Stomach Cramps

I get the same thing and if you find out what that is you should put up another post. My trainer said to make sure you are getting enough water, salt, bananas, and breathing from your stomach and not your chest. I have to stop on my runs all the time and stretch my stomach out and it rarely helps. The pain gets so bad that sometimes I can't take it. You are not alone.. hopefully we can find out what it is. I am experimenting with taking a tagement before my runs now, but maybe a tums would help too, I don't know.

I assume you are talking about a pain below the ribs on the right side - sometimes so bad that a handfull of money wouldn't motivate you to go on. Not that uncommon, if we are talking about the same thing. I've been in touch with this since mid-1950s (for myself and numerous serious runners). Original thought was cramping of the diaphragm, but often it isn't bad when swimming when breathing very hard as well. Then it was thought to be an adhesion (part of the intestine adhered to the wall of the abdomen) and one triathlete had surgery that did find an adhesion and the pain never came back. However, a woman runner I know also had exploratory surgery to try to fix hers and nothing was found. She still gets it (been about 6 years now). A study in Australia a few years ago found that by having subjects drink "heavy" liquid would aggrivate the problem, suggesting it is related to gravitational pull during landing in running -- something being pulled down and pullng against some attachment. Recently a medical doctor suggested it is associated with a ligament between the diaphragm and liver, but no recommended cure. In the many people I have talked with regarding this, a high percentage of cases seem to be associated with being dhydrated (from heat or on-coming illness, or having not eaten for a day). It is often aggrivated by a particularly rapid breathing pattern, and sometimes alleviated by converting to a slower, deeper breathing pattern (try 3-3 breathing). I used to minimize my own troubles by eating some bulky food (sweet rolls worked well for me) with fluids abut 3-4 hours before running. If you continue running when you get this it sometimes leads to it lingering for several weeks. I've gone for a run, had to stop within a quarter mile and 4 hours later ran hard with no trouble. I am sure there are many recommended cures out there; it sure would be good to find the right one. I have never seen this happen on the left side. People who have never experienced this don't have a clue regarding the pain associated with it. Maybe a cure will come forward. (Try lying on your back, knees bent and massage deep in the effected area -- seems to help soome people, but not the soution during a race)

Take some Midol you pussy.