Calf Tightness

So assuming that you have established that you do not have an injury and your calves are just tight, then the following advice should get you back running pain free, and help to improve your times and endurance as your calf will be working more efficiently. If you actually have shortened calf muscles, rather than just slightly tight, then a standard warm up consisting of dynamic stretches will not be enough to help you run freely, as the stretches will only get your calf working as a normal muscle again, not one that is about to do rigorous exercise, as you are starting at a poorer starting point. You therefore need to begin a daily stretching regime, that will involve static stretches on a daily basis, on top of the dynamic stretches that you will do as part of your warm up and cool down when you go for a run. This will only take 5 to 10 minutes of your day and will get you back to running without pain, and reduce the risk of injury.

When stretching the calf muscles, it is important to realise that there are two muscles in the calf: Gastrocnemius, the large muscle that is visible, and Soleus which is deeper. This means that to stretch the calf properly, that you have to stretch both muscles. There is huge debate as to the best way of stretching muscles with regards to the duration and the frequency. We won’t go into this now, but as a rough guide, each stretch should be held for between 20 and 30 seconds and you should constantly push to a point where you feel a moderate but tolerable stretch, which may mean that you have to increase the movement as the time goes on to maintain this sensation. I would suggest spending about 5 to 10 minutes a day stretching out problem calves!

I always teach my patients three stretches to loosen their calves:

1. Standing on the bottom step of the stairs with your heels off the edge, and allowing your heels to drop downwards until you feel the stretch in your calves. Not only is this an excellent stretch for gastrocnemius but you can also combine it with heel raises as a strengthening exercise.
2. Stand with one foot on a chair by the wall. Push your knee on the leg on the chair forwards, towards the wall until you feel the stretch. Alternate legs. This stretches your Soleus muscle as will any exercise where you bend your knee and pull your toes up towards you (plantar flex)
3. The standard calf stretch known as “pushing down the wall”, but with a slight change to the normal exercise. You can do the standard exercise, but then also perform the same stretch with the step forwards slightly to the left, and then slightly to the right so that you are stretching in slightly different directions to mimic the various stresses on the calf as you run.

To make the stretches even more effective, have a warm bath for 20 minutes just before you stretch. The heat will make the muscles more pliable, and as such the exercises will be more effective at stretching out your tight calves and get you fixed quicker!

On top of the stretching exercises, you should also strengthen the muscles that plantar flex your foot. These are the muscles that pull your toes up towards you and need to be strong to work effectively in conjunction with your calf muscles when you are running. There are plenty of exercises with theraband to strengthen these muscles, or just regularly pulling your toes upwards whilst using the other foot as resistance will do the same job.

Other ways of reducing the strain on your calves in the short-term while you stretch them out again, are to pick routes that are quite flat, and also to use small heel raises in your running shoes. Heel raises are a useful in between measure. They take the pressure off the calf by reducing the stretch on it with every heel strike and provide “middle ground” between your relatively flat running shoes, and your heels. I recommend heel raises for all my patients who are returning to running after a calf tear or Achilles injury to ease the muscles back into the demanding action of running.

With stretching, heel raises and careful route choice most runners can effectively cure their calf pain. However, you should consult your Physiotherapist to ensure that the problems are not arising from a biomechanical problem, whether that be one leg being shorter than the other, or a weakness in a stabilising muscle group, normally the glutes or hamstrings. To help the process, sports massages may be useful to lengthen the muscle and reduce any scar tissue that is present from micro tears that may have occurred from years of abuse!

Many Health Care Professionals would recommend that runners do not wear heels on a regular basis to avoid shortening in the calf muscles. However, with a strict stretching regime, most people can wear heels, and run comfortably...just not at the same time!!!

David Roberts Physiotherapy have been pushing, pulling, stretching, moving, twisting and fixing people just like you from all walks of life for 25 years so, if in doubt, get in contact!