Cramps when doing cardio

[rgs424]

It seems the ONLY time I can do cardio 'painlessly' is in the morning when I first wake up. If I try to do cardio in the evening, I always get stomach cramps to the point I have to really slow down, or just stop. Does ANYONE have ANY IDEAS on how I can prevent these stomach cramps from occurring in the evening ?? It is very frustrating for those mornings I do not cardio and want to do it in the evenings instead. THANK YOU !

 

[AutismMom]

Hmmmm. Does it seem to be related to having food in your stomach? I know I have to wait at LEAST an hour (I usually wait longer) after eating before doing high intensity cardio or I get that stitch in my side.

Or is that even the kind of cramps that you're talking about?

I wish I could help....

 

[gettingfitmom]

Same here, I find i can only exercise in the morning before i eat anything. I hear that it is also beneficial to work out on an empty stomach. who knows????????? works for me Kay

 

[rgs424]

I would not care if I could just get my big bu*tt out of bed in the mornings, but for the mornings I don't, I wish I could exercise at night !!

 

[Tracey M]

If you are talking side stitches I get those while running. I Googled for some solutions and the two things that really helped were:

1. No food for at least an hour (as the above poster suggested)...I typically try to not eat for 2-3 hours before.

2. This seems weird but I SWEAR by it. Breathe in and out when your left foot strikes instead of your right foot. It's hard to get the right rhythm at first but after a while it becomes second nature.

Here is a clip from irontrybe.com about the left foot breathing:

"A side stitch is caused by stretching the ligaments that attach your liver to your diaphragm. Humans breathe out once for every two steps. More than 70 percent of humans breath out when their left foot hits the ground, while 30 percent breathe out when their right foot hits the ground. Those who breathe out when their right foot hits the ground are the ones most likely to suffer side stitches because the force of the right foot strike causes the liver to go down when their diaphragm goes up during breathing out. So the ligaments are stretched and hurt."

 

[fitnessangel]

Nothing new to add, other than agreeing with the other posters. I wait at least 2 hours after eating for cardio, and depending on how "heavy" the meal was will determine the impact of my routine. Typically, however, I do not eat heavy dinners. Also, make sure you aren't taking shallow breaths and try to inhale and exhale smoothly and evenly (although Imax and a few others have you gasping).

Your main issue is probably the food in your stomach though. I used to have that problem, so I began to eat about 5-6 smaller meals. Take care and good luck