Welcome to Past Your Prime – the podcast for active adults balancing training, rehab, family, and real life.

In each episode, hosts Craig Smith and Alex Keicher dive into real-world strategies for overcoming injuries, staying strong, and living pain-free — even when life gets chaotic.

💡 Learn more, access resources, and join our community: 👉 ⁠pastyourprime.com⁠

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📲 Alex – ⁠@spikerkeicher⁠

📲 Craig – ⁠@craigsmithPT

Episode Summary

In Episode 18 of Past Your Prime, Craig and Alex unpack why muscle cramps are often misunderstood—and why telling people to hydrate more misses the real problem.

Craig lays out his clinical model of the cramping threshold, arguing that multiple systems—not just hydration—alter a muscle’s ability to tolerate load and electrical input. If that threshold is lowered by injury, pain, or nerve dysfunction, cramping becomes way more likely.

They cover:

• Why nerve irritation, even at the spine, can change muscle activation in the foot or calf

• The role of double crush syndrome in lowering the firing threshold

• How reciprocal inhibition and synergist failure make specific muscles more vulnerable

• The surprising truth about electrolytes and dehydration research

• How to build a clinical framework for understanding, diagnosing, and treating cramping

This episode redefines what muscle cramping is—and why managing it means thinking beyond fluid intake.

📣 Quote from the Episode:

“It’s not a hydration problem. It’s a nervous system problem. The muscle is doing what it’s told—it's just getting the wrong message.”📍 Visit ⁠PastYourPrime.com⁠ for the full blog post