- If you've never experienced the potentially debilitating
and sometimes very painful feeling of a side stitch
or side cramp then count yourself very lucky.
But if like many of us you have, there is some good news
because there are actually steps that you can take
to reduce the chance of getting a side stitch.
So today I'm going to be explaining what a side stitch is,
and more importantly, talking through those steps,
which can help prevent you getting a stitch
next time you're training or racing.
(upbeat music)
To use the formal medical term for a side stitch
is exercise-related transient abdominal pain, ETAP.
Although this can be a really annoying pain
that's experienced by a lot of people who exercise,
it isn't actually an injury even though it's estimated
that around 70% of people who run regularly
have experienced this at some point.
The side stitch is thought to be
an internal type of cramp or spasm of the diaphragm
and that's why you experience
the real stabbing type pain underneath the ribs.
And it can be on both sides, even up into the shoulder,
although research shows that actually
it's most commonly found
on the right-hand side of the abdomen.
So what exactly is the side stitch?
Well, even though it's a really common pain,
no one's been able to put their finger
on the exact reason why,
although there are several theories out there.
One of which is thought that it could be an irritation
and therefore inflammation of the membrane lining
between the diaphragm and the abdomen,
so when there's a lot of jostling up and down,
this causes friction which then results
in that side stitch type of pain.
So it's no surprise that running
is a prime candidate for stitches,
you are obviously going to be jostling a lot up and down.
And it's thought that actually amateur runners
or people who are new to running
are more likely to experience a side stitch
than someone who is more experienced.
Another theory is what's gone into your stomach,
so I guess your diet but we'll come onto that in a moment.
It's a good idea to think about your breathing
and try to generally slow it down.
So really focus on your inhalation and your exhalation
making them really nice and deep
and therefore using the full movement of your diaphragm.
Another suggested method is actually taking a deep breath,
hold your breath momentarily and then rapidly exhale,
anything that's going to change that pattern.
And talking of changing patterns,
it's worth considering your running cadence,
so whether you want to try and speed that up
or slow it down or just change it up a little bit.
And even think about what foot you actually land on
when you take your in breath,
and you might want to swap that over to the other leg.
(inspiring music)
It's also a good idea to work on
strengthening your core muscles,
so the muscles of your lower back and your abdomen.
And whilst you're doing that,
you want to make sure you're doing plenty of stretches
for this area too so that the movement
can be nice and smooth when you're running.
And talking of stretching,
you can actually stretch it out
mid-run when the stitch appears.
So there's two options here,
one of which you could actually just use your hands
and grab the area so you're changing the stimulus,
and you can even double that up with a bend over.
Or the opposite and something which I quite like to do,
and find sometimes works for me
is to stretch your arms up above your head,
and even add in a bit of a side bend.
And there's not evidence behind either of these,
but if you experiment you'll probably find
that at least one of them will help.
And then there are dietary measures
which you need to put in place before going for your run,
and avoid eating or drinking excessively beforehand.
And think about the time scale
you might need in order to digest that.
So it really is a matter of personal preference
and how quickly your stomach can digest something,
but within the region of two to four hours is normal,
although you'll soon find out through experimentation.
And it's then the question of what to eat
before you go running.
Well again, it is very much personal preference,
but it's a good idea to avoid having too much
in the way of fatty foods or foods that are high in fiber,
as these will sit in your stomach for much longer.
And fluids also need to be considered,
as dehydration can lead to a stitch,
but also in the opposite direction
of having too much fluid sloshing around.
And when it comes to drinks,
it's a good idea to try and avoid anything
that's too high in sugar, especially fruit juices,
as these can also cause a stitch.
As you can see, there is sadly no magic answer
for solving the side stitch.
But if you do address all of the things we've talked about,
so changing your food habits,
making sure you've always had a good warmup,
and also improving your cardiovascular fitness,
so these should all add up and hopefully
prevent you getting a side stitch in the future.
But if you've got any magic answers
or anything that works for you,
do let us know in the comment section below.
And give us a thumbs up like if you've enjoyed this video.
And to make sure you get all of the videos here at GTN,
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And if you want to know how to prevent more general cramp,
we've got a video on that just over here.
And if you want some tips as a new triathlete,
you can find those just over here.