There can be many reasons for side pain while running. This phenomenon is especially common among beginners with a low level of physical fitness. The body is not accustomed to running loads and tries to respond.
In this material we will tell you why your side hurts while running, what are the causes of this pain. You will also learn what needs to be done to make the pain go away and how seriously you should take it.
Factors that can trigger pain
Determining exactly why side pain occurs is quite difficult even for doctors. However, there are several risk factors that significantly influence the occurrence of cramps in the side:
- Poor physical fitness;
- Lack of warm-up before class;
- Training in very cold weather;
- Eating or drinking immediately before running;
- Age. This may seem strange, but in younger people this type of pain is more common and feels much stronger;
Symptoms
The manifestations of these abdominal pains have characteristic symptoms and are typical for most people:
- piercing;
- acute;
- like a spasm;
- like a sprain;
It may seem that side pain only bothers amateurs or beginners. Unfortunately, it is not. More than 60% of professional runners experience episodes of pain every year. With the growing professionalism of athletes, the prevalence of hepatic pain syndrome (on the right under the ribs) reaches 10%. And among amateur runners it reaches 13%. It has been noticed that pain is more pronounced in young athletes than in those who have been practicing for a long time.
Pain in the side worries not only amateurs, but also professional athletes.
At first, the symptoms are short-term in nature, then they can intensify, which forces you to do training less frequently, or maybe stop them altogether. Some professional athletes are forced to leave sports forever.
This condition cannot be called a disease, since the only symptom is pain during exercise. There are no changes in either abdominal examinations (ultrasound) or biochemical blood tests. This may be why medicine has not studied this problem in detail for so long.
In search of a solution to the problem, many begin to cleanse the liver, try special diets (raw food diet, fractional meals, etc.), take choleretic drugs, and be treated with herbs. Most often, these actions are not effective, and in the worst case, have a negative impact on health.
Internal organs that can provoke spasms
The main internal organs that cause pain in the side:
- Pain on the right side under the chest - liver;
- Pain on the left under the chest - spleen;
- Side pain when running - diaphragm.
It is not the internal organs themselves that hurt. The cause of discomfort is the acceleration of blood flow in the body during physical activity. This, in turn, increases the size of organs and creates situations where nerve endings can be affected.
Why does pain occur when running?
Depending on the location, nature and conditions of occurrence, a number of main reasons can be identified:
- Poor physical fitness and insufficient endurance . That is why it is mainly beginners who experience pain.
- Poorly conducted warm-up . A sharp increase in load provokes increased blood flow to the internal organs. Having increased in volume, the liver begins to put pressure on the liver capsule, which has a large number of nerve endings. As a result, pain occurs or, as doctors call it, “hepatic pain syndrome.”
- Breakfast too heavy or recent . After eating food, the body's forces are concentrated on its active digestion. The stomach and liver are involved in the process. The gastrointestinal tract works in enhanced mode. Running promotes additional blood flow, enlarging the organ even more. The result is pain in the side.
- Shallow and frequent, irregular breathing . In this case, the amplitude of the diaphragm decreases, as does the amount of oxygen supplied. Spasm and pain occur.
- Chronic diseases of the gallbladder, liver, pancreas . Previous causes of pain related to healthy, untrained people. Diseases contribute to the enlargement of organs with additional stress and the appearance of pain.
Causes of side pain while running
Side pain while running can occur in both beginners and experienced athletes. Unpleasant sensations can appear unexpectedly, and acute pain can force you to stop, and if we are talking about competitions, even quit the race.
Why does my side hurt when running? There is no definite answer to this question; unpleasant sensations arise for various reasons. However, many ways have been invented to get rid of or dull pain in the side.
The location of the pain can be either in the left or right side. For some, these sensations are similar to a nagging pain, for others, a sharp stabbing pain. Factors that can provoke discomfort and spasms:
- No warm-up. Warm-up is necessary in order to warm up the muscles and prepare the body for stress. People who frequently run note that without warming up, cramps occur much more often;
Why it stings during time: reasons
The explanations why your right or left side hurts when you run are quite simple:
In right and left
So, why does it sting in the right or left side during or after running? If you feel a stabbing pain while walking or running quickly, then know that if the right side pierces when running, it’s the liver , and if the left side pierces, it’s the spleen .
When the body is not exposed to stress, part of the blood is in reserve and does not circulate through the blood vessels. The main volume of circulating blood occurs in the chest and abdominal cavities.
Physical activity causes a redistribution of blood flow in the body in favor of working muscles. However, it should be noted that unlike muscles, which are ready to start working immediately, the autonomic functions that ensure their work (such as blood circulation and breathing) require some time to “break in.”
When other motivation no longer works
