CALVES- Lets grow them!

[Xuaxace]

I used this write up today at the gym, I killed my lower leg, I could barely walk out of the gym.

Great write up!

[geokilla]

Yup. 100 reps in 4 minutes or less, alternating standing and seated each week.
Bad lighting here, but you get the idea.

So in the end, your calves look flexed? Guess I won't be working my calves that much...

[mega_stihl]

I train my calves once every 2 weeks.
I've always had big calves, they run in the family.

holy **** these are huge

[shamardal]

So in the end, your calves look flexed? Guess I won't be working my calves that much...

Thats a bit smart coming from somebody who is 6,1 and 130lbs; his calves actually look fairly good, and considering he looks like he has small ankles and long lower legs, he probably put quite a bit of work in to get them up to that size.

On the flip side facethepain probably would have 18" calves even if he never trained them, its called genetics, so his 19" look amazing but not so impressive when put into context. No disrespect facethepain!

Most people who struggle to build calves have their ideas skewed, they are impressed by the genetically gifted calf guys who basically need to do nothing much more than a few sets a week to get them to explode and they dismiss the guys who bust their ass to get em up to a respectable average size.

The so called 4 minute calves is a tried and tested method of hitting the calves really hard and taking virtually no rest in-between sets. It works very well! The name is just a stab at the gimmicky ab type workout plans because it is the antithesis of these, it is extremely hard to do and you will be wincing in pain after them. The idea is to hit the calves as hard as possible with no more than 10 seconds rest between sets....do it for 10 minutes if you want but the low rest times are the key. It can be used for all different method of attack, seated or standing, it works particularly well with donkey calf raises!

Most people who struggle to build their calves would do well to read between the lines and change their ideas a bit and go against the grain like this once in a while.

Personally a guy who gets his calves up from 13" untrained calves to 16" is much more impressive than the guy who gets his untrained 18"ers up to 21"....the first guy will have probably bust his ass to make that 3" change over several years of calf torture. The 2nd guy will have probably got the first 1" from generic bulking without even training his calves, and his 2nd inch from doing hiit on the bike, and the 3rd inch from actually training his calves; once a fortnight 3 sets of 12-15 reps without breaking a sweat.....these are not the guys to listen to unfortunately!

[Fit_4Life]

I have to say that if you don't have the genetics for building calves it doesn't really matter what you do. With that said, i will try training the tibialis and keep pounding the calves in hopes of aiding more muscle!

[artvan14]

Thanks for the good feedback check out my forearm thread as well mate.

I worked on my Tibialis Anterior for the first time today. I used a barbell and sat on a bench. It took a little time to find a comfortable angle and stretch but once I did, it gave me a nice workout as muscles around the shin got hard and my veins were already showing around the shins just after 1 workout with 40lb barbell. I never had muscles bulge out from the front/outer side of the shin until I worked these "calve curls". Thanks for the info.

[artvan14]

I have to say that if you don't have the genetics for building calves it doesn't really matter what you do. With that said, i will try training the tibialis and keep pounding the calves in hopes of aiding more muscle!

Genetics definitely has to do with large muscle calves. My father who never worked his calves out has big large muscle calves and he gave them to me as well. However, the Tibialis Anterior workouts can really get the muscles around the shins pumping. I was very impressed by these workouts as it feels completely different than the calve raises and works different muscles out.

[artvan14]

Another reason to work out your calves besides getting big muscles is that it actually battles varicose veins. Some people want bulging veins in their calves but these you definitely don't want so definitely work those calves out.

[Ironlife]

Another reason to work out your calves besides getting big muscles is that it actually battles varicose veins. Some people want bulging veins in their calves but these you definitely don't want so definitely work those calves out.

Isnt that interesting i have read something like that also!

[lapoint26]

looks like some good calf exercises good job man!

[lichun]

good pass

[Darfus]

holy **** these are huge

IMHO, please god don't take offense, but these don't even look that good.

I think it is more of a deformed looking because they are to large...


Nice work though! i bet you can move a lot with that.

[Darfus]

Actually, I have a question as well as that comment...

I run and swim, and was wondering if one grows extremely large calves, will that be a problem in running or help?

Can anybody speak from first hand experience here?

Appreciate the effort.

[CAMPAIGN]

Subbed!

[wdw379]

love a good leg workout, feeling the pain is like crack

[artvan14]

IMHO, please god don't take offense, but these don't even look that good.

I think it is more of a deformed looking because they are to large...


Nice work though! i bet you can move a lot with that.

At 6 foot and 271 lbs... his calves better be huge so it can fit the rest of his frame. Now if those calves were on a 6 foot 200 lb guy, it would look odd but this guy is 6 foot and 271 lbs.

[s1owcheetah]

Hey quick question: do those exercises that focus on the tibialis anterior help with shin splints due to flexible arches when running?

I've heard it helps do spell out the alphabet your foot to strengthen the muscles that are strained when the arch is being slammed so I'm assuming doing these exercises help even more? I dunno! What do you think guys? Thanks a lot

[imbeaming]

Damn, helpful I was planning on working on my calves

[snatonsb]

I've been walking on my tippy toes my whole life, That helped alot!

[imaviking]

as someone said, I may not have the genetics to have good calves; but then again, no point in giving up. I`ll put these excercises with the highlights in mind and post results or failures

[JOHNNYSEAGLE]

Huge Calve muscle pics.

[NeverGymLess]

Just started working my calves , my 18 month goal is to get them around 18 inches .

[eaglesnh4]

Nice post!

Forgive my ignorance, but the bottom 3 movements seem to be the same action? Is that correct or am I missing something

:-)

[Darfus]

At 6 foot and 271 lbs... his calves better be huge so it can fit the rest of his frame. Now if those calves were on a 6 foot 200 lb guy, it would look odd but this guy is 6 foot and 271 lbs.

My fault for not being observant. I did not take the frame into consideration. With that said, it is probably in proportion.


(this all coming from a guy with pathetic calves)
<-----

Edit:
I got a tip from a Master's Division competitor (around 50 years old) in the gym concerning calves the other day.
He approached me after laughing hysterically about something I said to my friend about people having terrible form especially on standing curls.

I told and showed him that my calves were lagging behind all else, and after much discussion in detail about anatomy and everything calf related, his advice was to keep my heels in line with my calf during the repetition, especially at the top.
In other words, do not roll your heel to the side at the top of the rep (it's not a concern at the bottom, I don't think anybody does it or for that matter can even physically do it), but rather concentrate on going completely straight up.
If you do this, weight will be dropped because it is more difficult... However I feel much of a difference.
Also if this is done, it feels like you're trying to keep your heels in together, or touch them (even though they are many inches apart and it's not possible to touch).
You may also notice that it activates more of the lateral calf (Peroneus Longus or the lateral/superior portion of the Soleus)...
Furthermore, using this technique is easier if you pigeon toe a little bit, but I'm not so sure that is effective because it may take some of the work off your muscles and onto some other tissue like bone or tendon/ligament.


Conclusively speaking, I have only been doing this 2 weeks on a cycle of legal pro-hormones and have noticed significant difference in my Gastrocnemius.

[Ashour90]

Gotta love big calves!

[opdude]

I've been looking for more info on calves and it seems like so many people overlook them. Thanks for the info in this post.

[Paytheplayer]

Great post.

Everytime I do this^^^, I get red marks on my shoulders that look like stretch marks. They disappear after a couple of days, but it's annoying. Does anybody know why this happens, or how to avoid it?
Also happens with machine squats, where there are pads on my shoulders.
Thanks

[bigman334]

i tried that 4 minute routine today and got to 100 on the seated raises and i must say i havent felt a pump in my calves like that since my first ever calf training days. 2 hours later they still feel exhausted. my question though is for calf size should i be doing these seated or standing? for ****s and giggles i used this with shoulders today also and military presses..same results as i havent had a pump like that in years.

[mickeyli]

good

[adifferentme3]

This really helped me. Naturally, I have always had strong calves but I was looking to build more muscle on them. This post helped me a lot. Great job