Give Your Lower Legs More Strength!

Having adequate lower leg strength is important as it not only allows you to stand and walk, it also keeps your balance and coordination with the other parts of your body. The calves usually carry all the burden of handling your weight with each step you make, thus they have to be chiseled to perform well. Like all other muscle groups, the calves should also be isolated during workout by means of special routines, as they cannot be strengthened by walking, jogging and cycling alone.

Here are some effective lower leg workouts which you can do easily:

• Standing heel raise. This classic exercise targets the two main calf muscles, the gastrocnemius and the soleus. When the legs are straight while being raised, it is the gastrocnemius that is worked out; when bent, the soleus becomes the target. Calf raises are done by raising the calves alternately at the edge of a chair without using the hands to hold on to anything aside from a pair of dumbbells. This will increase your calf strength and overall balance.

• Flex the anterior tibialis. Do this by sitting with feet flat on the floor and evenly aligned. Flex both feet in manner of bring the toes towards the head while keeping the heels on the floor. Begin slowly and deliberately, and eventually add resistance by placing ankle weights over the top of the feet. You can also try lifting a dumbbell by moving only the top part of your foot.

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