Calf Muscles Explained

The calf muscle on the back of the lower leg is actually made up of two muscles.

First the gastrocnemius which is the larger calf muscle.

It forms the bulge visible beneath the skin.

The gastrocnemius again has two parts which together create the diamond shape.

Next the soleus which is smaller and a flat muscle that lies underneath the gastrocnemius.

Together they taper and merge at the base of the calf muscle and are used during walking, running or jumping, where the calf muscle pulls the heel up and allows forward movement.

Research has shown that the size of your calves when untrained can vary from person to person.

So some get lucky and are naturally blessed with big calves while others have WAY smaller calves maybe even after years of training.

That said if you want to develop your calves keep in mind that like the ABS the calves seem to recover from workouts faster than other muscle groups.

That means they can be trained more often.

So don’t be afraid to train them two or even three times per week with standing or sitting calf raises.

If that’s a priority for you.