Causes of Abdominal Pain During Exercise

During physical exercise—especially running—some individuals occasionally experience abdominal pain of varying severity, which resolves once the activity stops. What causes abdominal pain during exercise?

Causes of Abdominal Pain During Exercise

Exercise-induced abdominal pain is a transient functional disturbance triggered by intense physical activity—not a disease. Symptoms typically subside gradually upon cessation of exercise. Common causes include:

• Improper diet: Consuming excessive or inappropriate food—such as overeating, eating too close to exercise or competition, drinking alcohol (especially cold beverages), or ingesting gas-producing or hard-to-digest foods (e.g., legumes, potatoes, beef)—can provoke upper abdominal pain. This pain is usually dull and distending; in severe cases, it may manifest as intense colicky pain.

• Inadequate training planning: Exercising on an empty stomach, excessive gastric acid secretion, or inhaling cold air may trigger gastric spasm. Other contributing factors—such as constipation leading to overly dry stools—may irritate the intestinal mucosa and cause spastic abdominal pain. Such pain commonly occurs in the lower left abdomen. In contrast, abdominal pain caused by parasitic infections (e.g., ascariasis) typically localizes around the umbilicus.

• Insufficient warm-up: If abdominal pain occurs early in the exercise session, it may result from inadequate preparation—starting too abruptly without proper warm-up—causing internal organs to fail to adapt promptly to the demands placed on the musculoskeletal system. Specifically, when organ function has not yet reached the required level, premature increases in exercise intensity can precipitate such discomfort.

We hope this explanation proves helpful.