Dealing with your inner calf: do this exercise to add plenty of muscle mass to the insides of your calves

Muscle & Fitness, July, 2004 by Jim Stoppani

BIG, FREAKY CALVES don't grab much attention on the street. When most people spot a bodybuilder, they ask to see the biceps shot, not the calf shot. Yet within our subculture, well-developed calves are highly coveted. After all, few guys have them, and the ones who don't (i.e., the rest of us) appreciate the hard work that goes into developing them. The most impressive part of the calf when viewed from the front is the inner (or medial) head of the gastrocnemius. Take a look at an old photo of Rich Gaspari and notice the pointy diamonds on the insides of his lower legs. If you ain't got 'em, you know you want 'em. Find out if you've been properly targeting your inner calves or sorely neglecting them by choosing which exercise below best isolates the medial head of the gastrocnemius.

STANDING CALF RAISE

The standing calf raise does effectively hit the inner head of the calf, but it just as effectively hits the outer head and even the soleus (to many bodybuilders' surprise). Because it evenly distributes the stress to all parts of the calf, it's less effective at isolating just the medial head. MISS

DONKEY CALF RAISE

The donkey calf raise is similar to other calf exercises in the action that takes place at the ankle, but being bent over at the waist seems to force most of the stress onto the inner part of the calf. This was proven in research using MRI technology. BULLSEYE

BY JIM STOPPANI, PHD