Maybe this question isn't necessarily related to barefoot running, but, I believe, barefoot running may hold a solution, so here goes:
I sweat. A lot. And, in longer races, I tend to cramp, debilitatingly so, almost always in the calves. This has happened to me for many years. It did so again in yesterday's half-mary to the point that I had to stop and walk, stop and massage, and generally slow down at certain points. It happened when I ran shod, it happened when I ran barefoot, and it happened, as yesterday, in minshoes.
Knowing this tendency of mine, I thought I had hydrated properly for yesterday's race. I drank more during the race, even taking the offered unfamiliar sports drink. I wore compression sleeves on my calves, as I had during long training runs, to support the muscles (my calves are on the large side relative to a lot of other runners I see). I am not a big salt user as far as my food is concerned.
I have read lots of theories regarding why muscles cramp and what to do about this problem. When cramps struck yesterday, I tried to apply Rick Whitelaw's advice to me during the Carlsbad half-mary to relax the feet, which helped then but didn't so much this time -- but then again, I was wearing minshoes here and didn't have quite the "feel" for that technique.
So, here's my question: have any of you had a similar persistent problem w/ cramping, specifically in the calves, and, if so, did bf running form or technique help? If not, did you solve the problem with another approach, and, if so, what?
I sweat. A lot. And, in longer races, I tend to cramp, debilitatingly so, almost always in the calves. This has happened to me for many years. It did so again in yesterday's half-mary to the point that I had to stop and walk, stop and massage, and generally slow down at certain points. It happened when I ran shod, it happened when I ran barefoot, and it happened, as yesterday, in minshoes.
Knowing this tendency of mine, I thought I had hydrated properly for yesterday's race. I drank more during the race, even taking the offered unfamiliar sports drink. I wore compression sleeves on my calves, as I had during long training runs, to support the muscles (my calves are on the large side relative to a lot of other runners I see). I am not a big salt user as far as my food is concerned.
I have read lots of theories regarding why muscles cramp and what to do about this problem. When cramps struck yesterday, I tried to apply Rick Whitelaw's advice to me during the Carlsbad half-mary to relax the feet, which helped then but didn't so much this time -- but then again, I was wearing minshoes here and didn't have quite the "feel" for that technique.
So, here's my question: have any of you had a similar persistent problem w/ cramping, specifically in the calves, and, if so, did bf running form or technique help? If not, did you solve the problem with another approach, and, if so, what?