muscle shapes

[hand2handCombat]

ive seen some ppls calf muscle extend outward and they are huge as in muscular. and ive seen some otheres who have them extend down toward their foot, those are muscular as well..

i was wondering why the shapes were different, is it because of the exercises they do or what???

 

[Richard S.]

hmmmm..could be mass vs. endurance exercises or just plain genetics...............respects.

 

[Kirk]

I'm no expert, but my vote would be with genetics. The calves
are one of the few muscles that you cannot over-train (or so
they say) .. they're also one of the hardest to develop, for
most body builders.

 

[Nightingale]

you've got a couple of different muscles in your calf. It just depends on which ones you work more, and how you work them. If you're doing more limbering activities such as dance or martial arts, your muscles tend to be long and strong, but not bulky. if you're doing more weights, you tend to increase muscle bulk. Think about flexibility and mass on a sliding scale...the more flexibility your muscles have, the less mass, and the more mass, the less flexibility (just a general guide, not always true). It also depends on how much testosterone and other hormones you've got, and what you eat.

 

[hand2handCombat]

so basically what you guys are saying is

strengh vs endurance exercises. like a soccer player and a track guy vs a guy walking with weights.

so according to what ur saying, if you do wieghts with endurance excersices, it will increase the size quickly

 

[Nightingale]

nothing will increase the size quickly. muscles take time to build. you have to be patient, and please don't get tempted by stuff like Xenadrine. Its dangerous. anything with ephedra or ma jong can cause heart problems. There are a couple of people out there waiting for heart transplants because they took that sh!t. the FDA is trying to ban this stuff. Its already banned in Canada and Europe. A great body on the outside isn't worth it if your methods cause problems on the inside.

Frankly, your best bet is to invest some cash in a personal trainer, and tell them what you want. I had a personal trainer for years, and it made a huge difference. As soon as I can afford it, I'm hiring him again.

Half the people in the gym are using the machines wrong. They don't adjust them properly, lift too quickly, or lift using the wrong amount of weight. A trainer can help you fix this. It's something you have to be shown in person by someone who knows (and someone who knows is not your buddy who's had a gym membership for six months. find someone who's trained in fitness to help you).

If you don't want to do that, your best rule of thumb is align the joint that's moving (ie. elbow on the bicep curl machine) with the axis on the machine. Lift enough so that it takes an effort to complete 15 reps, but not so much weight that you can't maintain proper form. Each rep should take at least six seconds...two seconds up, four seconds down. going slower is okay. going faster is not because you use your momentum instead of your muscles. rest for 1 minute between sets, and do 3 sets of 15 reps each.

make sure you add cardio training to your routine. a lot of guys dont' like to do cardio for some reason, but its essential for fat burning. there's no point in having great muscles if you've got a layer of fat over them so noone can see the definition of the muscles. start out at 20 minutes. find a elliptical machine that measures your heart rate, select the cardio program and go for it, following the directions. it will calculate a good heart rate for you. add one minute every time you go to the gym until you've worked up to an hour.

best of luck.

 

[hand2handCombat]

ya, im not into those pills and junk. im glad to know there are others who see ppl using machines wrong. ive been noticing them too.

 

[sweeper]

the shape of the claf is determined alot by the type of excercises you do, there are two major muscle masses on the back of your lower leg that determine shape, the soleus and the gastrocnemius. the gastrocnemius is layerd around the soleus and when that's built up it sort of gives the calves "wings" when flexed, the soleus is the muscle that gives the over all shape. On the front you have the tibialis anterior, but most body builders don't spend much time on that one..

 

[hand2handCombat]

the shape of the claf is determined alot by the type of excercises you do, there are two major muscle masses on the back of your lower leg that determine shape, the soleus and the gastrocnemius. the gastrocnemius is layerd around the soleus and when that's built up it sort of gives the calves "wings" when flexed, the soleus is the muscle that gives the over all shape. On the front you have the tibialis anterior, but most body builders don't spend much time on that one..

yes, i see what u mean, the soleus will make the gastrocnemius seem long when its just pushed up. the gastrocnemius cannoot get long but just bulky. do body builders swim, because it really builds on the anterior tibialis

 

[sweeper]

some do some don't.. I think in genneral hiking and playing soccer are the best ways to strengthen your lower legs.