The calf muscle is a vital part of human anatomy. This muscle is actually made up of two muscles: the gastrocnemius and the soleus. The gastrocnemius is the biggest part, and forms the bulge that is visible on the leg. The soleus is located underneath the gastrocnemius and is small and flat. Both of these muscles connect with the achilles tendon through tough tissues. From there, the achilles tendon inserts into the heel. During movement such as walking, running, and jumping, the calf muscle pulls up on the heel to allow for movement. A very common condition of the calf muscle is straining/pulling it. The muscle is stretched further than its normal length, and is partially or fully torn. Most calf muscle pulls can heal themselves, but a full tear requires surgery. There are many common, easy exercises to strengthen the calf muscles. …show more content…
An easy way to strengthen the leg muscles in general is swimming. There is no risk of having injury, and it can strengthen the entire body at once. People should try and strengthen the calf muscles because they play a vital role in everyday life. Without the calf muscles, people wouldn’t be able to walk, run, or jump at all. Athletes must have strong calf muscles to have the endurance to perform in their specific sport. Another key reason to strengthen the calf muscles is because if the calf muscles are strong, then they can continue to build on themselves so you can lift more weight and run longer. Stronger calves can mean stronger cardio. If the calves are very fit, then cardio can be performed much easier and for a longer duration. A the calf muscle can also be very helpful in terms of heart health. As the muscle extends and contracts, it helps pump blood through the veins within it. This aids in the ability of blood to return to the heart. The calf muscles serve an important purpose in human anatomy. Without them, the legs just would not
Hamstring Strains (HS) are identified by acute pain in the thigh with disruption of the muscle fibres, with 47% of all HS studies stating that the BF muscle is affected (3). This can be explained because the BF muscle tendon and muscle fibres are where the most common distribution of the ground force produced during running (3). Eccentric contraction is explained by a study from Guex (4) stating that between 75-85% of the running cycle the hamstrings are undergoing an active lengthening contraction. Having this amount of eccentric contraction upon the muscles has the potential to cause an overuse injury (4). At 85% of the running cycle, the SM, ST, and BF are stretched by 8.7-12.0% which is beyond their optimum lengths (4).
Many of the muscles of the foot originate in the leg. Tendons from these muscles attach in the foot and aid in the articulation of the joints. From the anterior leg, the extensor hallucis longus muscle, extensor hallucis brevis muscle, extensor digitorum longus muscle, and the extensor digitorum brevis act as extensors on the phalanges. From the posterior leg, the flexor hallucis longus muscle and flexor digitorum longus muscle act as flexors of the phalanges.
While staying in the same spot, kick the legs backward toward the butt 15 times per leg. High knees help to strengthen the knees, glutes and help the hamstrings to power the legs properly. Bring the knees high toward the chest 15 times per leg. Strengthening the legs with these drills will help when running long distances. 2.
The quads include the rectus femoris, and the vastus lateralis, intermedius, and medialis. This muscle group shares a common tendon at insertion. The patellar tendon inserts at the tibial tuberosity, and within this tendon lies the patella. The patella is anterior to the femur-tibia articulation, and this sesmoid bone increases the leverage of the quads by acting as a pulley. The major contributor to the stability of the knee joint is the strength of the quads. The only muscle that assists in extension is the tensor fascia lata.
Universal Calf Brace by ViveProviding effective support throughout any activity, the adjustable Vive calf brace reduces muscle soreness, inflammation and cramping due to calf strains, sprains, or shin splints. Contoured brace is fully adjustable and can be worn on the left or right calf. The lightweight, breathable neoprene brace stays cool and comfortable for extended wearability.Effective Calf Support:Reducing soreness, inflammation and cramping, the Vive calf brace effectively supports weak or injured calf muscles. Providing great support for athletics, exercise and everyday use, the calf brace helps to prevent re-injury and promotes healing. Use the adjustable brace for calf strains and sprains, shin splints, and varicose veins. Minimizes
The cause of James’s claves to be enlarged is because as the skeletal muscle cells in his calf dies, the tissues are then replaced by adipose tissue and collagen. The muscles cells that remain hypertrophy to make up for the cells that were destroyed. The connective tissue in the calf muscles especially for the gastrocnemius
The quadriceps are comprised of four muscles: vastus lateralis, vastus medialis, vastus intermedialis, and rectus femoris. These muscles attach proximally at differing locations along the shaft of the femur and on the hip bone (rectus femoris only). They span the length of the femur and converge on the quadriceps tendon on the superior aspect of the patella and continue to the tibial tuberosity via the patellar tendon. The quadriceps are responsible for extending the knee, assisting in proper tracking of the patella, and preventing posterior translation of the tibia on the femur (Moore
The biceps femoris is one of the three muscles including the semitendinosus, and the semimembranosus, that make up the group of muscles called the hamstrings. The hamstrings are located on the posterior side of the leg. The biceps femoris originates on the ischial tuberosity and inserts on the head of the fibula. The movement of the biceps femoris is responsible for the flexion of the knee and the external rotation of the lower leg. Flexion of the knee happens when the back of the foot is raised toward the back of the leg.
Then the hip eccentrically extends by the gluteus maximus and hamstrings. The muscles in the left leg are able to relax as momentum is transferred to slow down the kicking leg and bring the planted leg off the ground. The right knee is carried through extension by momentum and gradually slowed through eccentric contraction of the hamstrings. In the left knee the quadriceps and hamstrings relax to help provide energy for the kicking leg. The right ankle remain plantar flexed by momentum, but gradually relax through eccentric contraction of the gastrocnemius and soleus. The left ankle plantar flex from concentric contraction of the gastrocnemius and
Have you ever wondered if their must be a better way to work out your calves than by stacking tons of weight on your shoulders? You’re not alone. Piling
The plantaris muscle is a vestigial structure, absent in 7-20% of population. Gastrocnemius and soleus muscles are commonly involved in trauma to the calf. Partial or complete tears at the myotendinous junction of the plantaris muscle can have a similar clinical presentation. Initially termed as the tennis leg, injury to the plantaris muscle was usually associated with torn anterior cruciate ligament or partial tears of the gastrocnemius or popliteus muscle.
Long distance running requires the use of many major muscle groups for performance. Some of the major muscles used during running include the quadricep muscles, hamstrings, soleus (inner calf muscles), gastrocnemius (outer calf muscles), hip flexors, and the gluteal muscles. The use of these muscles are powered by high amounts of oxygen in order to go for long periods of time. This form of exercise is aerobic because it uses the cardiorespiratory system to obtain oxygen in order to sustain physical activity. Oxygen use during long distance running is essential because it is used to burn fats and glucose creating ATP (adenosine triphosphate) as a basic energy cell carrier for the body. Long distance running is also continuous in nature because
Hundreds of thousands of fibres make up every muscle in your body. Whenever you are taking part in exercise your muscle fibres pull against each other. Depending on how long you exercise for and how intense it is, you may feel an aching in your muscles after the exercise or sometimes even during the exercise that you are doing. For example, when playing a Gaelic match you are making your muscles work for an hour long period of time which puts more pressure on muscles, this result in “microscopic tearing of the fibres”. By resting after the exercise your body heals resulting in added strength in the muscles and could also result in the muscle size increasing. Proteins are used to repair the tears by filling the gaps and putting an additional
Strengthening exercises are very important in preventing injury, especially to the knee. Most of the protection afforded the knee comes from the powerful quadriceps muscles, the hamstrings, and the calf muscles. These muscles control the movement of the knee. If they do not have proper tension, the control of the joint will be lost. When these muscles are weak, the knee is not only unprotected, it has to assume a much greater load and this can be painful.
So if you do dead lifts, squats, power cleans, snatches, clean and jerk, vertical jumps, depth jumps, lunges, calve raises, you will help target and strengthen the jumping muscles in you legs and some in your upper body. Also when doing the specific movement or exercise don't go past to point where the speed and power of the lift is reduced, wait till you are fully rested, and increase the weight and do the same, on your last set you can do multiple sets with minimal rest in between with the heaviest weight for at least 3-5 reps, or do an all out total reps for more muscles growth and absolute power or strength. Next time you do these exercises try for an extra rep or 2 on you all out max set(s) or multiple power sets.