3 Ways to Grow Calves

2024 Author: Samantha Chapman | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 09:13

Download PDF About the Author Download PDF X

wikiHow is a "wiki"; this means that many of our articles are the result of the collaboration of several authors. To create this article, 9 people, some anonymous, worked to edit and improve it over time.

This article has been viewed 5 180 times

In this Article: Steps Related Articles

There are two main muscles in the calf, the gastrocnemius and the soleus. If you want to develop larger calves quickly, you need to focus your efforts on muscle building the gastrocnemius, the larger and more important of the two muscles; the gastrocnemius gives the calf its characteristic broad shape at the top and thin at the bottom. However, in order to avoid injury and to maintain muscle balance, you should also work on developing the soleus, which is hidden behind the gastrocnemius.

Steps

Part 1: Making a Program

1. Set a number of sets and reps as a goal for the exercises you are going to do.

   

   • In her "Ask the Expert" editorial, Jessica Matthews of the American Council on Exercise recommends doing 3 to 6 sets of 6-12 repetitions each, with 30 to 60 seconds of rest between each set, to achieve muscle wasting. - in other words, develop large muscles.
   • There is enough time to alternate between your chosen calf exercise and another exercise if you are able to make the switch very quickly.

2. Select a weight for each exercise that allows you to correctly perform the number of sets and repetitions set in the goal. However, the final repetition should put you a little more in trouble.

   

   Do each exercise with your body weight alone as resistance, until you do it casually and appropriately. Once you have assimilated the movement, you can add extra resistance

   Part 2: Work with the Gastrocnemius

   1. Place a barbell behind your shoulders holding it with one hand at each end. Don't sag behind the bar; instead stand straight and think "chest out, shoulders down and back".

      

      • Be especially careful to keep the bar on the meatier part of your shoulder muscles. If the barbell is resting on your neck, you are holding it too high.
      • If you have trouble holding the bar in the right position, use a towel rolled around the bar as a cushion, or a molded shoulder support to help you position the bar correctly.
      • Alternatively, you can hold a dumbbell in each hand, arms at your sides, instead of using the barbell.

   2. Place your toes on a slightly raised platform.

      

   3. You can use anything that is stable enough not to tip over when you are on it, and that is not slippery. The rectangular platform of an exercise machine, a plank, a plyometric platform, or a specially built platform for calf exercises are all perfect solutions.

   4. Keep your toes still, lifting your heels.

      

   5. Lower your heels back to the starting position.

      

      Although some trainers recommend lowering your heels until tension is felt in the calf muscle, the safest and most prudent way is to do the entire movement painlessly and without tension, and stretch separately

   6. Go on until you complete your number of sets and reps that you have set as a goal.

      

      Part 3: Working on the Soleus

      1. Sit on a bench or a stable chair.

         

         As with standing lifts, place your heels on an elevated platform that allows for the greatest range of motion

      2. Place a barbell, discs, or dumbbell over your thighs near the knee.

         

         • If the weight hurts you, try placing a towel over your legs as a cushion.
         • The fact that you keep your knees bent shifts the emphasis of the exercise from the gastrocnemius to the soleus.

      3. Keep your toes still, lift your heels over the resistance of the weight.

         

      4. Lower your heels, and then repeat until you've completed the number of sets and reps you've given yourself a goal.