Muscle Cramps/Stiffness on Keto

[yuvalZ]

Hi all,
I've been on the ketogenic diet for 6 months. It's been going great, except for one issue:
I've been getting these... throbbings in my calves, which come and go, and also am more prone to muscle stiffness.
Example: I would lean over to one side, and my lat would go stiff and painful.
I've done my research on the subject, and have found out that these issues may stem from a couple of causes:

1) dehydration
2) mineral deficiency or imbalance (magnesium/potassium/sodium )

I don't think I'm dehydrated. I take quite a lot of salt, and am eating a big veggie salad each day.
Prior to going on the keto diet, I've never experienced this issue.


Any ideas?

[Heisman2]

Taking a lot of salt will give you plenty of sodium and chloride. Normal salt people purchase does not have potassium and magnesium. Eating one large salad will give some nutrients but if you eat a ton of nutrients at once your body will probably not absorb them as well as if you split them up throughout the day. Plug your typical diet into cronometer.com to see if you are deficient in anything.

[yuvalZ]

Taking a lot of salt will give you plenty of sodium and chloride. Normal salt people purchase does not have potassium and magnesium. Eating one large salad will give some nutrients but if you eat a ton of nutrients at once your body will probably not absorb them as well as if you split them up throughout the day. Plug your typical diet into cronometer.com to see if you are deficient in anything.

Thanks for you reply, Heisman2.
I've used cronometer in the beginning, and am not deficient in anyhting. Of course, whose to tell what's actually being absorbed by the body and what's not.
But there's another issue here - prior to being on the ketogenic diet I didn't use to consume too many vegetables at all. If ever there was a deficiency in minerals or vitamins - it should have been then.
Now I'm eating all these (supposedly) healthy leafy greens and vegetables, and am getting these muscle cramps.

[Heisman2]

Well in that case it's not a deficiency in electrolytes that is causing the cramps most likely. Has anything else changed? It's unfortunate but scientifically we actually don't know what causes cramps. It's probably not due to electrolytes but that's always an easy place to look initially. Perhaps being in a state of ketosis makes you more prone... I'm not sure if having a lower pH makes one more prone to cramping.

Has your workout program changed at all since starting keto? If it's primarily your calves that bother you then try actively stretching them a couple of times daily and see if this makes a difference.

[yuvalZ]

Well in that case it's not a deficiency in electrolytes that is causing the cramps most likely. Has anything else changed? It's unfortunate but scientifically we actually don't know what causes cramps. It's probably not due to electrolytes but that's always an easy place to look initially. Perhaps being in a state of ketosis makes you more prone... I'm not sure if having a lower pH makes one more prone to cramping.

Has your workout program changed at all since starting keto? If it's primarily your calves that bother you then try actively stretching them a couple of times daily and see if this makes a difference.

My workout hasn't changed, just the diet. The calves "throbbing" doesn't bother me too much, it's those pesky cramps that bug me the most.

[dino1489]

i suffer from cramps alot in general, but for keto, "Salt." That solved it for me almost instantly (not during the cramp, but like that same day).

[Rickiticki11]

With cramps and muscle aches, the vitamins of group B helped me quite well. Ask your doctor what he can tell you about it.
Maybe you should give up the diet to maintain your health.

[kkrathi]

But there's another issue here - prior to being on the ketogenic diet I didn't use to consume too many vegetables at all. If ever there was a deficiency in minerals or vitamins - it should have been then.
Now I'm eating all these (supposedly) healthy leafy greens and vegetables, and am getting these muscle cramps.

I may have an idea since I went through something similar. Let me make sure though. Which vegetable(s) you are eating the most?