Muscle Cramp Diagram. A cramp is a sudden involuntary muscle contraction or overshortening. In a grand mal seizure the convulsions involve the muscles of the whole body typically with tongue biting foaming at the mouth and involuntary urination see bladder sphincter.
Older adults and pregnant women commonly complain of leg cramps while they are resting athletes can cramp when they are pushing the limits of their endurance and some people develop muscle cramps as a symptom of other medical conditions. Magnesium for muscle cramps. They generally occur in multi joint muscle groups such as the hamstrings or gastrocnemius during or following exercise when the muscles are active and shortened 1 3 eg hip extension with knee.
Each of these muscles is a discrete.
There are 20 muscle pairs one on each side of the body. Cramps can last from a few seconds up to 10 minutes. For example if the cramp is in your calf muscle. Leg cramps happen when a muscle in the leg shortens and causes a sudden pain that can make it hard to move.