Free seated calf machine

[tombro]

holy crap i think i literally just invented the greatest seated calf machine ever made for free lol....i know it sounds simple but holy crap is it awesome. i was debating getting the elitefts one today, as its something i always wanted, but at thelast second i was like thing it over, 800 bucks for something that looks like it can be duplicated by putting ur calf block in front of a bench. so i tried it with barbell, and it hurt my knees, and it was unbalanced and just icky all around, so i was all about to give up when i said why dont i just put a 45 lb plate on my lap, and i said nah its not enough weight, im not about to do 300reps just to get a pump, but then all i did was put the olympic adapter pin through it (i had one lying around from my last hammer strength purchase, but u can find em online for like 40 bucks. anyway it fits 5 45lb plates, and they are as comfortable as can be in my lap. and its not insaneeeeee weight, im sure any of u guys could bang out 20 reps no prob, but still its enough that i feel like i just used a seated calf machine, but only better caz this wasnt digging into my knees the whole time, something that always turned me off about the commercial seated calfs. i know this sounds really juvenile, but whatever i feel like i just saved 800 bucks. ill use this setup for the next 50 years knock on wood

[krott5333]

good job being innovative

[slimneverdies]

This sounds interesting... Do you have any pics of what you're talking about cause I'm totally clueless about how you did this

[cm45]

You could also do it using dumbbells, or a barbell...

[Trevy-trev]

You could also do it using dumbbells, or a barbell...

I don't have dumbells heavy enough to and a barbell with any decent weight digs into my legs like you wouldn't believe.

I do something similar to op, I put my toes on the cross bar of my power rack, stack 45lb plates on my legs and drop a dumbell handle with a star collar on one end down through the middle of the plates to keep them from sliding around.

[forthays]

I do this with a barbell and if you put your squat pad on the bar then you can go as heavy as you want with it.

[billy]

If you're only using the squat pad for this exercise then it's cheaper to go with the foam noodles that are used for swimming.

I do seated barbell calf raises with my 4 inch camber bar inside my power rack. The camber allows my to slide in and out without having to do any lifting with my arms.

[Wildtim]

I do this with a barbell and if you put your squat pad on the bar then you can go as heavy as you want with it.

This is what I do do only I set it up off the safety's in my rack. This way I can actually load up enough to do low rep raises, I use more weight for this exercise than I do for squats.

[buffbrown21]

Actually someone beat you to this. There is an ad in this month's Muscle and Fitness for a piece called "The Blaster." Which is essentially a tray with an Olympic pin sticking out of the top. The underside of this tray has grooves for leg comfort. This was made for seated calf raises and weighted bench dips.

http://www.multiblaster.com/

[Wildtim]

That actually doesn't look like a half bad piece of equipment, for $180 though I'll pass. I hope they aren't rying to make it out to be more than it is though, it is a decent acessory if they start advertising it as the be all and end all I'll have to start panning it.

[tombro]

hahaha that multiblaster is EXACTLY what im talking about, and it would be convenient with the two holders, but for 200 bucks its literally no different than what im talking about, you just stack 4 or 5 plates up on a olympic converter and throw a clip on it and ur all set.....it rests so comforably in ur lap its perfect, and to increase difficulty, alls u need to do it move the plates closer to ur knees, which is also comfy. granted u need to be wearing sweatpants, i wouldnt recommend doing this in a bathing suit...but all in all its fine....u cant do this with dumbells unless ur 110lbs with no muscle mass on u, ud have to do 400 reps to get a decent pump, and this is something ur legs should do simultaneously to mimic the machine....a barbell digs in ur quads and it cant balance with more than 2 plates on each end. the only downside of using this 4 plate converter thing is its heavy to carry and it takes about 5-10 seconds of effort to pick it up and put it on ur lap, but guys if ur the type of person whos gunna b@tch about picking up 180lbs and finding a way to get it on ur lap and ur not inventive enough to put it on a 15 inch bench nearby for easy liftoff, then u have no business doing the exercise in the first place ya know

[ugaman94]

you just stack 4 or 5 plates up on a olympic converter and throw a clip on it and ur all set.....it rests so comforably in ur lap its perfect, and to increase difficulty, alls u need to do it move the plates closer to ur knees, which is also comfy.

can someone post a pic of this "olympic converter" being referred to? I'm not following that part

[BloodType3R]

can someone post a pic of this "olympic converter" being referred to? I'm not following that part

Like this:

^for Farmer's Walks


^for Weighted Planks

[Stasher1]

can someone post a pic of this "olympic converter" being referred to? I'm not following that part

I believe he's just talking about a standard to olympic adapter, like the ones you'd use on a home-grade lat or leg extension/curl machine.

[BloodType3R]

I believe he's just talking about a standard to olympic adapter, like the ones you'd use on a home-grade lat or leg extension/curl machine.

Agreed.. Here's a pic of just the convertor.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Olympic-Adap...item3a7ca25d3b
That's what I'm using in those pics.


I'm trying to give an idea of 2 very similar set-ups to the one mentioned in the OP.

[ugaman94]

got it! thanks everyone