aches and weakness in legs

Hello @littleoaksc52, Welcome to Connect. It sounds like you are doing what would help with leg strength. Speaking from my own experience on exercise and activity as a 79 year old, If I over do it some days my legs are sore and I have trouble sitting down or getting up. I do have other health conditions in play though. Here's some information I found on the topic that might shed some light on the problem you are having.

"Why are my legs weak and aching?
Poor circulation. Your legs may feel tired or fatigued if your blood isn't circulating through your body properly. Poor circulation often affects the lower part of your body since it's harder for blood to flow upward toward your heart. Sometimes blood can collect in your legs, ankles, and feet."
-- Tired Legs: Causes, Treatment, Prevention, and More
https://www.healthline.com/health/tired-legs

Have you checked with your doctor to see if they may have some thoughts on the cause?

Hello @littleoaksc52,

I would encourage you, as did John (@johnbishop) to talk with your doctor. There are some noninvasive tests (like a doppler) that can diagnose leg pain and can be quite helpful in pinpointing problems with circulation.

I'm also wondering if you have leg weakness or just pain?

Because my Lumbar Spinal Stenosis affects the nerves in my legs they are sore and sometimes a little weak when standing and walking but typically not sitting which I've been told is usual. However at night the aches and occasionally cramps can be nearly unbearable and very worrisome as I worry about if the blood is having trouble circulating and that is the cause of the, sometimes nearly unbearable, pain. I don't have any swelling in my ankles or feet but because of probable arthritis and a recent injury, one knee seems a little larger. My concern is if the damage to the nerves in the legs can cause blood clots because they are inactive when I am sleeping, (or some of the time, trying to sleep).

After an air travel for around 12 hrs., I am facing this problem of pain in legs & feet. The skin also burns. More sleep in day & less at night. Taking Meftal Forte Tablet once daily. Watching the outcome. It is only 3 days as of today. Aged 83.

Maybe you should go to Dr to make sure no clots are trying to form in your leg or pelvis after your travel.

My pains are now reduced after another intake for 3 days once a day of Meftal Forte (a combination of Mefamonic acid & paracetamol). I am also on a blood thinner to avoid blood clots.

Sounds like you and your doctor have it all covered. I'm pleased to hear it has improved. It also seems you are doing very well at age 83. Good for you! 😀

Another thing you might consider is whether or not you are getting sufficient high quality protein to grow and maintain lean muscle mass. This is particularly important for us all as we age.

I also have Lumbar Spinal Stenosis and it affects the nerves in my legs similarly to what you experience. I have found that keeping a heating pad handy helps relieve the cramping. I leave it at the bottom of my bed. At the first sign of cramping I turn the pad to "low" and leave the pad either under my lower leg(s) or resting on the shin(s). (It helps that I already sleep on my back, so I don't have to switch to a less comfortable position to use the heating pad.) The slight heat almost always soothes the cramp within a minute or two. My heating pad turns itself off automatically after an hour, so I don't worry about falling back to sleep while it's still on (and remember, I set it on "low").

Sometimes when the cramp is severe I'll get out of bed and walk to the bathroom, not because I really need to use it, but more so for the activity. The walk seems to help uncramp the leg and (funny as it sounds) this gives me something to occupy my mind for a few minutes, just long enough for the cramp to dissipate.

Another thing I do when I DO use the bathroom is have a drink of water afterwards. Yeah, I know you're thinking "but then you'll just have to get up again in an hour or so." You're right, but I figure it's probably better to keep the muscles hydrated than to endure another cramp.

About a year ago I tried adding a pinch of salt to the water, on the theory that when we urinate we're not just passing water but also the electrolytes that have been filtered out by the kidneys. Each evening after brushing my teeth, I'd set up a large glass of water with the salt, leave it on the counter, and every time I got up to to urinate I take a big sip or two. At first I thought I'd hit on the perfect solution because for the first month I didn't have a single nighttime cramp. But, sigh, that didn't last. The usual pattern of "some nights cramping, some nights not" resumed, and so I gave up on the salt.

One last thing I do is take magnesium at bedtime. I like to think that while it doesn't totally eliminate cramping, it's helping to reduce the frequency and severity of the cramps.

And sometimes I think that everything I am doing is just a meaningless rain dance, but I keep trying....

I read all the comments and they are sort of I what do…stretching, holding legs in the air for a count of 15 when I first wake up and massage each calf and shin…..later in the AM I do leg lifts and a some bench presses….but still every so often I get severe charley horses, mostly lft thigh, mostly early AM while I am still asleep. Very painful. I try to grab a robaxsial but don’t like to as it slows up my whole day…so I do the following: As I lie in bed; I mentally try to separate the pain from the muscle spasm and try to figure which muscle is twitching which way. Slowing down my breathing to slow down my heart which is beating too fast….and consolidate the pain into a ball and send it to a deserving target….. then carefully I lower my calf on that leg about 6” over the side of bed for a count of 5 and then back up flat, rest 5, then raise about 6” for count of 5. Also when resting I take a big swig from my water-bottle that I keep in the bed with me. Turning on the bedside light is comforting and if necessary I also yell out my pain to relax my muscles and mind….(this is the reason we say “ouch” or swear) As for weak knees which I have even tho’ my legs are strong. My doc says at my age(83 soon to to be 84) my brain is not connecting with my knees to make them go up stairs without holding on to the bannister. Actually my balance is not that great so I am working on that. A bit of a piss-off. Hope this helps. Sorry if it is a bit long. Peace & Love everyone and bon courage.