Pickle Juice for Cramps: Can It Save You From Bonking?

Ever find yourself hobbling through the last miles of a race or long run because your muscles decided to cramp up and ruin your day? 🥒Pickle juice could be just the thing to bring you back to life.
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😭If you’re cramping up, chances are pretty good...

• You’re dehydrated.
• You’ve depleted electrolyte stores. 
• Maybe it’s hot out. You’re sweating a lot. 
• And you feel like your body is systematically shutting down…slowly…and painfully.

That ever happen?
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🏃‍♀️When runner Jenna Busch-Henderson hit the 16-mile mark during a recent marathon...

• She started feeling a little dizzy. 
• Her legs felt heavy and slow. 
• And she knew she needed to take fast action to avoid a total meltdown.

🥒Here’s what happened…

When Jenna laced up her shoes to run this marathon, the days leading up to the race didn't go quite as planned.
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You know...

• ✅Rest up and take it easy
• ✅Get familiar with the course, pick up race number & swag
• ✅Drink plenty of fluids
• ✅Enjoy more carb-friendly foods than usual

"I usually hydrate more than usual the day before," says Jenna.
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❌"But due to a series of unfortunate events, including the creepiest hotel I've ever stayed in, I didn't do so and completely forgot that I hadn't."
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🥒She stepped up to the starting line anyways, and decided to throw in a Pickle Juice shot at the last minute...maybe it would be useful.
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"About 16 miles in, I started to feel a bit off," says Jenna.
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A little dizzy. Sluggish. And increasing soreness in her legs.
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👉What would you do?

Jenna Busch-Henderson

It was two miles to the next hydration station, and I remembered that I'd put pickle juice in my fanny pack.

When Jenna hit the wall earlier than expected, she knew what she had to do.
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She unscrewed the cap on a 2.5-ounce bottle of pickle juice and gulped it down.

• Would it make a difference? 
• Would it help her run another 10 miles and finish the race?

🥒She was about to find out...
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"What really surprised me was how fast it worked," says Jenna. "I'm not saying a small shot of liquid is enough, and of course, I grabbed cups at stations."

Jenna Busch-Henderson

But what it did do was shut my tired legs up very quickly. It also stopped the dizzy feeling I had in my head. I'd clearly depleted my electrolytes, and this put some of them back.

Pretty soon, she started feeling better, moving a little faster, and pushing towards the finish line.
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🥒And thanks to some pickle juice, she racked up another 26.2-mile finish.

You’re crushing a training run or ticking off the miles in a race, and then BAM! Your muscle (quads, calves, hamstrings, or all three) seizes up like it’s throwing a temper tantrum.
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😭That ever happen?
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"Muscle cramps caused by dehydration and muscle exertion are pretty typical during endurance events," says multi-sport athlete and Pickle Juice Ambassador Tim Hacker.
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But what's really going on is a little more complex than that...

• "Cramping is a neurological response to a physiological problem," says Tim.
• "And it's often triggered from low sodium levels, fatigue, dehydration or circulatory issues."

So, what’s the deal with pickle juice? Why are runners raving about it?
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There's at least THREE reasons to pack some pickle juice on your next run like Jenna:
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🥒1. Electrolyte explosion

• Pickle juice is packed with sodium and a dash of potassium and magnesium
• It's the trifecta that keeps your muscles firing on all cylinders. 
• When you sweat buckets during those long runs, you’re losing these crucial electrolytes, and pickle juice helps top them off.

🥒2. Zap those cramps

• Some scientists think the acetic acid in pickle juice messes with the cramp signal in your nervous system. 
• Translation? Your cramps get the boot, and you’re back in the game.

🥒3. Hydration helper

• While pickle juice isn’t a hydrating drink on its own, it helps your body hold onto the water you drink, keeping you from turning into dust on those ultra-hot days.

Headed out for a long run, chasing a finish line, or just want to be ready to stop cramps before they get out of hand?
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Packing along a little pickle juice may be just the thing to keep you going.

Tell us about it in the comments.
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Fun fact: Pickle juice and a few other ingredients helped another WeeViews runner finish a 100-mile race.

• Would You Drink a Strange Mix of Liquids to Run 100 Miles?