Tight Calves? Three Ways to Keep Your Calves Healthy
I love walking. Give me a bush track or a beach, and I’ll see you in a few hours or days. I spend most weekends catching up with friends on a friendly 10-mile hike. It’s not only a great way to pass a morning — fresh air and great conversations; it’s also a way to ensure I am getting some quality exercise. The downside? My calf muscles are always sore. I don’t mean a little stiff. I mean hard as rock muscles and painful to touch.
It’s interesting that even though we all use our calves daily, it is probably one muscle group that we spend the least amount of time maintaining. And not looking after our calf muscles can have impacts on your health further down the line.
Why should you care about your calves?
The calf muscles play an important role in pumping blood through venous circulation and are therefore known as the peripheral heart. When the blood flows from the calf muscles to the heart, it has to travel against gravity; thus, the calf muscles’ contraction builds up an external pressure.
If you sit for long periods, wear heels or both, you may have shortened your calf muscles.
As you age, your muscles get tighter, so starting with tight calf muscles can make things like maintaining stability to climbing stairs all the more difficult.
It’s essential to keep the calf muscles lengthened to walk correctly and run properly. If the ankle cannot move at least 15 degrees, the other joints, like your knees, need to compensate. The result can be a variety of injuries, not just in your calves.
So what can you do to ensure this doesn’t happen?
What are the benefits of maintaining healthy calves?
Apart from the apparent benefits of taking away calf pain and loosening the muscles, regular stretching of your calves can provide some other surprising benefits.
Firstly, by having nicely stretched calves, we can ensure that we keep a correct posture and support the muscles around our spine. Having a properly aligned spine can remove undue pressure from your feet and help your hip to remain open and strong.
All of this contributes to keeping your back healthy and staving off back pain, neck pain, and headaches from walking with an incorrect gait.
Three ways to keep your calves healthy?
Now you know the importance of keeping your calf muscles healthy, here are three things you can incorporate into your daily routines to look after your calf muscles:
- Regular stretching. Spending time on your calf muscles should be part of an overall routine, not just before or after exercise. This can include calf raises, yoga poses (like downward dog and walking dog), and other stretches help to lengthen and strengthen your calves.
- Foam rolling: Whether you do it yourself using a foam roller or have a professional massage, having someone spend time manipulating the calf muscles is a great way to break up muscle knots and keep a healthy blood flow.
- Stay hydrated. Keep yourself well hydrated and drink plenty of water throughout the day. Make sure you are keeping up your magnesium and potassium levels to prevent cramps.
Keeping your calf muscles healthy is an important aspect of your overall health. Make a point of incorporating calf health into your regular routine. It can be as simple as taking five minutes out of your day to enjoy a calf stretch.
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