Leg shaking can happen for many reasons, ranging from restless legs syndrome (RLS) to serious conditions such as dementia. It can be a subtle annoyance or an intense experience that causes muscle tension and difficulty walking. It is not possible to diagnose the cause of shaky legs based on symptoms alone.
Sometimes, it's nothing more than a bad habit, but that's not always the case! Many things can cause leg shaking, from boredom to anxiety to severe neurological conditions.
Foot tapping and leg shaking
The urge to move is almost reflexive in those with ADD/ADHD and can be annoying to others. Lead with compassion when you are interacting with someone who is tapping their foot or shaking their legs; they're just trying to regulate chemicals in their brains and make it easier to focus.
Uncontrolled leg movements can have a number of causes, from restless leg syndrome to hyperthyroidism to anxiety. Using certain substances such as alcohol or stimulant drugs can also cause leg shaking. If you are worried about your leg shaking or if it interferes with your daily life, contact your healthcare provider.
Restless legs syndrome, also known as Willis-Ekbom disease, is a common condition of the nervous system that causes an overwhelming irresistible urge to move the legs.
Stimming can look like flapping hands, rocking motions, pacing, repeating words or phrases, leg bouncing, nail-biting, spinning a ring on your finger, wringing hands etc. Stimming can often be helpful for people with autism/autistic people to regulate their emotions or deal with overwhelming situations.
It could be due to boredom, to help concentration, a form of distraction, comfort, coping strategy or simply a habit. It can also be due to a medical condition known as restless legs, in which case it is advisable to speak to the GP. Why does anxiety cause our legs to shake?
However, our muscles are inefficiently working in flat walking in opposition to bouncy walking. Therefore, not only do humans bob up and down in normal walking to save energy via a pendulum-like mechanism, as commonly thought since the 1960s, but they also load their muscles more efficiently this way.
' If you jiggle your leg, tap your foot, or twirl a pen, you're burning a small number of calories that can add up over the course of a day or week. In fact, one study found that fidgeting or other non-exercise movement (which was more common among lean than obese individuals) could burn up to 350 calories a day.
Two of the most common sleep disorders linked with ADHD are periodic limb movements of sleep (PLMS) and restless legs syndrome (RLS). For these reasons, kids with ADHD are more likely to have daytime drowsiness than those without ADHD. They are also more likely to have RLS.
ADHD Stimming: Characteristics and Examples
Many people exhibit self-stimulating behaviors, such as biting their nails, shaking their legs, or playing with their hair. These behaviors may overlap with ADHD stimming in some ways. That said, ADHD stimming is typically more severe than fidgeting in “neurotypical” people.
Fidgeting may look like tapping your foot, drumming your fingers, or constantly shifting in your seat. Many people with ADHD tune out when tasks are understimulating.
It could be due to restlessness, as a concentration aid or even because of stress. Basically, as therapist Cheryl Hassan explains at Quora, it's often a self-soothing or coping activity people do when they feel anxious and their mind is busy doing something else.
You should be rolling from heel to toe as you stride, not landing flat-footed with a thud. And don't reach your leg far out in front of you. That increases impact on your joints and actually slows you down. You want a smooth, quiet stride—no bouncing or plodding along—to reduce your risk of injury.
' You can also be more prone to leg bouncing if, says Michael Durtnall of Sayer Clinics London, if you're a 'high energy, high muscle-tone, tight-ligament' person. The good news is that there's no evidence to suggest leg shaking does your body any harm, beyond potentially making your muscles a bit tired.
Those who fidget more by shaking their leg, repositioning themselves, standing up and walking around, and so forth can burn 350 more calories per day than their more sedentary counterparts, according to Levine at U.S. News & World Report.
Basically, the more you weigh, the more energy it takes for your body to move and function. This means that a heavier person will burn more calories as compared to a lighter person performing the same activities. This applies to both people who are overweight as well as those with higher muscle mass.
It's probably just a nervous habit that may reduce stress or anxiety, says Raymond Miltenberger, Ph. D., director of the applied behavior analysis master's program at the University of South Florida. "Or maybe you're simply bored," he says. It may be a benign tic, but it's a highly visible one.
Up to 80% of people with restless legs syndrome also have periodic limb movements in sleep (PLMS). If you have PLMS, your leg will jerk or twitch uncontrollably, usually at night while you're asleep. The movements are brief and repetitive, and usually occur every 10 to 60 seconds.
Most people experience fidgeting from time to time. Common signs include tapping your foot, drumming your fingers, or shifting in your seat. Fidgeting may be a physical reaction to stress or concentration. It could also be caused by an underlying health condition like ADHD or restless legs syndrome.
A shaking leg signals a shaky inner state.
"Your legs are the largest area of your body," University of Massachusetts professor Susan Whitbourne says, "so when they move, it's pretty hard for others not to notice." A shaky leg signals anxiety, irritation, or both, she says.
Stimming – or self-stimulatory behaviour – is repetitive or unusual body movement or noises. Stimming might include: hand and finger mannerisms – for example, finger-flicking and hand-flapping. unusual body movements – for example, rocking back and forth while sitting or standing.