Most bodybuilders look at the leg press machine and just think of it as a movement (and a very painful one at that!) for building up the front thighs. When it comes time to train the calves, they look to battle with everyone else in the gym for a shot at the 2 or 3 calf machines the gym offers. The next time your need to train calves and don’t feel like waiting in line for 30 minutes between three housewives taking their sweet time training calves, jump over to the leg press machine and hit your calves there!

To use the leg press machine to train your calves, begin with a fair amount of weight on the machine. If you normally leg press 600 pounds, then you can easily move 300 to 350 pounds on the calf raise. Note that you will never be dis-engaging the handles on the side of the machine to lower the weight, as you normally would. Instead, load up the machine and simply use your toes (with a slightly different foot placement) to press the weight forward. This is a very safe movement, as the machine will keep the weight from falling toward you, and you’re only moving the weight a small distance.

Benefits
This exercise is great for isolating the calves and allowing you to train them at any tempo you wish. With seated calf raises, you are limited by just how much weight your heels can support. Here, however, you are pressing the weight against gravity. You are able to better control the weight and the path it takes. A slower repetition means you can draw more blood into the region, which leads to more growth. Additionally, you can complete one-legged calf raises, which are excellent for correcting a developmental imbalance between the two calves. If one is bigger than the other, then you should use one-legged leg press machine calf raises every time!

Deficits
There is a risk that the thighs will remove some of the workload. Keep your knees slightly bent to avoid this. Also, some bodybuilders report pain in the knees from using one-legged calf raises on this machine. To avoid that, use low weight and high repetitions if you do choose to complete one-legged raises. Other than that, the risk of injury is very low with this movement.

Risks
Simple gym etiquette dictates the bodybuilder should always allow the man or women completing a “rea” compound movement to use a machine or rack before you would complete your isolation movement. It doesn’t always work this way, but it is desirable. Just as you never want to be the guy doing his barbell curls in the gym’s only squat rack while a line of people wait to do squats, you don’t want to hold up others from training thighs because you are training calves. Keep an eye on what people are doing around the machine. If it’s open and the place isn’t that crowded, knock out your four sets!

Verdict?
Use them! It’s that simple! When the time and place is right, press away!

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