What to do about painful leg cramps in opposing muscle groups?

I just started working out every day and I have been the victim of terribly painful leg cramps! Last night itself my whole leg was cramping, plus my toes and foot. If I stretched my leg, the muscles on top cramped more, and if I bent it, the muscles below gave me terror. Even my toes were in on the game, they were going all up and down by themselves looking like they were playing a fake piano. All I could do was stare in horror with my eyes watering, whispering "oh-my-god oh-my-god oh-my-god oh-my-god!"

I've heard that there may be a drink or some medicine for this. Also, is there any alternative stretching technique that can help? Because when I stretched the one way it cramped the opposite muscles- lose lose situation!

HELP!!!

Well, not being a Doctor, I can speak from experience. Many, many thousands of people have gotten nightly relief from leg cramps by taking a 5 grain capsule of Quinine Sulphate. The same substance used for malaria. It has gone under scrutiny in this country for some reason but I used it for years and I know it works. It is a prescription only drug nowdays, usually taken at bedtime and works the whole night. It can also be taken as needed with about a 10 minute wait for relief. Another possibility is you may be difficient in magnesium. That is the case with me, and I spent $1000s on MRIs, X-rays, ultrasounds, etc, to find out why I was getting horrible simultanious cramps in both pectorals, and in my muscles behind in both my shoulder blades and down my back. The Doctors shrugged it off. I started researching for myself. I was aware that I was always deficient in magnesium in my regular blood tests. When I searched magnesium deficient and muscle cramps, BINGO. There was the answer to more of my medical problems than just muscle cramps. Try this web page to start with: http://www.mgwater.com/email99.shtml

tylenol

At one stage i was having bad leg cramps too, and it was suggested i try a magnesium & potassium supplement.
That helped. Eat lots of bananas.

As someone who can cramp their foot just by thinking about it (just had a bad one now!),sometimes i imagine the muscle flexing the other way to the cramping without actually moving it. It must have some effect because as soon as i stop thinking about it it gets worse! Dont know if that'll work on worse cramps tho!