Dealing With Tight Calves? Here’s How to Get Relief

If you’ve ever experienced tight calves, then you know how uncomfortable they can be. Even walking can feel like a challenge. When tight calf muscles limit flexibility, it can be harder to do everyday activities, says Joey Loeb, PT, DPT, a physical therapist at Hinge Health. While that can be frustrating, if you address your tight calves early, they usually aren’t a cause for concern.

Your calves are made up of two muscles: your gastrocnemius and your soleus. These are what pull your heel up when you walk, run, or stand. “When these muscles are tight, it puts pressure on your foot, knee, and ankle joints, which can strain them,” explains Dr. Loeb. As a result, you’re more likely to experience pain and stiffness, and your risk of injury also increases. The good news: There’s a lot you can do to loosen up tight calves and ease discomfort, adds Dr. Loeb.

Read on to learn more about tight calves, what causes them, and how to treat or prevent them — especially with exercises and calf stretches recommended by our Hinge Health physical therapists.

Tight Calves Symptoms

The telltale symptom of tight calves is muscle pain and stiffness at the back of your lower legs when you walk, says Dr. Loeb. Other symptoms you may notice include:

• Calves that are hard to touch. The muscle will feel stiff when you put your fingers on it.

• Calf swelling. 

• Muscle cramps in your calves. 

• Difficulty flexing your toes. 

• Balance issues. A 2019 study in the Journal of Korean Physical Therapy found that tight calves were associated with balance problems.

• Ankle and foot pain. Tight calves can limit ankle mobility, says Dr. Loeb. This places more stress on your Achilles tendon as well as your peroneal tendons, which run along your outer ankle bone and the side of your foot.  

Why Are My Calves So Tight?

There are several reasons you may be experiencing tight calves, including:

• Going beyond your body’s sweet spot. If you’ve recently ramped up your running, biking, or hiking routine, you may find that your calves tighten up in response. “If you increase your intensity, distance, or frequency too quickly, your calves can become overloaded,” points out Dr. Loeb. While it can happen to anyone, marathon runners or triathletes may find themselves more susceptible, he notes. 

• Inactivity. If you sit for most of the day, your calves can tighten up as a result. “Motion is lotion — the more you use your calves, the more blood flow and oxygen is delivered to that part of the body,” explains Dr. Loeb. When that doesn’t happen, muscles can stiffen. 

• Your shoes. If your workout shoes are worn out or don’t provide enough support, they can put more stress on your calves. But even the shoes you wear day to day can impact your calves, too. Research shows that women who wear high heels every day, for example, experience shortening of their calf muscle fibers. While ironically this doesn’t cause pain when you’re in stilettos, you may notice that your calf muscles feel tight when you walk around barefoot or in flat shoes, since your muscles are already stretched beyond their normal range of motion. 

• Dehydration. If you don’t drink enough fluid, you may experience tightness and muscle cramps in your calves since you aren’t getting enough water and nutrients to the area, says Dr. Loeb. 

• Other injuries. Other muscle or tendon strains such as Achilles tendonitis can limit your range of motion, which in turn puts more strain on your calves. As a result, they become stiff and sore.

When To See a Doctor for Tight Calves

While tight calves can usually be treated and healed at home with conservative measures, there are also some medical causes that may warrant a trip to the doctor. Certain medications used to lower cholesterol and blood pressure, like statins or ACE inhibitors, can cause tight, achy calf muscles. 

If a tight, sore calf comes on suddenly, without any known cause, let your doctor know immediately, especially if your calf looks swollen, discolored, or feels warm to the touch. It could indicate a potentially life-threatening condition known as deep vein thrombosis (DVT), where a blood clot forms deep in your calf’s vein and causes pain and tightness.

The above exercises are recommended by Hinge Health physical therapists to help treat and prevent tight calves. As you’ll see, the best treatment involves not just focusing on your calf muscles exclusively, but working on surrounding structures too, including your feet, ankles, and entire leg. When all the parts of your lower body work well together, you can reduce the risk of experiencing tight calves. 

The information contained in these videos is intended to be used for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice or treatment for any specific condition. Hinge Health is not your healthcare provider and is not responsible for any injury sustained or exacerbated by your use of or participation in these exercises. Please consult with your healthcare provider with any questions you may have about your medical condition or treatment.

How to Prevent Tight Calves

The above exercises help prevent tight calves, but don’t stop there. There are several things you can do to keep your calf muscles strong and flexible, including: 

• Warming up. Before you work out or engage in any strenuous activity, do a few calf raises or stretches, then ease into a slow walk or jog. “This will help increase blood flow and warm up calf muscles to prevent injury,” explains Dr. Loeb.  

• Replacing your exercise shoes frequently. When your shoes wear down, they put more stress on your calf muscles. The American Academy of Podiatric Sports Medicine recommends that you switch them out after 300-500 miles of running or walking, or 45-60 hours of basketball, aerobic dance, or tennis. 

• Applying moist heat. If your calves are sore from a tough workout, a hot water bottle or warm wet towel may help increase blood flow to the area, advises Dr. Loeb. 

• Cross training. If you’re an avid walker or runner, you may want to alternate these activities with other exercises that put less strain on your calves, like swimming, rowing, or biking. This will give your muscles time to recover while you remain active. 

• Foam rolling. A 2020 review of 49 studies in the Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies found that foam rolling helps to loosen stiff muscles, including tight calves. Use a foam roller on the area for a few minutes before you work out.

• Drink up. Since dehydration can contribute to tight calf muscles, it’s important to stay hydrated. But if you are going to do a long, intense workout, you may be better off reaching for an electrolyte-enhanced drink. A 2021 study in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition found that people who drank electrolyte-enhanced water during and after intense exercise were less likely to complain of muscle tightness and cramps than those who just drank water. 

PT Tip: Take Movement Breaks

“When you sit or stand in the same position for a long time, your calf muscles can tense up,” points out Dr. Loeb. To prevent this, take a movement break every 30 to 60 minutes and do one of the strengthening or stretching calf exercises suggested above. 

How Hinge Health Can Help You

If you have joint or muscle pain that makes it hard to move, you can get the relief you’ve been looking for with Hinge Health’s online exercise therapy program. 

The best part: You don’t have to leave your home because our program is digital. That means you can easily get the care you need through our app when and where it works for you. 

Through our program, you’ll have access to therapeutic exercises and stretches for your condition. Additionally, you’ll have a personal care team to guide, support, and tailor our program to you. 

See if you qualify for Hinge Health and confirm free coverage through your employer or benefit plan here.

This article and its contents are provided for educational and informational purposes only and do not constitute medical advice or professional services specific to you or your medical condition.

References 

1. Binstead, J. T., & Varacallo, M. (2019, April 5). Anatomy, Bony Pelvis and Lower Limb, Calf. Nih.gov; StatPearls Publishing. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK459362/

2. Csapo, R., Maganaris, C. N., Seynnes, O. R., & Narici, M. V. (2010). On muscle, tendon and high heels. Journal of Experimental Biology, 213(15), 2582–2588. https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.044271

3. Furman, A. (n.d.). How Do I Know When It Is Time To Replace My Athletic Shoes. Www.aapsm.org. https://www.aapsm.org/replace_shoes.html

4. Hendricks, S., Hill, H., Hollander, S. den, Lombard, W., & Parker, R. (2019). Effects of Foam Rolling on Performance and Recovery: A Systematic Review of the Literature to Guide Practitioners on the use of Foam Rolling. Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies, 24(2). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbmt.2019.10.019

5. Lau, W. Y., Kato, H., & Nosaka, K. (2021). Effect of oral rehydration solution versus spring water intake during exercise in the heat on muscle cramp susceptibility of young men. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 18(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12970-021-00414-8

6. Lee, J., & Chang, J. (2019). The Effect of Calf Stiffness on Gait, Foot Pressure and Balance in Adults. The Journal of Korean Physical Therapy, 31(6), 346–350. https://doi.org/10.18857/jkpt.2019.31.6.346

7. Muscle Pain. (2021, February 11). Cleveland Clinic. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/symptoms/17669-muscle-pain

8. Signs and Symptoms of Blood Clots | Blood Clots. (2018). Blood Clots. https://www.stoptheclot.org/learn_more/signs-and-symptoms-of-blood-clots/