nice big legs

nice big legs

nice big legs

How to Build Big Calves

Do you want bigger calf muscles? Are you one of those individuals who has been genetically short-changed when it comes to the muscles between your knees and ankles? Are you a natural bodybuilder? Perfect; this article's for you.

First off, you couldn't be starting worse than I was. Before I got the calf building situation worked out, I had something resembling "pipes" for lower legs. They were often the centerpiece of laughter. I could have sworn they'd been dealt to the wrong guy. They seemed out of place on my body - like they should have been the calves of someone with smaller... well - everything; a smaller body. I was desperate.

Unfortunately, my first attempts at building calves were futile. I did everything I'd been told; higher frequency of training, lots of sets, hitting them from different angles - you name it. Did I get a "pump"? You bet. But so what; calves that resemble sticks don't improve much in appearance even when engorged with blood.

Now my calves are just shy of 16 inches. That's not huge by any stretch, but it's great when you consider where they came from and that I've remained a natural bodybuilder. And they're lean at that size; carrying very little fat and showing a bad-ass looking vein when I get my body fat a few percentage points lower. They actually look nice in a pair of shorts now; with shape, strength and athleticism.

What's my 'how to build big calves' recommendation in a nutshell? In a word: 'burn-reps', and lots of them. You've got to make those muscles behind your shins feel like they might set off the gym fire alarm 'coz of the flames and smoke coming out of them. You need to hit them with an intensity that has the tissue saying "Gee Toto... I don't think we're In Kansas anymore." ("Kansas" in this case would be all the walking, running and standing they're used to doing)

Besides high intensity, my second piece of advice is 'low workout frequency'. You need to make sure the muscles are fully recuperated between workouts in order for augmentation to occur. Many people mistakenly believe that calves need to be worked more often than other muscles. They do need to be trained differently - but why more often? Muscles are only growing while resting between workouts. We tear them down during the training sessions. So unless someone can produce evidence that calf tissue recuperates faster than other muscle tissue, there's no logical reason for them to be trained more often. They just need to be hit with more intensity. Training them too often can result in overtraining - with lost time and gains being the sad result.

A calf raise is a calf raise (except 'seated')

Did you know that standing calf raises and donkey calf raises both hit the same part of the calf muscles? Yes, we've been led to believe when we go from one of these gym machines to the other; we're somehow hitting our calves differently. Yet they both put about equal stress on both the medial and lateral heads of the gastrocnemus muscle (that's the meaty part of the calf). 'Seated calf raises', by contrast, target the soleus muscle which is located just below the gastrocnemus.

The calf muscles are composed of a few fast-twitch muscle fibers and a lot of slow-twitch fibers. That means they require some heavy low rep sets (for the fast twitch fibers) and a good amount of high rep sets (for the slow twitch fibers).I do about six sets of eight repetitions using a full range of motion on a donkey calf raise machine to hit the fast twitch fibers. I prefer donkey calf raises over standing calf raises because they seem to provide a fuller range of motion and don't put strain on the lower back.

"Burn" them with Partial Reps

When the full range of motion at the six to eight rep range has taken my calves to a fatigued state, I immediately go into a very high rep set of partial-range-of-motion reps. These are called 'burn reps' for good reason. The discomfort they may cause can be a great measurement of one's grit level. It's easy to use the same weight for these because of the reduced range of motion. I take this partial rep set well into the hundreds (the reps are fast) and keep shooting to break my previous repetitions until it's sensible to increase the weight instead of the reps.

In doing these high reps, partial-range-of-motion sets, it's important to work in both the bottom half of the range of a full calf raise and the top half. I do around three to four total burn reps sets.

I then go on to seated calf raises to hit the soleus section. Again, after doing sets of six to eight reps, I go straight in to some burn reps on this exercise. However, I only do one or two sets of burn reps on this exercise because my calves are pretty well spent by that time.

With this kind of workout, the calves need not be trained any more often than other muscle groups. They simply need the high repetitions and high intensity of partial reps for stimulation. However, it's plenty of recuperation between workouts that causes growth. Make sure you feel that warm feeling of relaxed expansion in the tissue before you even think about the next calf workout.

It's worth mentioning that this workout strategy is a far cry from what should be used for all other muscle groups. At least, that is - if you're a natural bodybuilder and you want to make impressive muscle gains.

This type of calf workout has taken my seemingly hopeless "pipes" and expanded them to resemble "diamonds". If you're looking for a way to get more of that diamond shape yourself, I highly recommend it.

New Balance Women's WW850 Toning Shoe
New Balance Women's WW850 Toning Shoe
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Get this classic shoe that will captivate all that set cite on them.

Put some extra pep in your step with New Balance's WW850 sneaker. Truebalance technology provides superior comfort and helps tone your muscles while burning extra calories. It's a simple choice for an effortless workout.

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New Balance Women's WW1442KM Toning Shoe
New Balance Women's WW1442KM Toning Shoe
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? Show your support for the cause in this pink-ribbon toning shoe ? Breathable mesh upper with supportive synthetic overlays ? Comfortable fabric lining ? ACTEVA® ULTRA LITE midsole for lightweight shock absorption ? Innovative rock & tone rocker bottom technology burns more calories and gets legs in shape ? Stabilizing WALKING STRIKE PATH® on rubber outsole ? Part of the Lace Up for the Cure® Collection

Accelerate your fitness goals the fast and fun way in this ingenious athletic shoe by New Balance. Fitted with a solid rubber outsole that's curved to propel you forward while toning your muscles and burning extra calories, the ergonomic shoe also features a cushioned collar and tongue, multi-density walking insert, and lightweight style for cool, comfortable workouts.

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AVIA Women's A9999 Avi Motion iTone Toning Shoe
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The first biomechanically-correct toning shoe that allows your foot to move naturally featuring leather & mesh upper, negative heel engineering promotes muscle activation, lightweight construction & Archrocker - enhances the users rocking motion from heel to toe.

Did you ever think you could workout and tone without even trying? All you have to do is walk! This avi-motion sneaker from Avia has the technology that will work--a negative heel promotes muscle activation, forefoot grooves allow for natural dorsiflexion, and the Archrocker promote total bun-toning.

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New Balance Women's WW850 True Balance Toning Shoe
New Balance Women's WW850 True Balance Toning Shoe
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Women's New Balance, True Balance WW850

Get a workout with your every step in New Balance's True Balance Toning Walking Shoe. The TrueBalance system joins a C-CAP midsole with a 3/4-length TPU leaf spring system and a rounded blown sole to strengthen muscles and blast away calories. This lightweight design is great for everyday wear whether you have exercise in mind or not.

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Skechers Women's Shape Ups Breast Cancer Awareness Walking Shoe
Skechers Women's Shape Ups Breast Cancer Awareness Walking Shoe
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Women's SKECHERS® SHAPE-UPS AWARENESS: You already know Skechers® Shape-Ups are designed to maximize the health benefits of walking, but now they're also helping women with breast cancer. For every pair sold, Skechers® will donate $36 to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Shoe features include a curved outsole that rolls forward with each step. You'll experience weight loss, toned calves, thighs, and core muscles, and improved posture.

Show your support of Breast Cancer Awareness while obtaining a better walking workout in this shoe from Skechers' Shape Ups line. The sporty upper features breathable mesh inlays and adjustable lacing, while the curved outsole and thick midsole are specially designed to activate muscles while you walk--allowing for a healthier stride. “For every pair sold, Skechers donates $10 to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation”

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Reebok Women's EasyTone Reeinspire Walking Shoe
Reebok Women's EasyTone Reeinspire Walking Shoe
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Women's REEBOK® EASYTONE REEINSPIRE :: Take the gym with you wherever you go! Improve muscle tone in your calves, thighs, and butt just by walking in Reebok® EasyTone Reeinspire fitness walking shoes. EasyTone walking shoes use balance pods in the heel and forefoot filled with soft, cushioned air cells to emulate walking in sand. You'll encourage greater use of your leg and core muscles to get a better workout and look great. Reebok® EasyTone Reeinspire walking shoes feature a blend of durable synthetic leather and soft, breathable mesh uppers for pure comfort.

Tighten and Tone with Reebok EasyTone What are Reebok EasyTone shoes? Reebok EasyTone shoes help tone key leg muscles with every step you take. They're well-designed, stylish training shoes that you'll wear everywhere you go. How do EasyTone shoes work? Balance pods are built-in under the heel and forefoot of the shoes. The balance pods are designed to create natural micro-instability with every step, forcing key leg and glute muscles to adapt, and encouraging toning. You'll truly feel the difference. Reebok EasyTone Balance Pods act like Stability Balls under your feet   When would I wear EasyTone shoes? EasyTone shoes are designed with style in mind, so they can be worn during normal day-to-day activities - from work, to school, to shopping - and everything you would normally do in a day. They help tone key leg muscles, and they look great. What muscles do EasyTone shoes tone? Your legs and butt. Anatomically speaking, targeted areas include key muscles in the gluteus maximus, hamstrings, and calves. Reebok EasyTone shoes increase muscle activity in the gluteus maximus by 28%, and by 11% in the hamstrings and calves  

Get a better butt and better legs with every step. With EasyTone Reeinspire, you can get firmer thanks to Reebok's patented sole technology, which simulates walking on sand.

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AVIA Women's A9995 Avi-Motion iShape Toning Shoe
AVIA Women's A9995 Avi-Motion iShape Toning Shoe
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Description

The Avia Avi-Motion series is "toning in motion"; a shoe that helps tone your body while you walk. This lightweight shoe features negative heel engineering which promotes muscle activation while a forefoot flex grooves allow for natural Dorsiflexion. This shoe employs Archrocker which is a time tested and American Podiatric Medical Association approved design that enhances the users rocking motion from heel to toe in the gait cycle. Also utilized is a Shear Cantilever System. This system accelerates the heel area's ability to rebound to its natural state in time for the next heel strike.

Tone while you go with Avia's Avi-Motion walking shoe. It's specially designed--with negative heel engineering, forefoot flex grooves, an APMA-approved Archrocker® shape, and the Shear Cantilever® System--to help get your muscles working while also cushioning and protecting every footfall. Best of all, it's as lightweight as can be.

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