Thread: Calf Machines

Originally Posted by boilermaker

What are your opinions on calf machines? I used the standing calf machine in my workout, but have read in some places that this can place alot of strain on the spine (spinal compression). Are seated calf raises or rotary calf machines equal in stimulating the calf muscle to the standing calf raise machine?

No - you need to do both standing (knee locked) and seated (knee bent).

Your spine has to bear large loads all the time in resistance training. However, if you're truly worried about it then you could do leg press calf raises or donkey calf raises. You could also do one-legged calf raises so that the load necessary to provide ample resistance is less.

Seated calf raises aren't as good because your gastrocnemius is almost inactive. During standing movements, both the gastrocnemius and soleus heads of the calf are active.