2 Stretching Exercise for Calf Muscle Pain Relief Instantly

Last updated on June 23rd, 2022 at 11:12 am

Every one of us might have felt pain in our calf muscles after a brutal workout or tiring daily routine. It is one of the busiest muscles of our body and this is why it bears more pain and soreness. Though you might find mild relief by taking a rest, that’s not enough, we have to learn exercise for calf muscle pain to get rid of it completely.

In this article, I am going to share the two most effective yet simple calf muscle stretching that can relieve your calf pain and discomfort within a minute. But, we proceed let us try to understand what may cause such pain.

Exercise for calf muscle pain

Being a physiotherapist I am also associated with a local hockey academy and get to see lots of calf muscle pain cases. I always stress two of my favourite calf muscle pain exercise which gives them quick relief. We can understand that they are an athlete whose profession is to run. It’s obvious that continuous running can lead to calf muscle pain. 

But, what about you, you are not an athlete?

See, as I have already mentioned the calf muscle is a busy muscle, it has to work while running, walking, jogging and even standing. Yes, calf muscle has to work even during standing to maintain balance, and because of this bears the burnt of soreness and pain. To understand this we need slight anatomical knowledge about calf muscle.

Anatomy of the calf muscle

Do you know that the calf muscle is called as second heart of our body? We have already discussed it in one of our previous articles “which organ is called second heart of the body & why”? In medical terms, the calf muscle is known as gastrocnemius muscle is thick, strong bulky and for me ‘a grand’ muscle present behind both the lower legs. It is commonly known as the calf muscle.

Just, palpate your calf muscle and feel its bulkiness and its grandiosity. This grand muscle is perhaps most hard-working the muscle and is even bulkier for sportspeople, and athletes. During our normal activity and walking or running this muscle is subjected to continuous contraction and relaxation. It is as if the muscle is pumping.

All the blood vessel that lies inside this muscle is also subjected to pumping action and pushes out blood back to the heart.

Stretching exercises to relieve calf muscle pain

The tips I am going to share is basically a calf stretching exercise. Stretching in two different ways which are super simple and yet very effective. But, one thing you have to keep in mind is it is not applicable for all kinds of calf muscle pain. This tip applies to normal muscular pain due to over-work or over-exercise,

Here’s is the list of calf muscle pain that needs greater care.

• Deep venous thrombosis.
• Intermittent claudication.
• Claf muscle cramp.
• Muscle spasm.

You don’t need any training or any complicated instruments. But there’s a way to avoid the pain altogether for athletes, just follow the warm-up cooling down rules.

It’s interesting to learn why warming up and cooling down is important in sport.

So, coming to our actual concern on how to relieve muscle pain in the calf? I usually prescribe this exercise to my patient and have found it to be very effective. Sometimes one may also complain about pain in the front of the lower leg, often they describe it as bone pain in the lower leg. This type of pain is called shin pain and it requires different exercises, here’s the link for the same if you have shin splint pain: 5 Easy Shin Splint Stretches & Tips for Instant Relief

Calf muscle stretching in standing

This stretching exercise is done in a standing position. So, stand in front of the wall and keep your ball of toes over the wall and heels touching the floor. Now move and lean forward, press your knee towards the wall and hold it for at least 60 seconds for 1 minute. you would feel stretching pain in your calf muscles.

If this is not sufficient to elicit the stretching pain, move your body forward towards the wall. This would definitely have a stretching effect on your calf muscle. This is a very effective stretching exercise and you need to do it twice daily.  In a single session repeat it 2 to 3 times.

Also Read: How to Stop Leg Cramps at Night?

Stretching of calf muscle in sitting

To perform this stretching come to the long sitting position.  So first sit on the floor or on a mat in a long sitting position and take a towel or bedsheet (in the figure I’m using a resistance band). Fold the towel longitudinally and hold the two ends of the towel with both of your hands. Now, carefully place the folded end on the ball of toes, please note that over the ball of toes. Not an inch below this, which would not produce the desired effect.

Now pull the towel with both of your hands and allow the ankle to bend so that you feel stretching at the calf muscle. One thing you have to note here is that during pulling, make sure that your knee remains straight. Don’t allow it to bend, bending of knees destroy the very purpose of pulling the towel.

Keep the calf muscle in a stretched first position and hold it for a minimum of 60 seconds (1 minute) and then release it slowly. Now repeat the same process on the other leg alternately and in a single session repeat it for 2 to 3 stretching.

Repeat it twice daily and you would feel tremendous relief in your calf muscle pain.

Home tips to get rid of calf muscle pain

In addition to these exercises, we would also recommend using a calf massager which will help relax and ease the pain. In one of the videos, I have reviewed an Air compressor calf massager from Agaro which you can watch here to make an informed decision to buy it. The pad is strapped around the lower leg which is inflated and deflated according to the different programs. It gives you a feeling of massage like a human hand.

Please note that these tips are only applicable to calf muscle pain due to simple muscular pain. It does not apply to complicated cases such as deep vein thrombosis (DVT). If this stretching does not solve your problem then please visit your doctor for further investigation.

Keep Reading: How to Stop Leg Cramps at Night?

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Sunit. S. Ekka

Dr Sunit Sanjay Ekka is a physiotherapist in practice for the last 15 years. He has done his BPT from one of the premium Central Government physiotherapy colleges, ie, SVNIRTAR. The patient is his best teacher and whatever he gets to learn he loves to share it on his Youtube channel and blog.