Hey, it's Lee Hayward here from LeeHayward.com, and I am often asked how I build big muscular calves? So I am talking about going fortunate in this area, and I have got good side calves myself. So what I am going to do in this video clip is show you four of my favorite calf exercises that you can use in your own workouts.
My personal favorite calf exercise is the standing calf raise machine. When I do these, I will only use moderate weight, but I will really exaggerate the range of motion. I will go all the way down for a full stretch at the bottom and hold it for a second, and then come all the way up onto the balls of my feet, and hold this peak contraction for a second. I find that doing your calf raises in this fashion is a lot more effective to do in the short choppy reps that you often see a lot of people doing in the gym.
The next exercise that I like to move on to is the Leg press calf raise. Now in order to do these, you need to be able to hang your heels off the bottom of the foot plate on the leg press machine. Not all leg presses will allow you to do this, but if the leg press machine at your gym allows you to do it, then it's a great exercise to add to your calf workout.
Again, I really exaggerate the full stretch at the bottom and hold this for a second and then come up for a full peak contraction at the top for a full second. For my calf exercises, I usually do between ten and fifteen reps per set, and I do between two and three sets per exercise.
The next exercise that I like to do is the seated calf raise machine. Now, this one hits the calves from a unique angle because your knees are bent at 90 degrees. This will actually really help you get a peak contraction into the calf muscles. Again, really exaggerate the stretch at the bottom and get a full peak contraction at the top. I personally find that the calf muscles respond better when you really focus on feeling them stretch and contract with each rep, rather than simply trying to move heavy weight.
The last exercise that I will do on my calf workouts is body-weight calf raises. I will do these standing on, on aerobic steps, so I get a full range of motion. I usually just try to pump out hundred total reps as a good burn at the end of my calf workout.
For more workout programs and training tips, be sure to check out my website at www.leehayward.com and while you are there, sign up for my FREE 10-Part Bodybuilding Tips email course. In this free e-course, you will get some killer tips and tricks that will help you build lean muscle, burn out stubborn body fat, and get an athletic physique.
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