Hey guys!

Yesterday I went out for a ride, the original ride was about 45 miles with about 4500ft of elevation gain, but some of us decided to extend the ride to 80 miles with almost 8000ft of climbing. Normally a ride like this would have not been a big problem for me, but I was not prepared for the longer ride and I did not bring enough food to eat and I only brought one bottle of electrolyte drink.

At mile 70 I got a pretty bad cramp in my left calf, it was the first time I have cramped so bad that I had to stop because the pain was so great. I stretched my leg out a little and continued riding, by using my right leg to get me back home.

My calf is still hurting right now from that cramp, and I have a ~50 mile ride tomorrow.
What can I do to make this pain go away? Will I just have to wait for a longer time? Right after the ride yesterday, I drank a cup of a protein/carb shake and had some pasta.I took a rest day today and pretty much relaxed all the time.

Pain from a cramp should be gone by now. Rest, hydrate, stretch, and massage. 800mg of Motrin and some Icy Hot might help too. Don't push too hard tomorrow.

Days

I got it in the calf during a race last year, shifted down and tried to spin it out. Long story short finished but my calf hurt for 2 - 3 days after.

Pulled my calf while swimming and it took me out of all three sports for 3 days. Ugh.

Just a friendly warning, you never want to immediately stretch out a pretty serious cramp. You can tear your muscle. Unfortunately I've seen it happen.

When I get a cramp like that, I take it easy for at least 3-4 days. If I ride, it is of the flat, recovery ride variety. 1st day, I apply ice. 2nd-4th day, I use mainly heat. If you have access to a jacuzzi/spa, that helps too.

Best of luck and get well soon.

Thanks for the advice guys, I'll put some icy hot spray on my calf before I sleep. I guess I will (try to) take it easy tomorrow.

careful with icey hot, heat makes muscle feel good, usually too good and then you hurt it, as dr pete said, you shouldnt be having any probs.... lots of water, motrin, and some bananas have always help me.

I had BOTH quads cramp on me the other day in traffic, waiting for the light. I felt like such an idiot walking my bike to the curb waddling, hunched-over like I had a HUGE load in my pants...

omg i had not rode for about 1 month and then the day i got back into riding i accelerated hard for about 2 seconds then i got a sharp awfull pain in my calfs and legs, i have never had the feeling, was it a cramp? it was super painfull i thought i was gonna died! the most i could move was 5 kph with so much pain! was it a cramp? or just because i was just getting back into cycling after 1 month?

fixed it!

I've heard about bananas helping, too (makes sense because of the potassium). I've also heard numerous times from numerous sources that mustard works wonders for cramps... I know some cyclists who even carry a few packets of mustard with them on their rides in case they get a cramp.

Posts 10 and 11; consecutive "OMG's." Lock this before it's too late.

I was prone to getting cramps during rides and especially at night, after rides, while sleeping. I would get cramps almost three nights a week. Calves were the worst but I also got them in the arches of my feet. Started taking daily Potassium supplements (99 mg) and have not had any cramps since then. Although it is a supplement, I would check with you doctor before taking them.

+1.

Oh, and how long? Too fricken long!

Well I did the ride today. I did ride slowly, but it was still a 60 mile ride with over 5000ft elevation gain. After the first 20 miles I felt a lot better, the icy hot spray helped! And drinking a lot of water also helped. Thanks for the help guys!

Those are the two places I get cramps: calves and feet. I'll see if I can get some potassium supplements on my hands, i'm not a fan of bananas.

baked potatoes are good for potassium too (need to eat the skin)

If you can stomach it, a can of tomato paste is super high in potassium

Here is a full list:
https://potassiumrichfoods.com/potass...ch-foods-list/