Many men have a hard time developing the lower leg or calf muscles. To a large extent the development of the calf muscles depends on your genetically determined potential. The calves are made up of two muscles: the gastrocnemius and the soleus. The soleus muscle lies underneath the gastrocs, and it gives the calf muscle a fully developed look. Calf muscles must be trained with high rep ranges (12 to 20 or more reps) due to their endurance-oriented muscle fibers. Add these calf exercises to build your lower legs.
Leg Press Calf Raise
Leg press calf raises are a great mid-range, mass-building exercise for the calf muscles. Using a plate-loaded leg press, place the balls of your feet at the bottom edge of the platform. Start the movement with your knees slightly bent and press with your legs to get the move started, contracting your calves at the top position as fully as is comfortable. This technique allows you to fully stress the calf muscles with a maximum force growth stimulus, according to "3-D Muscle Building."
Donkey Calf Raise
Donkey calf raises are done on a donkey calf raise machine. They are difficult to set up without this piece of equipment. This exercise places the weight on the lower back, the body in an L-shape, torso parallel and legs perpendicular to the ground, with the forearms supported out in front by a padded area. The feet are positioned on the edge of a platform below, with knees slightly bent. Simply lower your heels to the fully stretched position, then return to the top contracted position for a full rep.
Standing Calf Raise
Standing calf raises can be done with either a step apparatus and a Smith machine (self-spotting barbell with support hooks) or a traditional standing calf raise machine. With the barbell or support pads resting on the trapezius muscles of the upper back, lower the heels to the full stretch position, then contract to the fully extended top position. Never bounce the weight and always keep the lower back arched to prevent back injury.
Seated Calf Raise
Seated calf raises work the soleus muscle, but are a great option for full calf development. The seated calf raise machine rests the weight on your middle quadriceps or thigh area, with padding for comfort. Feet positioned on the platform, you lower your heels to the fully stretched position and then raise them to a full contraction at the top. Each one of these machines is slightly different, so make sure you understand how the locking mechanism works, when you are ready to secure the weight at the end of your set.
Incline Treadmill Walking
Walking on the treadmill at a full incline can be another great calf exercise. The calf muscles are very endurance oriented, which means that they require high repetitions to target the muscle fibers. This exercise simulates walking up a steep grade, which gives the calves a high repetition growth stimulus. Walking on an incline for 15 to 20 minutes to begin or finish your calf workout is a great way to fully exhaust these powerful muscles.
References
- "3-D Muscle Building"; Jonathan Lawson and Steve Holman, 2006
- "Optimum Anabolics"; Jeff Anderson; 2004
- "Xtreme Lean;" Jonathan Lawson and Steve Holman, 2006
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