# Calves... How often??



## Bulk_250

*How many times a week?*​
Once a week6040.00%Twice a week5939.33%Everyday53.33%Other...2617.33%


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## Bulk_250

Ive heard people say to train calves every day, then Ive heard once a week, and read twice a week etc. Just wondering how often everyone trains them? And if anyone has really impressive calves, post a pic of them.

I currently do them twice a week, 4 sets of 15 standing raises, 4 sets of 10 seated raises and 4 sets of 15 on a machine thats got a seat on a angle, Im not usre what it's called, and its hard to explain!

They're not responding very well anyways and being 6 foot 1, it makes them look even worse when Im standing, any ideas how to improve?

One day ill go heavier and rest between exercises, then the second time I trian them, ill go lighter and put them into one big set...


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## dooby

Voted other as mine get worked with leg curls ,squats,deads,SLDL,seated and standing raises obviously some times alot more than others lol as for calves themselves i do 2x10-12 standing as heavy as possible followed by 1x10-12 seated as heavy as poss.


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## Lost Soul

Whats the goal?


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## dmcc

I voted "other" as "never" wasn't an option. I genuinely never train calves and they're just shy of 18"... about 17½ I think. They get enough from the cross-trainer, walking and stabilising...


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## donggle

twice a week, ridiculously intensive. 3 ex's supersetted with no rest at all for 4 sets (12 in total) to 20 reps each set, should be done in about 4 minutes tops.


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## leveret

never, mine are decent size so atm i just rely on squats and other leg exercises to work them


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## pea head

well its a question that you will get so many answers to this.the trouble with calves is you either got em or you avent i say.genetics play a massive part.how many times have you seen some pencil neck walking his dog down the street with big calves,yet some bodybuilders train there sack off n get diddly squat? i would honestly say full range of motion standing squeeze 4 x 15, seated 4 x 12.medium to heavy without jerking.as for how many times per week,if you got stubborn ones then do em again once theyve stopped aching.well it helps mine.give it a whirl


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## fozyspilgrims

Once or twice a week it depends on what week i am on.


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## clarkey

Every 3rd day for me works well.


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## Incredible Bulk

twice a week, cracking on 18"+


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## supercell

Calves were a real weak point for me around 2/3 years ago. I trained them 2x a week for around 6 months and now hit them hard and very heavy with reps around 8-15 and around 5-6 sets. Donkey and standing.

They grew over 2 inches in that period and now I can get away with training them once every 2-4 weeks but dont, I train them with shoulders every 9 days and hammer the fcuk out of them.

When you have your back to the judges in the quarter turns your calves are about at eye height for them. Big calves mean big impact and IMO can never be too big. Sorts out the men from the boys. There are too many BBers with weak calves.

Mine are around 18.5 now after being around 14.5 in my first year of competing 5 years ago. Still got another 1.5 to go to match my arms tho so I'll keep plugging away!!LOL

J


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## Kezz

I found walking up the mountains really brought mine on, i train them once per week otherwise and hammer them


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## ba baracuss

I don't know the best way to train them but I do know that they need to be smashed to pieces to grow as they have such a thick fascia to them.

When you think how much strain they get every day from just being walked around on, it's going to take a lot to 'break' them.


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## Ironhorse

Personally mine respond best to three sessions a week.


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## Guest

Twice a week, on lower days. just standing calf raises on a block of wood

I have lying around the garage, heavy as i can for 20rep first set, 2-3 more sets of as many as i can manage.

Seems to be working.


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## Scottswald

once or twice a week usually but everday that i train just for a couple of weeks


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## nowatchamacalit

I have to train mine really heavy for anything to happen.

Usually do raises with a barbell on shoulders whatever that is called. 4 sets of 8 reps.

Once a week for me otherwise they just have the small endurance look, which has come back now I have started running again. AARRGGHH!


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## DBowden

I usually work my Calves, when I work Quads.

I work them approx. every six days.

Usually I superset calves, I do three supersets consisting of three sets, a standing calf raise or calf presses on a leg press machine, followed by a seated calf raise.

Rep ranges are in the 10-15 range.

Sometimes I throw in two days later when I work back/hams posterior chain, 2-3 sets of light weight high rep ranges of 15 and 25 reps.


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## Ollie B

Once a week for me. They get hit when I do squats aswell.


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## petethemanc

Once a week for me, as i do plenty of cardio as well my legs would be fecked.


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## crazycal1

other than supercell has anyone actually started off with sh1te calves and actually grown decent ones.

if so please post up a pic.


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## Snorbitz1uk

I have never trained them and they are 23" well out of propotion to rest of my body


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## pecman

I train them every 1-2 weeks doing 1 set of 75's if you try these i bet they will grow and you will notice the difference in 2 months. :thumb:


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## Charno

Once a week for me too, I run on the weekends so I try to train them a few days before to give the stiffness time to wear off.

It's weird though, sometimes they're really tight for days after and other times nothing. This is with no noticeable increase in the workout. I suppose there must be some difference, maybe an extra rep here, a slight weight increase there.

I train calves on the leg press machine, toes on the end of the platform, legs slightly bent, then tippy toes to heel down as full a range of motion as I can manage. I usually need a relatively heavy weight with high reps (20) to feel that satisfying burn.


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## Ollie B

I do calves 1 a week. 4-6 sets

they get worked on squats, leg press, cross trainer, cardio, bike, walking.


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## Pritch30099

Twice a week also, you either have them or you dont lol.. Mine sit quite high up and are defo my weak point. I hammer them with hight controlled reps, donkey ones, sitting, standing, every angle.


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## the_muss

Depends on what your focus is but no more than 2 times a week.


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## Aftershock

supercell said:


> Calves were a real weak point for me around 2/3 years ago. I trained them 2x a week for around 6 months and now hit them hard and very heavy with reps around 8-15 and around 5-6 sets. Donkey and standing.
> 
> J


I've always seen people advocate training calves very heavy (and more frequently) and I really can see the logic in it.

The trouble I have going really heavy is it is limiting the range of motion especially the peak contraction at the top. 

I just wondered if you had any tips for this?

Obviously you can go exceptionally heavy and get an awesome stretch at the bottom position and effectively do a partial range of motion. Would it be productive to do several sets in this fashion and then lower the weight and do several sets at full range?

Im now hitting them twice a week and really mixing the execrises up with one leg raises etc etc, they are responding better and have gone extremely vascular but actual growth is thin on the ground Im afraid.


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## paulo

same-poor calf size in comparison to everything else


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## dogue

twice a week, one day is heavy work and the second session is focused on quality, pump, and high reps.

changing from one day a week to twice has made a huge difference for me.


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## willsey4

Ive always wondered about calves. Being 6ft 2" with long legs and genetically bad calves Im going to try everything possible to improve them. 20" is my long time target. They are 17.5" to 18" at the mo but the look so scrawny on long legs.

At present I do 2 exercises of 4/5 sets. Im going to change this to 3 exercises of 4 sets and see if that makes a difference. I might even try it twice a week.

I read in Arnolds book how he trained them every day but i think that is a bit excessive


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## paulo

im with you on this-calves are totally out of proportion for me-hardly any gains ever,know folk with huge calves who do nothing!

keep perservering though-if there was something to boost locally id take it!,but meanwhile,here goes more calf raises


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## cha1n

Just something to add. I read once that stretching can help promote muscle growth, all over but especially helps with the calves.

Every muscle in your body is enclosed in a bag of tough connective tissue known as fascia and i've read that the calves fascia is very tough and thick, so stretching it gives more room to grow.

Here's an article:

http://www.healthguidance.org/entry/1098/1/How-Stretching-Can-Explode-Your-Muscle-Growth.html

Slightly off topic, but hope it helps anyway..


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## matt3178

i train mine once a week, seated for 3 & straight legged on the leg press for 3.

i hate my skinny calfs & iv never measured them till just a minute ago.

they are both 18" on the dot,but at 6'3" they look mega skinny.

they seem to be wide but flat,if that makes sense


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## brickhoused

once a week like evry other muscle IMO


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## ElfinTan

Twice a week - 4 giant sets 8 - 15 reps. Standing, setaed and legpress. I also love donkey raises and wil do these if I'm training calves with my other half.

Ok the thing that gets me about calves is why does everyone and his uncle claim they haven't got calves because of genetics and leave it at that. OK genetics play a part in all of our physical make up but if someones bi's/shoulders were lagging I'd bet my last quid they'd be looking under every bushel to find a way of making them grow and not just say..ah well..so be it...just genetics. Is it really possible that such a HUGE percentage of the population has genetically poop calves? Go to any show and you will see arms and shoulders popping all over the place....just look below the knees and a good set of well developed calves is in the minority! I have to say I'm a bit of a calf gal at heart...probably coz mine are poop but I'm not giving up and they WILL grow!


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## Guest

once a week works fine for me. Calves grow well for me and dont see any reason to train them anymore than any other body part. 6-8 sets of high intensity does it for me


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## notorious1990

once a week is fine for me... my calves seem to grow pretty well


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## stavmangr

You use your calves every day they are used to carry your weight, every day all day long.

They respond better to heavy weight for lot or reps i do very heavy sets for as much reps as i can also 21s my rest time is 20-30sec for 4-5 sets.

You can train them in every session without overtraining them,genetics play an important role.


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## George-Bean

I had a bad shoulder injury for about 8 months so could only use my legs, which meant legs/calves twice a week, Ive been losing weight for about 2.5 years and trying to train properly for about 18 months, got these from twice a week :- (I am not a big fellow so in relation to my size I'm pretty happy with them).


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## Big ape

3x per week for me ...


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## RDS

Generally just once a week, I have genetically big calves so only 1 (2 at most if my session is going quick) isolates for them.


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## 2H3ENCH4U

Twice a week, always to failure and beyond with plenty of rest pauses and loads of static stretching.

I have been known to swear at my calves after a set when strectching em "right you ba5tards your gonna grow" .....


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## Nidge

One a week with drop sets.


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## chris-taff

great thread. Ive always struggled with calves. I can squat 140kg when standing and 250kg with sitting/lying down down, so my legs r nice n defined but my clf i foocking struggle and i only a meisly 13.25" lol I had to put the .25"haha. Im guna start traing em more often now. Youtube here i came for some excersises. :thumb: :lol: :thumb:


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## hotchy

Iv lost over a stone and just noticed how small my calf's are. I miss my fat on them lol


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## alan_wilson

Mine just won't grow, twice a week I super set them

One sesh I'll do standing calf raises, as heavy as I can go for 15 reps, then to seates calf raises little heavier for 15 reps.

Then the opposite the next time I do my calfs.

Not grown an inch.


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## no1dnbhead

every other day


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## alan_wilson

Roughly every two days, as mine are lagging.


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## Mackerel

twice a week.

For the last 6 months or so I went heavy = no growth. 16" same as last year.

Past few weeks i've been trying something different: mostly doing just bodyweight sets but mega numbers of reps, as many as possible for some proper burny shouty painful sessions. Getting good DOMS from this so i'll keep going for a few months and see what happens.

GROW YER [email protected]!!!!

edit: also I really stretch these days as well, trying to make room for the muscle to grow into. Fingers crossed.


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## OJay

I annihilate mine every session

Straight sets

Drop sets

Rest pause

50reps with 2min stretch

James colliers 3 min calf routine

Pre exhaust

And many more

Every day I train

Plenty stretching and they're responding I will get calves eventually!


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## Scottswald

my calves seem to be my strongest point and are pretty big even when i dont train them.

i usually train them once per week going really heavy using the leg press machine for a calve press. i do 5 sets of 15 with about 20 seconds rest between sets, done in 4-5 mins. pump is unbelievable


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## tylerx

I train my calves twice per week and at times I may increase that frequncy to thrice. My favourite are seated raisers, I am able to hit the calves in multiple ways without loosing form and isolate as I deem fit.

A typical session:

Seated Raisers: 4 * 10

Standing Raisers : 3 * 15

Donkey/ Leg Press Raisers:4x 15

I typically like to work around 15 reps but will at times work as low as 10 and as high as 20 depending on my objectives. One of my favourites is doing 10 x (10-20) on seated raisers. I enjoy hitting them hard and typically within three weeks I can already see some change.

If I am away from the gym for prolonged periods owing to work I do, standing body weight calve raisers 50 reps x 10 sets every second day and will be working my way to a 1000 in due course.


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## BoxerJay

I do a little bit everyday, normally 80 reps of calf raises on my toes holding 20kg and I'll do that 2 or 3 times


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## engllishboy

Never


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## LukeV

When i remember 

If i was competing or something and had a reason to train them i would make more of an effort to fit them in.


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## musclemate

Twice a week until I can't walk properly


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## Guest

Twice a week, not a lot of volume though.

May up volume a tad.


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## WilsonR6

On leg day, all I do is 4 x 15 heavy standing calve(calf?) raises, worked my way up to 100kg a side and calves seem to look pretty nice


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## Slater8486

I've played basketball most my life so I have pretty decent calves and just train them twice a week.

I try and skip as much as I can too as mini tip toe jumps help loads!


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## Guest

The only people with calves worth talking about I know are the die hard cyclists!


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## Sub-Zero

I try and train them 3x a week. I find volume and frequency best for calves.


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## ClarkyBoy

Personally I do them every time I'm in the gym, on leg day I will absolutely beast them. On other days will do for example

Seated Calf Raises - 3set 15-20reps

Standing Calf Raises - 3set 15-20reps

Will tend to put a last set on each till failure. Love working calves, after reading Arnold's book kinda inspired me to crack on and beast them.


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## alan_wilson

Mine are a pathetic 16 inches.

Thing is, I still have an exceptional standing box jump, through years of playing basket ball.

I've hit my twice a week for the last six months, total of 3 exercises each time, heavy and rep work, no progress at all


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## goodison1972

every other day for me, once a week just didnt do diddly squat for them...


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## musclemate

Twice a week. Hard work to get them to grow


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## Armz

Twice a week but they're still my worst bodypart . Tried lots of different methods but still only 16" so look puney on me @ 5'9". Arms are over 18 so calves have got some catching up to do.


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## Guest

Once a week, mine are big, just go very very heavy with them.


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## BBaddict

Twice a week for me, prefer high reps/drop sets etc


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## ryda

Mine are pretty small been pushing as much as I can on seated and stand up raises and they seem to be gettin there but very slowly will deffo do em twice a week now after reading some comments


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## Super_G

I currently have lower leg issues (muscles too large for the mayofascial sacks) and awaiting an op but my calves are pretty big and iv honestly only ever isolated them about ten times. They seem to grow anyway so I don't do any isolation work at all regardless of my current problems


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## ryda

Spawn of Haney said:


> The only people with calves worth talking about I know are the die hard cyclists!


Or people with a dancing or gymnastics background my birds brothers ex never stepped foot in a gym in her life but had ded big muscular calves almost bigger then her thighs and they probably came from doing ballet at a young age

Which is where I think all that starts


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