Are you looking for additional muscle recovery, a solution to muscle cramps and support? Introducing QuikPlus Muscle Matrix, a brand new product and part of the QuikPlus atomic size mineral line.
To be completely honest, I created this product for myself! As you may know, I have a lot of horses and therefore often do hard work for 4-6 hours at a time. GREAT for staying healthy and energetic, but I often woke up with leg cramps – not great.
This threw me into a lot of research because magnesium alone didn’t work well enough for this level/intensity of muscle cramps. And it turns out there’s plenty of research showing that electrolytes or individual minerals aren’t very effective for muscle cramps. There is further research to support this theory Muscle cramps are caused by overexcited alpha motor neurons – the nerves that extend from the spinal cord to the skeletal muscle fibers.
Substances that calm motor neurons – stop muscle spasms
When these motor neurons become hyperactive, they issue commands to all connected muscle cells to contract, resulting in a spasm. Fatigue (known to be a risk factor for muscle cramps and twitches) also switches on the activity of alpha motor neurons to promote excessive muscle contraction. So how do we get these motor neurons to calm down? By activating TRP channels.
To utilize the TRP pathway, the supplement must be consumed like food so that it comes into contact with the mouth/tongue, throat, and esophagus and interacts with the receptors there. In addition to minerals such as zinc, magnesium and calcium, which directly activate the TRP channels, there are also certain nutrients that do an excellent job.
Known TRPA1 and/or TRPV1 agonists:
- Capsaicin from red peppers
- Gingerol from ginger
- Allyl isothiocyanate from mustard, radish, horseradish or wasabi
- Allicin from garlic
- Ajoene from garlic
- cucumber juice and olive juice
- Cinnamaldehyde from cinnamon
- Mustard oil
I’m going to get a little more technical in a moment, but the cool part I want to share with you is How I Solved My Own Muscle Cramp Problem!
Combine Muscle Matrix with ginger
After researching the minerals involved, I formulated Muscle Matrix in atom-sized (nano) form – so when you swish through your mouth and swallow, the formula interacts with all the TRP receptors in the mouth, tongue and esophagus and is absorbed through the mucosal tissue. That was enough for many days. But on particularly busy days (muscle fatigue) I combined Muscle Matrix with Ginger Chews! Because – see list above – the gingerol in ginger is a strong TRPA1/TRPV1 agonist and it actually tastes good!
If you can manage to chew a piece of fresh ginger, do it! Remember to hold the juice in your mouth and swish it back and forth. Swallow one piece at a time to really stimulate all the TRP receptors. You can have Muscle Matrix in your mouth at the same time or before/after, depending on what feels good to you. Candied ginger (I like Chimes Ginger Chews) also works just as well.
I have made several attempts to include gingerol in the Muscle Matrix formula, but let me tell you, there is a reason why ginger is used in every vegetable fermentation recipe! Nothing cultivates bacteria faster and there was simply no way to seal them in a bottle (without using chemical preservatives) without them starting to ferment.
If you don’t get muscle cramps often or they aren’t severe, you probably don’t need the ginger, and Muscle Matrix alone will do the trick. But for severe, repetitive cramps, combine the two and prepare to be surprised!
Vitamin E for muscle cramps and restless legs
Another factor to consider is whether you are getting enough natural vitamin E – if it says DL (e.g. dl-Alpha-Tocopheryl), then it is NOT a natural vitamin E, but synthetic.
Natural vitamin E is only listed with the D in front of the form (e.g. D-Alpha-Tocopheryl). It is much more expensive, but it is the only form of vitamin E that I consume, include in my formulas or give to my animals!
When you take my MultiAbsorb multinutrient blend, you already receive 400 IU of natural vitamin E per day. In severe cases, take 800 IU per day. Some find that it is best to take Muscle Matrix, 400-800 IU of vitamin E, and ginger just before bed. Others find that it works better with food. Listen to your body!
Vitamin B complex 86% success with leg cramps!
And here’s another reason to supplement with MultiAbsorb: Taking the vitamin B complex resulted in complete relief from leg cramps in 86% of the subjects in the study:
“After 3 months, 86% of patients taking vitamin B showed significant remission of leg cramps, while patients taking placebo had no significant difference from baseline. Treatment with vitamin B complex significantly reduced the frequency, intensity and duration of nighttime leg cramps.”
MultiAbsorb contains the entire complex of B vitamins (in the most bioavailable forms) and in therapeutic amounts (much higher than the recommended daily dose).
The health boost for restless legs or cramps
Renowned Australian physician (and ND) Barbara O’Neill recommends also using a rebounder or mini trampoline to stimulate blood flow to the legs – and the entire lymphatic system. Particularly important for people who don’t exercise regularly. Click this link to see a quick 60 second demo of Health Bounce.
Place your mini trampoline anywhere that makes it easy for you to bounce healthily for a minute or two. This can be in your bedroom, near your desk, or anywhere you watch TV or Netflix.
But let’s get back to Muscle Matrix and some data about why these particular minerals work so well in synergy…
Mineral synergy to relieve muscle spasms
Muscle matrix minerals: Magnesium and potassium are two minerals that work together to relax muscle tissue. Calcium and zinc work in synergy with magnesium and potassium to balance muscle contraction and relaxation.
Certain metal ions (such as zinc and magnesium) directly activate TRP channels; I suspect that’s why they’ve been shown to help with muscle cramps in some studies.
Calcium sensitizes and activates TRPA1 directly. Calcium also appears to mediate the relationship between TRPA1 and TRPV1 when activated by an agonist (capsaicin in this study). This study also found that calcium is the main ion passed through TRPA1 and TRPV1 when they are activated, and when calcium levels in the extracellular fluid decrease, the effect of the agonist (capsaicin) on TRPA1 and TRPV1 is largely abolished.
This may explain why calcium helps reduce muscle cramps despite being a magnesium antagonist. The correct levels are critical for the proper functioning of these motor neurons, as well as for TRPA1 and TRPV1 agonists to successfully bind to TRPA1 and TRPV1 receptors and trigger a biological response. Magnesium can penetrate TRPA1 (albeit to a lesser extent than calcium), and this may contribute to magnesium’s benefits for muscle cramps.
I hope this helps you better understand the theory behind the Muscle Matrix formulation. I can tell you that It works much better than just magnesium alone. I used to wake up from a deep sleep with unusual painful cramps from my foot to my calf. Sometimes even my quadriceps were involved. But when I take Muscle Matrix before bed (on a particularly busy or stressful day, I also add a shot of QuikPlus Magnesium), I sleep without any problems. On strenuous labor days, I also chew/swirl a ginger chew or a piece of candied ginger – often even half a ginger chew is enough – and I also take 800 IU of vitamin E.
Gentle on the intestines: Remember, the atom-sized mineral blend QuikPlus Muscle Matrix and QuikPlus Magnesium do not need to be digested as their nano/angstrom size (less than 250 picometers) allows them to be absorbed directly into your cells.
I have no idea why my body needs so much support to not suffer from restless legs or muscle cramps at night, but I suspect it’s related to stress (which also depletes magnesium). I also don’t eat a lot of potatoes or bananas (the main sources of potassium) and have always had low blood pressure. Therefore, I suspect that this combination means that I need to fully support my body with this problem.
Have you had a bowel movement?
One last thing I want to mention about restless legs in particular is that you can do all of the therapies listed above. However, if you haven’t had a bowel movement that day, this can be a major cause of restless legs.
I haven’t seen any research on this, but just by tuning into my own body, I’ve noticed that when stool sits in my descending colon and I lie down to sleep, some kind of nerve is triggered; which leads to restless legs.
This is where a colon massage is really helpful to stimulate bowel movements, or in combination with my other effective constipation remedies to ensure you have at least one bowel movement per day.
If you have any questions, leave them in the comment section below 🙂
Jini Patel Thompson is an internationally recognized expert in natural healing for digestive diseases. She healed herself from widespread Crohn’s disease and has been medication and surgery free for over 25 years. Jini has appeared on numerous podcasts, TV and radio shows in the US, UK, Canada and Australia, giving people hope and vision on how to heal their colitis, Crohn’s disease, diverticulitis and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) using all-natural methods. Her books on natural healing of digestive diseases have been sold in over 80 countries worldwide. Jini is married and has three children, nine sheep, 11 horses, a cat and three dogs.
