Question

Paheli participated in a 400 m race competition held at her school and won the race. When she came home she had mixed feelings of joy and pain as she had cramps in her leg muscles. After a massage, she was relieved of the pain. Answer the following questions related to the situation.

1. What can be the possible reasons for the pain in her legs?
2. Why did she feel comfortable after a massage?

Answer 1

1. The pain in her legs could be due to the accumulation of lactic acid in the muscles. During heavy exercise or running etc., our body does not get enough oxygen to produce the required energy. To get the additional energy, the muscle cells respire anaerobically. During this process, partial breakdown of glucose occurs to produce lactic acid which on accumulation causes muscle cramps.
2. The massage gave her relief because it improves the circulation of blood resulting in an increased supply of oxygen to the muscle cells which helps in the complete breakdown of lactic acid into carbon dioxide and water.