How strong are your calves? It is a question that matters not just for aesthetics, but for your health. Strong calf muscles are essential for supporting good posture, better walking and running, and for preventing the painful lower leg injuries which physiotherapists say peak at this time of year, when many of us decide to pick up tennis rackets or take up running for the first time in a while. <\/p>\n
\u201cPoorly developed calf muscles will limit everyday functional movement and raise the risk of tendon and knee injuries, as well as muscle strains,\u201d says the physiotherapist Lucy Macdonald, a spokeswoman for the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy. \u201cYet these important muscles are often overlooked at the gym in favour of building powerful thighs and glutes.\u201d It\u2019s time, she says, to give our calves the attention they deserve.<\/p>\n
First, a quick anatomy lesson. The calf, she explains, has two main muscles. \u201cStarting from behind the knee, the gastrocnemius runs down to the achilles tendon and is the more bulky calf muscle that visibly contracts when you stand on tiptoe. Beneath it lies the soleus, which runs from below the knee to the heel.\u201d <\/p>\n
Both are essential for propelling us forward when we move and for providing power when we hop and jump. \u201cThey are the only muscles that go through a full range of motion when we run or walk briskly,\u201d says the sports physiotherapist Paul Hobrough. \u201cWe need them to be strong and when they are not it leaves middle-aged tennis players, footballers and runners highly prone to strains and pulls.\u201d <\/p>\n
You don\u2019t need to be sporty to pay the price of weak calves. Macdonald says she sees many clients who strain calf muscles when darting across a road, squatting to pick something up, running up a flight of stairs or sprinting for a bus. \u201cWe all use our calf muscles all the time,\u201d she says. \u201cWe all need to protect them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Studies also show a link between strong calf muscles and brain health. Researchers reporting in the journal Clinical Interventions in Aging showed how preserving calf muscle strength as we age helps to maintain normal blood pressure and blood flow to the brain, potentially helping to reduce the risks of some types of dementia. And a paper published in the Journal of Clinical Medicine last year found that older people with a relatively low calf muscle circumference, signifying a loss of muscle mass in the lower leg, were more physically frail and also more prone to cognitive decline. Meanwhile, a study at the University of Mississippi reported how older adults with stronger lower legs, including calf muscles, had better cognitive functioning scores.<\/p>\n
Despite the soleus muscle representing only about 1 per cent of your body weight, repeatedly flexing it with small movements can even help to control blood sugar, according to Marc Hamilton, professor of health and human performance at the University of Houston. For a study published in iScience, Hamilton showed how activating the soleus muscle repeatedly throughout the day produced a 52 per cent improvement in blood sugar fluctuations, a benefit that lasted not just for minutes but potentially for several hours. The effects were similar to those seen with intermittent fasting or other forms of exercise using larger muscles.<\/p>\n
All of this, says Harry Jameson, the personal trainer and Times columnist, points to the fact that we have much to gain from simple calf workouts. \u201cWhen you do calf-specific exercises, you will also strengthen tendons, such as the achilles, that attach to the muscles,\u201d he says. \u201cPeople neglect stretching their calves as much as they neglect strengthening them, so since calf muscles bear the brunt of running and jumping effort, it is very important to focus on stretching them post-exercise.\u201d<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s how to improve your calf muscles:<\/p>\n
Do calf raises every other day to boost strength <\/p>\n
Your calf muscles need to be \u201cincredibly strong\u201d to prevent injury from middle age onwards, Hobrough says. \u201cMost physios will agree that one of the best ways to strengthen the muscles is by performing daily calf raises.\u201d Standing on the floor, using a wall for support, raise up onto your tiptoes before slowly lowering heels back down. Do three sets of 20 raises every other day for the first two weeks and then increase to four sets of 20 raises every other day. Once this is manageable, progress to single-leg raises. \u201cAs you get much stronger you can add weights when doing these, but don\u2019t rush your progress,\u201d Macdonald says.<\/p>\n
\u2022 How to get your heels ready for summer<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n Heel drops will improve range of motion<\/p>\n When we run or jump, our calf muscles go through a wide range of motion, Macdonald says, \u201cso it\u2019s important to replicate this in exercises\u201d. Otherwise, she explains, suddenly attempting to do so unprepared, like running for a bus, can cause injury. <\/b><\/p>\n Stand on tiptoes on the edge of a step or low platform with your heels off the edge. Place hands on a wall or a banister for balance and slowly lower your heels as far as possible. Return smoothly to the top of the move and repeat. Slower is better \u2014 aim to take up to six seconds in each direction with no bouncing at any point. \u201cFocus on putting your weight through your big toe joint which will target the calf muscles much more effectively than if you roll to the outer part of your foot when doing them,\u201d Macdonald says. Try three sets of 15 repetitions on each foot on alternate days.<\/p>\n Hopping and skipping will build powerful calves<\/p>\n Your calf muscles get a really effective workout through skipping and hopping. \u201cAnything that involves a powerful jump or skip on the balls of your feet is great for strengthening the calves and simulating the kind of activity involved in any sport that involves running,\u201d Jameson says. \u201cIf you have a skipping rope, use it, but if not, simply hopping for 8-10 seconds on each leg is fine.\u201d <\/p>\n In March, researchers at the University of Tokyo published findings in the Journal of Applied Physiology that showed how hopping forces your legs to behave like springs, absorbing and returning energy with each upward bound and developing key muscle fibres in the calf.<\/p>\n