Why Magnesium Is So Important for Your Flexibility and Mobility

Magnesium is a master macro mineral.

Magnesium is a master macro mineral.

Master Mineral and All Round MVP

Magnesium is often called the master mineral because it is involved in so many vital processes of the body that impact our energy levels and our quality of movement. Undoubtedly, all minerals and vitamins are essential to the health of the body; however, without magnesium many of them would not be effective or as effective as they should be.

Magnesium is responsible for:

  • 350+ vital enzymatic processes throughout the body (1-6)

  • impacts 80% of the function of your body, including skeletal muscles, the heart, bone structure

It is definitely an all round player in the body. Just to name a few key areas of the body it impacts, magnesium helps to (1-4,7-9):

  • control blood glucose levels

  • synthesize protein

  • convert vitamin D

  • structure the functioning of the mitochondria (intracellular powerhouse)

  • structure the functioning and nucleic acids (genes)

  • regulate blood pressure and cellular mineral balance via intracellular potassium-sodium pump

An adult body:

  • contains 25 g of magnesium (9)

  • stores ~60% of total body magnesium in bones and teeth (1,2,7)

  • stores the remaining ~40% in muscles and other soft tissues (1-3,9)

  • < 1% of magnesium content can be found extracellularly (1-3)

Top 5 Movement Benefits of Magnesium


1) Magnesium the Energy Booster Behind Movement (1-6)

Magnesium is essential in producing energy, and without sufficient magnesium, you can start to experience low energy and lethargy. Magnesium is needed for energy production, otherwise known as ATP production or Krebs cycle, that occurs in the mitochondria (power engine of the cell).

It is actually present in 6 of the 8 steps of ATP synthesis which enables us to perform aerobic (eg, walking) and anaerobic (eg, sprinting) activities. When we are low in magnesium the ATP process is greatly compromised which can result in low energy, lethargy, aging.

2) Magnesium for Healthy Muscles (7)

Magnesium not only has a direct impact on our energy for motion but it also plays an essential role in muscle contraction and relaxation. Magnesium works antagonistically with calcium, also an electrolyte and a macro-mineral, and competes with calcium for binding sites of muscle proteins. (7)

Calcium is required for muscle contraction and enables muscle fibers to slide together and shorten, (ie, contract). Magnesium is needed for the reversal of this process and is responsible for the relaxation of the muscle. It allows muscle fibers to slide away from each other and to relax after contraction.

In the resting state, when muscles are relaxed, magnesium concentration is 10,000 times higher within the muscle cells than that of calcium. (7)

Woman suffering from muscle cramp or spasm.

Woman suffering from muscle cramp or spasm.

3) Magnesium to Alleviate Spasms and Cramps

If you start experiencing neuromuscular symptoms like muscle weakness, tremors, and seizures and overall (3) involuntary twitching of your muscles, cramping, or muscle spasms, especially at nights, it’s time to start taking notice and investigating your magnesium levels. A typical symptom is while flexing and/or pointing your feet, you find that your feet and/or toes cramp or stay painfully contracted.

When there is too little magnesium in the body, it takes relatively very little calcium to displace magnesium in the muscle cells. So, too much calcium in your system can block the absorption of magnesium. This can lead to hypercontractility, which presents clinically as muscle spasms and cramps. (7) Magnesium deficiency could be one big reason. However, always check with your medical doctor, especially if these signs and symptoms persist.

4) Magnesium to Avoid Stiffness, Aches, and Pains

Magnesium also contributes to structural development of bone and helps to regulate how much calcium enters our bones. (1) However, when there is not enough bioavailable magnesium available within the body, problems in our system can start to arise.

Too little magnesium can lead to overabundance of calcium within our cells. The results of too much calcium in the cells is that we start to calcify…. turn to stone. (1) Bones and joints, especially, begin to experience calcium build up which can lead to various pains and aches.

Magnesium is important for healthy nerves and muscles.

Magnesium is important for healthy nerves and muscles.

5) Magnesium to Promote Healthy Nerves and Healthy Sleep

Healthy nerves are important to fluid movement. Magnesium plays a critical role in maintaining the health of your nerves. It is key in cellular signaling and nerve impulse conduction, actively transporting calcium and potassium ions across cell membranes. (1,3)

Good sleep is so key in helping to keep nerves healthy, muscles rested, and the body rejuvenated, all key in producing a vibrant, fluidly moving you.

Magnesium benefits sleep. It is a key component for not only duration of sleep but also quality of sleep (increasing deep, dream-filled sleep) (10, 11) Magnesium is required in order for GABA, a restful and calming neurotransmitter which impacts our quality of sleep, to work effectively. It has also been found to be effective in maintaining normal circadian rhythms and regulating cellular timekeeping in the human body.

Takeaways

Magnesium is fundamental to the overall function of the body as well as to the muscles, bones, nerves, and joints – all key components to movement and in attaining flexibility. If our goal in life is to optimize our energy levels and keep moving with suppleness over the years, then keeping an eye on magnesium levels is essential.

The next question then becomes what can cause low magnesium levels? That will be explored in our next post.



References:

1. Grober U, Schmidt J, Kisters K. Magnesium in prevention and therapy. Nutrients. 2015;7(9):1-34.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26404370. Accessed February 10, 2019.

2. Razzaque MS. Magnesium: are we consuming enough? Nutrients.2018;10(12):1-12.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6316205. Accessed February 10, 2019.

3. Ahmed F, Mohommed A. Magnesium: The forgotten electrolyte–a review on hypomagnesemia. Med Sci. 2019;7(4):1-13. https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3271/7/4/56. Accessed May 6, 2019.

4. DiNicolantonio J, O’Keefe JH, Wilson W. Subclinical magnesium deficiency: a principal driver of cardiovascular disease and a public health crisis. Open Heart. 2018;5(1): e000688.

5. NIH: US National Library of Medicine. Minerals. MedlinePlus website. https://medlineplus.gov/minerals.html. Accessed May 12, 2019.

6. Dean, C. The Magnesium Miracle. 2nd ed. Ballantine Books: New York; 2017.

7. De Baaij JHF, Hoenderop JGJ, Bindels RJM. Magnesium in man: implications for health and disease. Physiol Rev. 2015. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25540137. Accessed February 10, 2019.

8. Guerrara MP, Volpe SL, Mao JJ. Therapeutic uses of magnesium. Am Fam Physician. 2009;80(2):157-162. https://www.aafp.org/afp/2009/0715/p157.html#afp20090715p157-b2. Accessed May 12, 2019.

9. National Institute of Health: Office of Dietary Supplements. Magnesium: fact sheet for health professionals. Updated September 26, 2018. https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Magnesium-HealthProfessional. Accessed April 16, 2019.

10. Cao Y, Zhen S, Taylor AW, Appleton S, Atlantis E, Shi Z. Magnesium intake and sleep disorder symptoms: findings from the Jiangsu nutrition study of Chinese adults at fire-year Follow-up. Nutrients. 2018;10(10):1354. https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/10/10/1354/htm#B9-nutrients-10-01354. Accessed May 12, 2019.

11. Feeney KA, Hansen LL, Putker M, et al. Daily magnesium fluxes regulate cellular timekeeping and energy balance. Nature. 2016;532:375-379. https://www.nature.com/articles/nature17407. Accessed May 12, 2019.




Magnesium, MineralsRobyn Reid