Massive Calves: What They Are and How To Get Them

Key Points

• Building strong, well-defined calves is difficult but not impossible.

• You should include calf training as part of a comprehensive strength training program.

• Variations in exercise, weight, and repetition yield both size and definition of all calf muscles.

It seems that some people are born with a genetic predisposition toward beautiful bodies. Lean, well-sculpted abs, bulging biceps, and well-defined calves are blessings that many envy but few easily acquire. 

If your parents didn’t pass down the killer calf gene that turns heads as you wear shorts or skirts, don’t worry. There is hope for those with skinny legs and lackluster definition; calf muscles are an often-neglected area of the body that need more respect, as they do more than fill out your favorite pair of jeans. Employ these solid strategies to grow calves and see gains in strength, function, and appearance.

Training Those Calf Muscles

Most people find that calf muscles are resistant to growth. Every step you take activates calf muscles; they tackle the task of carrying around your body weight all day. Training to grow calves to become bigger and stronger means isolating those lower legs with some challenging moves and heavy weights. When conventional training and simple walking around won’t do, it’s time to up your game in the gym and at home. 

Whether you’re a fitness professional or casual gym groupie, developing your calves has a number of benefits that impact your overall health and well-being. It’s time to level up that lower body and commit to shaping, sculpting, and training that busy set of muscles that serves you from sunup to sundown. 

What Are the Calf Muscles?

Your calf muscles are a potent powerhouse of muscle tissue located in the back of the lower leg between the knee and ankle. The primary muscles that comprise the calves include the gastrocnemius, the soleus, and the plantaris muscles.

Gastrocnemius Muscle

The gastrocnemius muscle is the larger of the two muscles; it contains two heads originating from the back of the femur bone. When effectively worked out, this muscle creates the coveted “diamond” shape, helping define all other muscles connected to it.

Soleus Muscle

The soleus muscle is located directly underneath the gastrocnemius, originating from the tibia and fibula bones. 

Plantaris Muscle

The plantaris muscle is the smallest of the three muscles in the calf, running along the inner part of the gastrocnemius and attaching directly to the heel bone.

The primary function of all three calf muscles is to allow for plantar flexion, the movement of the foot and ankle as it points downward. You need this movement for activities like walking, running, jumping, and standing on your tiptoes. Calf muscles also stabilize the ankle joints and assist in movements connected to the knees and hips. 

Calf muscles provide strength, stability, and mobility of the lower leg and foot, making them essential for a wide range of activities. They support athletes, dancers, runners, and anyone who participates in activities requiring lower body strength and endurance. Do you like walking? Are you appreciative of your mobility and flexibility? Thank your calves for the extra support! 

Benefits of Strengthening Your Calves

Developing strong and well-sculpted calf muscles has several functional and aesthetic benefits. Check out the following key benefits of strong and sturdy lower legs.

Improved Athletic Performance

Runners, sprinters, and heavy lifters all have one thing in common — they spend some serious time working on calf strength. Strong calf muscles come in handy when it comes to explosive movements like sprinting, jumping, plyometrics, and even changing direction on the field.

Athletes with strong, well-defined calves generate more power and speed, and you’re less likely to suffer from injuries such as strains and tissue tears.

Better Balance and Stability

Calf muscles provide an essential function of stabilizing the ankle joint and improving balance. Sports requiring lateral movements, such as basketball and soccer, need strong and stable calves to get the job done on the court and the field.

Reduced Risk of Injury

Weak, underdeveloped calf muscles increase your risk of injuries like shin splints, Achilles tears, and tendonitis. Developing strong calf muscles helps to prevent these injuries by improving strength and stability in the lower leg. Strong calf muscles also protect important joints such as the ankle and the knee, reducing injuries and keeping you more mobile and active.

Improved Appearance

Who doesn’t want shapely, well-defined legs?

Well-developed calves give your lower leg a more defined, toned appearance. People who seek to improve leg definition and rock those shorts and skirts focus on building muscle and definition with training protocols that strengthen calf muscles.

Practice makes progress. Don’t expect to see new definition overnight, but consistent training and repetitions yield impressive strength and beautiful results.

Improved Strength and Fitness

Developing strong calf muscles requires a specific combination of strength training and cardiovascular exercises. This improves your overall strength and fitness and reduces the risk of chronic diseases like heart disease, diabetes, and even some cancers.

If you’re not excited about the prospect of defining your calves at this point, you need to dig deep and find the motivation to improve your health. Healthy, strong calf muscles affect all other aspects of your health and fitness. Get excited as you jump, sprint, and lift your way to wellness.

Why Are Your Calves So Skinny, Anyway?

Some people are genetically blessed with the coveted diamond calf, while others must work to get respect. Why are your calves so skinny, and what can you do about it?

Check out some of the most common causes of poor calf development.

Genetics

Muscles are composed of various muscle fibers, including slow-twitch and fast-twitch fibers. Type one muscle fibers provide endurance and have a slower fatigue rate, yet less capacity for size and strength. In contrast, type two fibers have greater potential for growth and force production. Unfortunately, they don’t last very long under extreme stress.

The proportion of slow to fast-twitch muscle fibers is hereditary and can’t be changed. While your fiber type influences your calf shape and size, you may still be able to surpass genetic limitations by training smarter, not harder.

If your current exercise protocol of three to four sets of calf raises isn’t delivering your desired results, stop repeating the same activity repeatedly. You need to implement significantly different and varied exercises to stimulate growth.

Not Enough Volume

Believe it or not, your calves and your biceps should be similar in size. If you’re like most fitness enthusiasts, you train biceps and triceps many times per week with varying exercises like curls, tricep extensions, and shoulder presses. Even while targeting specific muscles, these compound movements indirectly work all parts of the arm, resulting in greater training time.

In contrast to your arm training, you may only set aside six to eight sets of calf exercises weekly. If you're not incorporating other movements that specifically target the calves, no wonder you’re not seeing the results you want!

Too Little Variation

Most fitness professionals recommend varying your exercise routine to achieve optimal calf plumping and definition. Most weight lifters alter their workout routines every six to eight weeks, gradually increasing weights and repetitions weekly. These small modifications play a significant role in your efficient progress. Muscle confusion is vital to seeing gains with any strength training protocol.

Low Priorities

When do you set aside time to specifically train your calves? Does it come at the tail end of a tiring leg day? This may work for some, but it’s not a good long-term strategy for efficient form and success. 

Cutting a calf workout short is tempting, especially if you’ve spent time on other muscle groups. Set aside a specific time for calves alone, and watch your progress take shape.

Building the Best Calves Around

Regardless of what your mother gave you, building an impressive foundation that adds strength and definition to your calves is possible. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, expecting different results. It’s time to try something different.

Train More Often

One calf-cramping session a week is simply not enough.

Leverage your efforts to see volume and strength. Consider hitting these muscles every other day; this causes some soreness, but your body will adapt in a couple of weeks, and you’ll see and feel a difference.

Work Calves First … Or as a Standalone Workout

If you want calves to grow, you need to treat them as a priority. Work them first, or consider training them on their own. Using equipment as simple as a step and a dumbbell provides you with home training options when you can’t get to the gym.

Vary Sets and Reps

Include a variety of exercises, reps, and weights in your workouts. This ensures that, regardless of muscle fiber dominance, they all receive an equal opportunity for strengthening and toning. Don’t repeat the same tired old exercise again and again; this quickly leads to frustration and a lack of tangible results.

Add in Plyometric Moves

Some of the most enviable calves in professional sports belong to athletes who don’t adhere to a strict weight training schedule. Power exercises such as box jumps, jumping rope, and plyometric exercises are every bit as effective for sculpting and adding definition to calves.

Prioritize the Soleus

Most calf workouts revolve around the standing calf raise. People perform this exercise believing that the gastrocnemius will begin to pop after they’ve completed a certain number of reps. In actuality, the soleus is bigger, and developing this muscle first yields size in the entire calf complex. 

Flip your workout upside down and train your soleus first. Start with seated calf raises to isolate and strengthen this important connection between leg and ankle.

Unleash the Mind-Body Connection

To achieve full muscle development, you must control your muscles, tense them at will, and feel them working, regardless of your chosen exercise. Isometric exercises and holds help reconnect your muscles with your nervous system, offering greater control over muscle impulses.

During isometric exercises, you contract your muscles against an immovable object, reinforcing the mind-muscle connection and greater control. Using yoga straps or similar objects is a great way to perform seated and standing isometrics targeting calf muscles.

Don’t Forget the Stretch

Stretch those hard-working calves frequently to avoid potential injuries and complications like Achilles tendonitis.

A great at-home calf stretch is easily performed on your stairs. Stand at the edge of a step and let your heels drop toward the floor, using gravity and your own body weight to lengthen and stretch calf muscles. Hold this position for 60-90 seconds, gradually descending further into the stretch as you feel your muscles relax. Repeat this exercise several times daily to maintain flexibility in your lower legs and ankles.

Best Calf Muscle Exercises for Strength and Definition

To develop well-sculpted, Grecian god calves, you need to employ a variety of exercises and movements. Hikers have strong calf muscles because they work them from different angles while tackling tough terrain involving concentric and eccentric contractions. They also perform high-repetition exercises that tone muscles and build strength.

The positioning of your feet also plays a critical role in calf training due to your ankle joint mobility. Even minor variations in foot placement, such as inversion, eversion, or weight distribution on the balls of your feet, can significantly impact your workout and your results.

Remember to vary your repetition range, alternating between volume and strength training. Don’t be afraid to increase the weight on your strength training days to challenge muscles and start seeing real growth.

Calf training isn’t all strength training, either. Plyometric and cardio movements are how the elite set themselves apart from regular gym Joes. Incorporating a nice mix of strength training and cardio yields more efficient results than focusing on one type of exercise.

Single-Leg Calf Raise: Three Sets of 12 to 20 Reps

The single-leg calf raise benefits athletes, particularly basketball players who experience calf mobility problems. Incorporating unilateral exercises like this into your routine allows you to discover previously unknown imbalances and begin working on them sooner. 

For this single-leg exercise, concentrate on performing the full range of motion without cheating, which may necessitate lighter weights. The exercise’s difficulty is challenging and humbling; aim for a two-second hold at both the top and bottom of the motion for added strength and definition.

Jump Rope: Four Sets of 30 Seconds On and 30 Seconds Off

Jumping rope is one of those cardio exercises that’s a real calf-buster as well.

In addition to its heart-healthy benefits, jumping rope burns fat, strengthens joints, and improves explosive power potential in the lower body. The repetitive jumping motion stimulates calf muscle growth; its versatility makes it perfect as a warm-up or finisher and even as a standalone cardio session.

Incorporate a few sets of jumping rope into your workout, and you’ll develop toned, aesthetically pleasing calves you can show off in shorts and skirts.

Seated Calf Raise: Three Sets of 8 to 15 reps

The seated calf raise is an effective exercise that takes your lower leg workout to the next level.

It is unique because you start from a bent-leg position, which targets the soleus muscle more effectively than other exercises. Experiment with different foot positions for additional depth. Focus on performing each repetition with a full range of motion, pausing for two seconds at the top and bottom of each motion for added strength.

Standing Calf Raise: 10 to 25 reps

Do standing calf raises in a Smith machine or with dumbbells hanging at your sides. Place weights on your shoulders or in your hands and rest the balls of your feet on a raised platform. Keep your knees straight, tighten your core and glutes, and gradually lower your feet until your heels are close to touching the ground. Push back up, attempting to flex your toes as you do so, to complete one repetition. Aim for 10 to 25 reps, experimenting with different ranges of motion and weights to see results.

Seated Band Pushes: 10 to 30 reps

Sit down with your legs extended in front of you and wrap one end of a looped resistance band around the balls of your feet. Grip the other end of the band in your hands, keeping it taut. Flex your ankles to push the resistance band away, pause to flex your calves, and then return to starting position. Complete 10 to 30 repetitions, depending on your daily workout routine and individual goals.

Explosive Calf Step Ups: 10 to 15 Reps, Each Side

Plyometric exercises are an excellent method for training calves in conjunction with ankles; this exercise accomplishes strength for both. Position one foot on a bench, box, or chair. Rapidly push off the foot on the box, jump upwards, and try to switch feet while landing. Repeat the exercise on the opposite side. Use a wall or a railing for support as you start this ambitious move to avoid injury to knees, shins, and ankles.

Sprinting: 30-Second Intervals

Sprints are a great way to develop calf muscles. When you sprint, your calves work to propel your body forward by pushing against the ground. Powerful and explosive contractions during sprinting activate the fast-twitch muscle fibers in the calves, which generate both force and power.

Stretching to Start and End Workouts

Tightness in your calves feels uncomfortable after a workout and leads to more serious issues such as:

• Achilles tendonitis

• Shin splints

• Knee pain

• Plantar fasciitis.

These issues all originate from tight calf muscles. Tired, shortened calf muscle fibers pull on other ligaments and joints, messing with form and impacting other areas of the body in undesirable ways.

Stretching your calves regularly before and after workouts prevents injury, improves range of motion and circulation, and reduces muscle tension. Stretch for at least 10-15 minutes before and after exercising to reap the benefits.

Typical Training Mistakes To Avoid

If you’re frustrated at your lack of gains and definition, you could be making common training mistakes. Fix them with simple solutions, and you’ll see significant changes quickly. 

Using the Same Position

Your calf is not one single muscle. It’s made up of different muscles that comprise your lower leg. If you only do one type of calf raise, you only target one muscle group. A combination of standing, straight leg calf raises, seated calf raises, and different foot positions will target all aspects of the calves and yield better definition.

Blasting Through Workouts

Rushing through workouts wastes time under tension, which is where the real muscle magic happens. The longer a muscle is being strained — through more or longer reps — the more it will grow. Go slow for faster gains, and employ deliberate movements to gain strength like you’ve never had before.

Failing To Optimize Reps

Your soleus is about 90 percent slow twitch muscle fiber. These muscle fibers use fat as fuel, and they are endurance muscles that run for a long time without tiring. To train them, you need to push them to their limits. Alternate heavy weights with long sets of long reps to see true fatigue and real results.

Lifting With Hips or Knees

Lifting with hips and knees not only cheats the calves but leaves you susceptible to injury. When lifting and moving, be intentional about your movements, and use the mind/body connection to ensure you’re working the right muscles. 

Not Enough Effort

You may think lifting and lowering calves is enough to yield definition, but you’re missing a vital piece of the fitness puzzle. When trying to increase your muscle size, focusing your attention on a final contraction helps it grow exponentially.

A March 2018 study in the European Journal of Sport Science revealed that getting a good squeeze at the end of a move yielded double the growth over eight weeks of training that specific muscle group. Put some chutzpah at the end of that move, and you see bigger, stronger, more defined muscles.

One Part of the Comprehensive Wellness Puzzle

Training those calves is essential to a more comprehensive strength training workout plan. A little pain upfront sets you up for some serious gains in muscle tone and volume, if you put in the work.

Jay Cutler, pro bodybuilder and four-time Mr. Olympia, says, "What hurts today makes you stronger tomorrow." Solid and well-developed calves improve athletic performance, aid in mobility, and enhance your physique.

Incorporating exercises that specifically target calf muscles into your workout routine impacts your overall health and fitness in wonderful ways. Seasoned athletes and those just starting out on your fitness journey, don’t neglect the importance of calf training as part of your workout routine.

For more tips and strategies on how to maximize gains with strength training and nutrition, visit FitnessCorner. Get busy, and build the body of your dreams!