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Pain in my side when walking
Last reviewed: 04.07.2025
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Often a person faces a situation when he experiences pain in the side when walking with fast movements. This can happen while running or even walking slowly. What are the causes of this pain?
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Causes of pain in the side when walking
One of the explanations for why pain in the side appears is unwarmed muscles. A person begins to make sudden movements, switching from a slow walk to a fast one, and he begins to feel a stabbing pain in the side - or a cutting pain. The situation can be aggravated by the fact that a person ate and did not hold out for an hour and a half or two hours after that, but immediately gave himself physical exercise. What are the explanations for the biological processes of pain in the side?
During rapid movements, blood does not pass through the diaphragm, but goes straight to the limbs. The diaphragm acts as a partition between two zones. One contains the stomach and abdominal cavity, and the other contains the lungs and heart.
The diaphragm is a muscle that plays one of the main roles in the respiratory system, and if it does not have enough air or blood with the bloodstream, it protests. When the diaphragm does not receive enough blood and nutrients with the bloodstream, it spasms. Then a person experiences a sharp pain in the side.
Another explanation for stabbing pain in the side is that during walking or fast running the intestines enlarge and then they press on the diaphragm, which reacts very badly to this. It is injured and tenses, so the person's side begins to hurt. In fact, it is not the side itself that hurts, but the ligaments of the diaphragm that are subjected to pressure.
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How to neutralize pain in the side when walking?
After eating, you need to wait at least two to three hours, and then do physical exercise.
Do not drink a lot of water right during training, because water tends to expand the intestines, it will press on the diaphragm and pain in the side may appear
If the pain does appear, try to pull in your stomach, breathe deeply through your nose, and then the abdominal muscles will tone. The pain should decrease.
Tighten your abdominal muscles with a wide elastic belt. This type of belt is often used by runners to make their waists appear smaller as a result of sweating. The pain will be less intense and will soon disappear.
Do not overload yourself with physical exercises or take other drastic measures - no exercises at all. Provided that the muscles are constantly and evenly warmed up, pain in the side when walking will not bother you.