1. Do Preliminary Exercises
Walk, jog or ride a bike to build up your legs and calves. Swimming and yoga asanas like the alternate leg pull and leg clasp work your calf muscles. Any general cardiovascular routine increases calf strength. Ramp up your daily workout to increase flexibility and resistance before concentrating solely on building calf strength.
2. Take the Lunge
Do lunges to build stronger calves. To work the calf properly, perform lunges forward, backward and sideways in both forward and backward motions. You can walk, or hold a dumbbell or medicine ball when lunging to increase its effectiveness. You also can perform squats to complement the lunges, using a barbell across the upper back to relieve pressure on the lower back.
3. Build Each Muscle Individually
The gastrocnemius, the strongest muscle in the calf, needs the most attention if you want to have muscular legs. It helps the hamstring flex the knees, and works best when you keep the knee straight. Raise your toes with the legs straight to build this muscle, or practice the weighted donkey calf raise once you've gained some strength in the calves. You'll need a training partner, a calf block and something to lean on, like an exercise bike or bench. Your partner "sits" on your lower back to add resistance. Use legs to lift your body, not your arms. Use a rebounder (a small, round trampoline) to work the anterior tibialis, the muscle located in the bottom front of your leg. Jumping rope and doing toe raises (similar to a ballerina's pirouettes) also build strength in this section of the calf.
4. Sit Down to Bulk Up
Located behind the gastrocnemius, the soleus muscle makes the lower leg wider. Do the seated calf raise to bulk up this muscle. If you work out in a health club, use a calf machine to perform the exercise. Get on your tip-toes and flex your calf quickly, then return to the start position and repeat until you're tired.
5. For Women Only
For shapely, strong calves without the muscle ripping look of an Olympic athlete, use a combination of the seated calf raise, donkey calf raise (with or without a partner), regular calf raise and lunges. Follow this regimen three times a week to configure skinny calves. Don't overdo it if you aren't looking for bulging calves.
Member Comments