Key takeaway

  • To get rid of a side stitch while exercising, try slowing down your pace or taking a short break to allow your muscles to relax.
  • Stretching your abdominal muscles or applying gentle pressure to the cramping area can help alleviate the pain caused by a side stitch.
  • Prevent side stitches by avoiding large meals before exercise, maintaining healthy posture, strengthening your core, and gradually increasing workout intensity.

A side stitch is also known as exercise-related transient abdominal pain, or ETAP. It’s that sharp pain you get in your side, just below your chest, when you’re exercising.

Side stitches are very common, and they aren’t serious. They often subside when a person slows down or stops exercising.

There are ways you can get rid of this annoying pain once you feel it coming on. There are also ways to lower your chance of getting a side stitch in the first place. Read on to find out how.

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If you feel a side stitch coming on, there are ways to stop it from getting worse and get rid of it altogether. Here’s how:

1. Slow down or take a break

Slowing down or taking a brief break from exercise can allow the muscles around your chest to relax, which may help reduce pain.

2. Take a deep breath

The authors of a 2015 study cite older research in which 40% of participants reported that deep breathing was their preferred method for dealing with a side stitch. This technique may also help the muscles relax.

To reduce the pain of a contracted muscle, take a deep breath. Then, breathe out slowly. Repeat this several times.

3. Stretch your abdominal muscles

Another common technique for reducing a side stitch is stretching the muscle. With a side stitch, try this technique to reduce cramping:

  1. Raise the arm on the same side as your stitch above your head.
  2. Bend gently away from the stitch to stretch the muscle, keeping your arm raised.

4. Push on your muscles

Another strategy some athletes use for stitches is pressing on the cramping muscle. You can try this technique to reduce muscle cramping:

  1. Push your fingers firmly but gently into the area where you feel the stitch.
  2. Bend forward at your torso until you feel the pain start to subside.

There are ways to prevent a side stitch from hijacking your workout. Here are six tips that may help stop a side stitch from happening in the first place:

Prevention tips

  1. Avoid eating a large meal before exercising: Refrain from consuming a large meal or drinking a lot of fluids at least 2 hours before exercising. Doing so may put extra pressure on your abdominal muscles.
  2. Improve your posture:A 2010 study found that differences in posture correlated with getting a side stitch. Where possible, try to maintain a neutral spine position and keep your shoulders back while exercising.
  3. Build up your core strength. A 2014 study of 50 runners found that having stronger trunk muscles reduced the frequency of stitches among participants.
  4. Gradually increase the length of your workout: Building up your muscles over time may help reduce muscle cramping and injury. So start slowly and work your way up. For example, if you’re starting a running routine from scratch, do it in stages. Don’t try to do too much too quickly.
  5. Stay hydrated: Stay well-hydrated by drinking small amounts of water regularly throughout your workout.

Scientists do not fully understand what causes side stitches. One theory suggests that it results from irritation of the parietal peritoneum, which is the membrane that covers the inside of the abdominal cavity.

Irritation of this tissue can cause the same sharp abdominal pain that stitches cause, and removing its trigger quickly improves the pain. This is similar to the way ceasing exercise can help ease a side stitch.

You’re more likely to get a side stitch if you do exercises that keep your upper body extended and tense for a long time, such as:

Younger individuals also appear to experience ETAP more frequently than older individuals. As a person ages, they may experience them less often.

Side stitches can cause a sharp, stabbing pain during exercise. For many people, this pain is usually located in their side, just below their chest.

They are very common, affecting as many as one in five people during a single running event. They are not serious and typically subside when a person stops exercising.

There are steps you can take to alleviate or reduce this pain. Slowing down, breathing deeply, stretching, and pushing on the muscles may help.

Avoiding large meals before exercising, maintaining a healthy posture, and gradually building up your strength may help prevent a side stitch from occurring.

If you experience sudden or intense pain while exercising, stop immediately. Follow up with your doctor if the pain worsens or doesn’t improve with rest.