You know, Most people focus so much on the big “show off” muscles like chest and biceps , that they get kind of blind to the fact that there are other “problem muscles” people struggle with.One common problem is “skinny calves“.
People tend to ignore the calves probably more than any other muscle group because most of bodybuilders are simply trying to pack on mass and let’s face it… …calf presses aren’t a big “mass builder” exercise, you know?
However, working the calves is important in order to maintain “balance” in how you look when you lean out for the summer. So whether you are gearing up for the summer like me, or you’re just cursed with “skinny calves”, here’s why it’s so hard to develop them…and how to do it the right way…
m…and how to do it the right way…
Why “traditional calf training” doesn’t work
All you really need to know is that your calves are your body’s “brakes”, and are best trained in this capacity. In other words, when your calves are going through an eccentric motion such as the “down” phase of a calf press. The problem with traditional calf exercises is that the amount of weight that you can handle during this phase is much more than what your calves can handle in the “concentric” phase, when you’re lifting the weight up. This means that the most important phase of calf exercises don’t get enough heavy weight to let them stimulate muscle fiber growth effectively.
m…and how to do it the right way…
Now, here’s the Solution to skinny calves
The secret to building your calves is to lift heavy with both legs during the concentric phases (the “up” movement”). 
But then when you’re lowering the weight (or your body), you want to take all of the stress off of one of your legs while the other calf handles the entire weight for a slow, steady descent through the eccentric phase. Once you’ve reached the bottom of the movement (after a 4 second descent), you use both legs again to bring the weight back up to the “up” position and let the same leg handle the weight down again. Continue for 6-8 reps on one side (until failure), and then immediately work the other calf in the same fashion. Use this method for all calf exercise options and I promise you that switching to this type of training for your calves will blow away the results you get from using both legs for these exercises.
m…and how to do it the right way…
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Thanks for writing this. I thought it was intresting. I’m pregnant and my doctor has told me that exercising is out. Even stairs, so my legs look like crap. But this bit of advice will come in handy after the baby is born. If you have any more helpful advice I’d appreciate it.
It is true that we focus on those bigger muscles. I never really thought about it until I read your post, but now I am determined to start focusing a lot more on working out my legs and not just my biceps and chest all the time.
I look forward to trying this calf building technique! Sounds like it will be effective. Thank You!
very informative, most people are so focussed on building their upper body that they forget about the calf muscles. I will make it a point that I work on my calf muscles too.