie horses in my calves when I was pregnant. Increase your water and banana intake. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DogLovinDeb Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 This won't help, but just so you know you are not alone, I have been getting the same thing!!! Weird, I thought it was just me. I thought I was getting enough potassium from the sweet potatoes but maybe not - I added a banana a day a few days ago to see if it would help. I still have swollen hands but I didnt wake up with leg cramps last night. I wonder if we need a multi vitamin? I dont know about you, but I havent been using them. With all the water maybe we are over flushing our bodies? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charleyd40 Posted June 5, 2013 Author Share Posted June 5, 2013 Good it is not just me. Maybe we are flushing the potassium out of our bodies with the amount of water we are drinking. I am drinking more than a gallon every day and have limited myself to one cup of coffee a day with coconut milk. Interesting thing, as much as my legs hurt from the charlie horse, I still feel pretty good throughout the day. I don't know about the multi vitamin, but I am open for suggestions if someone has one. It is an awful thing to wake up or have your body scream in pain at 3 am because your legs are ceasing up. The plus side for me is at least is the lower leg and not the upper leg, which is an absolute bear if you have those pesky cramps. I am hopeful one of the whole 30 moderators will give us some suggestions for making it better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Tom Denham Posted June 5, 2013 Moderators Share Posted June 5, 2013 Charlie horses might have something to do with potassium and magnesium. I eat a lot foods rich in both and have taken a magnesium supplement for years, but still had leg cramps at night. I added a potassium supplement a few months ago and - come to think of it - I don't have leg cramps anymore. Multi-vitamins probably don't offer enough of anything to make a meaningful difference. I take Natural Calm for magnesium and a 99 mg potassium supplement daily. You are a long way from drinking too much water. You are not flushing useful vitamins and minerals out of your body by drinking water. The standard for water intake is 1/2 to 1 ounce per pound of body weight per day. One gallon of water would be at the low end of the range for a 128 pound person. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charleyd40 Posted June 6, 2013 Author Share Posted June 6, 2013 Thanks Tom. Pre Whole 30 I used Calm. I will go back to using it nightly again. Thanks for the help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gingerrox Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 I'm getting charley horses too - how weird that this is such a common symptom. I'd get them from time to time, maybe a few times a year, but I've had two so far during W30 (Day 24). I have been supplementing with Natural Calm most nights for the past week or two, and I eat a lot of avocado and sweet potato, but I'm not sure how much is enough, potassium-wise. Water may be a bigger issue though - I tend to resist drinking water at night because I want to reduce bathroom visits, but if I stay up later than planned I may not have water for several hours, even though I drank a lot during the day. Also since I am trying not to drink liquids during meals, I tend to forget I need to drink more before and after. So, water and bananas. OK, got it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Tom Denham Posted June 6, 2013 Moderators Share Posted June 6, 2013 I complained to my doctor that I ate as nutrient rich as possible and it didn't make sense that I did not get enough vitamins and minerals from my diet. She countered that as I get older, my body does a poorer job of absorbing what I need and I may have to supplement to get enough x, y, or z. I had imagined that might be true when I was 80, not 55, but I am grateful that I have good quality blood tests done to help me identify deficiencies and I have access to useful supplements. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JulesinVA Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Good sources of potassium are (in order)....dried appricots, prunes, dates, figs, papaya, dried coconut (unsweetened of course), avocados, bananas, mangos, kiwi & nectarines and peaches. No need to only eat bananas! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charleyd40 Posted June 6, 2013 Author Share Posted June 6, 2013 Well last night I went back to the Natural Calm, and no charlie horse today. I will try some of the other dietary things to see if I can get them to stop with diet, but I am trying not to do alot of fruit through the my whole 30 as I am a diabetic so my body metabolizes the sugar differently. I am now heading into day 4, no unusual cravings, but I think that I chalk that up to being as prepared as I can be. Hand swelling was less this morning, so it looks like I am on the right track for getting this body moving in the right direction. BTW: Glad to know if was not just me with this symptoms.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stanfav Posted August 7, 2013 Share Posted August 7, 2013 Hi, I am on day 14 and have also been experiencing painful leg cramps since the first few days even though I have increased my banana, avocado, etc intake. I have searched the forum and website, but I have probably still overlooked it, but are there BRANDS of vitamins/supplements that people have found to be Whole 30 compliant that I could look into? I'm thinking of getting potassium and magnesium supplements. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charleyd40 Posted August 7, 2013 Author Share Posted August 7, 2013 @stanfav, my legs cramps resolved when I bought some Calm and started using it at night. I continued Whole 30 for 45 days, it has been an awesome experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stanfav Posted August 8, 2013 Share Posted August 8, 2013 charleyd40, thanks. Just to clarify I cannot take Natural Calm until after the Whole30 since it has stevia, correct? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cortnie Steoger Posted August 8, 2013 Share Posted August 8, 2013 When i was pregnant I got HORRIBLE leg cramps. Everyone said drink more water and eat bananas but it did nothing. I started taking Trace Minerals Research Electrolyte Stamina pills and they magically disappeared! They also have trace mineral drops you can put in your water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Girltony Posted August 8, 2013 Share Posted August 8, 2013 Jusy peeking at this as I'm getting leg cramps too, first thing in the morning, comparable to what I used to get after a week of too much drink, too little good food as a student... what's the supplement in Natural Calm so I can look for an equivalent here? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
missmunchie Posted August 8, 2013 Share Posted August 8, 2013 There's an unsweetened version of Natural Calm that omits the stevia that's Whole30 acceptable. I ordered mine off of Amazon, but you can probably find it at a health foods store. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charleyd40 Posted August 8, 2013 Author Share Posted August 8, 2013 Yes, I used the natural one which does not contain stevia. The one which is flavored is filled with stevia. Sorry not to clarify. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stanfav Posted August 10, 2013 Share Posted August 10, 2013 Excellent. Thanks for the info! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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