How to Work Out Calves With an Exercise Ball
Working out your calves is not particularly hard, but it can get extremely boring. There are only a few traditional calf exercises, and most of them, while effective, are extremely monotonous and require lots of repetitions in order to bring the calves of your dreams to your real legs. While using an exercise ball will not necessarily reduce the required number of repetitions you need to do for training purposes, it will at least spice up your calf exercise routine with a new move that isolates and targets your calves better than any dumbbell or weight machine exercise can.
Instructions
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How to Work Out Calves With an Exercise Ball.
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1
Sit on the exercise ball.
Your knees should be bent at a ninety degree angle. Your feet should be flat on the floor. Make sure that your seat is secure enough to bear limited motion so that you do not fall off the ball. -
2
Hold one dumbbell on each knee.
You can lay them across your knees or balance them on their ends. Only use your hands to support the dumbbells, as your calves need to bear the weight of the iron so that they will become stronger. -
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3
Push off the floor.
Use your calves to raise your legs so that you are balanced on the front of your feet. This should be a steady, controlled motion. When you have reached full extension of your lower leg, move on. -
4
Lower your heels back down.
Do not quite allow them to touch the ground until you have completed a full set of repetitions. Otherwise, you may be tempted to rest in between raises which will not help your muscles' endurance or stamina. -
5
Repeat this exercise as many times as you wish.
If you are trying to get sculpted, toned muscles then you will need to do higher numbers of repetitions and use lower levels of weights. For example, you might do three sets of 20 repetitions each using two 15-pound dumbbells. If you are hoping to build muscle mass, you might opt for three sets of 10 repetitions each using two 40-pound dumbbells.
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Tips & Warnings
If you have not used an exercise ball in the past, you may want to work with a spotter until you have mastered the balancing aspects of lifting with this type of equipment.
If at any point in the exercise you feel pain in your knees or ankles, reduce the weight that you are lifting. If the pain persists, stop exercising and contact your doctor immediately.
