Exercise Guide

Calf Raise

Rising onto the toes and lowering again. No equipment, no setup, and it can be done for high reps anywhere.

BeginnerStrengthPushIsolation
Form
Calf Raise - Start position
Start
Calf Raise - Mid position
Mid
Calf Raise - End position
End

Illustrations by Bryl Lim for Workout Guide, after Everkinetic. Used unchanged under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Details

Primary Muscle

Calves

Equipment

Bodyweight

Difficulty

Beginner

Category

Strength

Force

Push

Mechanic

Isolation

How to Perform
  1. 1

    Stand tall with your feet hip-width apart, ideally with the balls of your feet on a step.

  2. 2

    Let your heels drop below the level of your toes until you feel a stretch.

  3. 3

    Press up onto your toes as high as you can and pause.

  4. 4

    Lower slowly back into the stretch.

Tips
  • ★A step doubles the useful range - flat ground gives you only the top half.
  • ★Pause at both ends. Bouncing skips the two hardest parts of the rep.
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Calves