Get Big Calves

Calves are one of the toughest areas of the body to target when it comes to growing bigger muscles. Calves are composed of two muscles: the gastrocnemius and the soleus. These muscles work together to carry us everywhere we go, so it takes time, effort and some pain to shock them into getting bigger. You'll get satisfying results if you use the right workout strategy combined with a high-calorie diet.

Steps

Training for Bigger Calves

1. Do seated calf raises. This movement targets the soleus calf muscles. Sit on the machine with your toes on the lower portion of the platform and your heels extending off. Your lower thighs go under the lever pad, and your hands go on top of the lever pad to keep it in place. Lift the lever by pushing your heels up, then slower lower your heels by bending at the ankles. Now extend the ankles as high as possible, contracting the calves, and hold.
   • Repeat at least 10 - 20 times.
   • Add weight to increase the difficulty of the exercise.
2. Do standing calf raises. You can do this exercise with a machine or a calf block. Stand under the machine or with the balls of your feet on the calf block, starting with your heels about {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} below the block. Raise up on the balls of your feet as high as you can, then contract your calf muscles at the peak. Hold the position, then lower yourself back to starting position.
3. Do leg press calf raises. This exercise is also known as the donkey raise. Sit on a leg press machine. Hold the sled with your toes and the balls of your feet. Press it by raising your heels and breathing out. Extend your ankles as high as possible as you flex your calf. Your hips and knees should remain stationary at all times. Hold the position, then lower your heels as you bend your ankles.
   • The key is to make sure all of the weight is put on your calf; be sure you don't bend your knees or use other muscles to press.
   • You can increase the difficulty of this exercises by adding weights.
4. Do dumbbell jump squats. Place yourself in a position for a squat, holding dumbbells at your sides. Bend your knees to lower your body, moving to the balls of your feet and toes as you squat. Now jump upward explosively, keeping the dumbbells at your sides. Land on the balls of your feet and squat again upon impact.
   • Doing this exercise frequently is a good way to build muscle quickly. The explosive movement is what encourages the muscle to build fast.
   • Don't use a barbell with this exercise. You need to be able to jump freely and explosively, and a barbell would inhibit this movement too much.
5. Do box jumps. Stand in front of an exercise box that you can easily jump upon. Your toes should be pointed toward the box. Jump explosively so that you land on the box with the balls of your feet. Jump back down to the floor, then repeat.
   • Be sure the box you use is anchored to the floor so that it doesn't slide and cause you to fall.
   • Don't use dumbbells during box jumps, since you might need to use your hands to catch yourself if you fall.
6. Jump rope. Jumping rope is one of the easiest and fastest ways to get bigger calves.
   • For this to work, you have to push yourself to jump rope for long periods of time (about 5 minutes to 10 minutes).

Using the Right Training Strategy

1. Use the full range of motion during reps. Bodybuilding experts say that doing half-reps is useless when it comes to building calf muscles. It's necessary to complete the full range of motion with every rep to engage the entire muscle. Your calves are already used to getting a little workout every time you climb the stairs or go for a walk. To make them grow, you need to put them through a workout they don't get on a daily basis. Most calf exercises entail bending your knees to lower your body and then straightening back up; be sure you go both low and high.
2. Rotate between calf muscles. Rotate between working on the gastrocnemius one day and the soleus the next, rather than working out the two muscles on the same day. This gives each muscle a day's break. Incorporate a gastrocnemius workout into your leg building routine one day, then focus on the soleus the day after. You can go right back to the gastrocnemius workout on the third day.
3. Make calf workouts a regular part of your routine. You should be working on your calves at least 3 days a week, and up to 5, for maximum gains. Calf muscles recover very quickly, so there is no need to rest them for more than a day. In fact, when your goal is to make them grow as fast as possible, you're better off working them as often as possible.
4. Don't bother with fancy exercises. Doing the standard calf exercises, over and over, is the best way to get bigger calves. The standard calf exercises - seated and standing calf raises, leg presses, and jumps - are designed to engage the muscles without injuring them. You can try other exercises if you become bored with the old standards, but you might just slow yourself down on your quest to get bigger calves.
5. Go as hard as you can. Calves won't grow unless you put them through some pain. Again, since you use your calves every day, especially if you are physically active, your calves are already used to having strain put on them. That means that when you're working out you need to go all in and keep exercising until they burn.
   • Some bodybuilding instructors advise that you shouldn't worry about counting reps when you're working your calves. For each exercise, do as many reps as you can before they burn too much to keep going.
   • You can extend a set by shaking out your calves after performing several reps, then resuming.
6. Exercise without shoes. Training without shoes allows your feet, legs, and most importantly calves to engage in a greater range of motion. Without the aid of shoe padding and springs, your calves are forced to do more work. Going without shoes also helps your feet get a better grip on the mat, so you won't be as prone to slipping when you're lifting heavy weights.
7. Be persistent. Bodybuilders who are big everywhere else often have the most trouble getting bigger calves. It can take months, and sometimes years, to build calves, especially if your legs are naturally on the skinny side. If you keep up your routine and make sure to get plenty of calories, you will eventually see the results you want. Don't give up too quickly.

Gaining Weight for Bigger Calves

1. Eat healthy foods that are high in calories. Building bigger muscles, no matter what part of the body you're targeting, requires fueling yourself with plenty of calories. You're going to need to eat at least four large meals every day to get the nutrition and calories required to build muscle mass.
   • Eat plenty of meat (hormone-free, if possible), fish, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and lots of fruits and vegetables to get the right nutrients.
   • Avoid eating calories in the form of saturated fats and sugars. Don't eat a lot of fried foods, snack foods, fast foods, and desserts. Avoid white flour and refined sugar. Foods containing these will make you feel run down instead of energized.
   • Eat more than you're hungry for. Have several helpings of food at every meal.
2. Eat a lot of protein. Protein is key to building big, healthy muscles. Make sure you're getting it by eating beef, chicken, fish, lamb, and other sources of animal protein. If you are a vegetarian, eat eggs, legumes, leafy greens, tofu, and other sources of protein.
3. Supplement with creatine. Creatine is a nitrogenous acid that is created naturally in the body and helps to supply energy to muscle cells. Taking a create supplement has been shown to have the same effect, and it is not harmful if you take the recommended dosage. Try supplementing your meals with creatine to get bigger calf muscles.
   • Creatine comes in a powdered form and is mixed with water just before you take it.
   • Read the directions on the creatine package and take no more than the recommended dosage of 20 grams per day.

Tips

• Do not just work one muscle group as it will lead to injury if over trained often try to change it up or limit the exercise times.
• For best results, try to use your own body weight.

Warnings

• Do not over-train one muscle group as it will lead to injuries.
• Try to avoid using supplements such as creatine. It only blows the muscles up, it does not make them any stronger.
• Try to refrain from using exercises with a machine.

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Sources and Citations

• Videos provided by ATRAIN
• http://www.acefitness.org/blog/534/when-strength-training-is-it-better-to-do-more/
• http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/Soleus/SBSeatedCalfRaise.html
• http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/Gastrocnemius/SBStandingCalfRaise.html

See also

• Do Leg Exercises
• Make Skinny Legs Bigger
• Get Thicker Thighs
• Get Stronger Legs
• Do Leg Lifts
• Strengthen Your Ankles
• Build Calf Muscle Without Equipment
• Get Skinnier Legs
• Do Squats and Lunges
• Get Skinny Legs Quick

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• Make Skinny Legs Bigger