Why You Get Leg Cramps—and How to Stop Them Fast

There’s nothing worse than waking up from a dead sleep with leg cramps or a charley horse: Your leg or calf seizes, and it feels like you’re powerless to relieve the involuntarily spasm.

So what are leg cramps, really? Well, the pain is actually triggered by the spasm and balling up of your muscles, which typically occurs in the calf, says Michael Jaffee, M.D., neurologist at the University of Florida Health.

“This can last from seconds to minutes, with an average of nine minutes, followed by several hours of soreness and possible discomfort for two to three days,” he says.

If you suffer from leg cramps, you’re not alone. About 60 percent of Americans report having nocturnal leg cramps, or those that flare up at night, according to the American Academy of Family Physicians. So what causes them to happen in the first place? And is there anything you can do to avoid them? We’ve got the answers.

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