Everything you need to know about the Calf Raise
KEY AREAS: Ankle & Achilles Stability, Balance, Posture, Inury Prevention
START POSITION: For the Standing Calf Raise there are 2 main types. Specific Machine or Freestyle. The image shows Freestyle. You need to find a small ledge somewhere which allows you to rock up and down on the balls of your feet thereby giving a full ROM stretch to the Calf and Achilles. Probably you also need some means of stabilizing yourself out to the side, as shown.
NOTES: With your heels on the floor, push up from the feet until you cannot rise up further. Hold the position at the top for about a second (isometric pause) and then slowly lower back to the Start. No need to pasue at the lower end. Keep the rest of your body still and your knees locked. Don’t move your back, and don’t use your arm to help you lift.
The Calf Raise is an often overlooked exercise, but it’s so crucial for athletes. The Calf muscle is a very large muscle which does lots of work – walking and running. The Quadricep is the Largest and most powerful muscle in the human body. The Glutes and Calf muscles are both very close to second place – depending on the athletic training of the individual person. So if you have weak calves then your whole Athletic performance will be rubbish. You simply cannot strive for athletic perfection without working on your calf muscles.
It depends on the athletes individual goals but most people find it makes sense to train the Calves close to the end of a gym session. My MOJOH METHOD promotes Calf Raises as part of a general Finish Routine partly because The Quads and Glutes should be trained first (they are often bigger muscles for less roundly trained people), and partly because the Calves can be trained a little more often than the big powerhouses of Quads, Glutes, Chest, Shoulders and Back.
Why? I’m not so sure of the scientific reason but I taught myself this esoteric knowledge over many years of trial and error. How you train the Calves, and how often you train the Calves depends on how strong they are and how much effort you are putting into the other muscle groups. Abdominals are also good ‘Finisher’ exercises, but the Calf Raise would come before the Abs – these are always the last thing you do in any Gym session.
There are many variations of the Calf Raise. If you are lucky, your Gym will have a dedicated Standing Calf Raise machine. You can also use a Leg Press Machine if it is suitably adjustable – by balancing the balls of your feet on the lower edge of the footplate.
Other Calf Raise examples:
