Calves exercise
Dumbbell Seated Calf RaiseHow to do it, with form in numbers
- Main muscles
- Calves
- Level
- Beginner
How to do it
How do you do the Dumbbell Seated Calf Raise?
- Sit on the end of a bench with the balls of your feet on a low block and your heels off it.
- Stand a dumbbell on each thigh just above your knees and hold them steady.
- Lower your heels slowly below the block for a full stretch.
- Push through the balls of your feet and rise as high as you can.
- Hold for a moment, then lower slowly and repeat.
Cues
- Up tall, pause, slow down.
- Push through the big toe.
- Let the calves move the weights, not your arms.
Common mistakes
- Bouncing at the bottom.
- Lifting the dumbbells with your hands.
- Cutting the range short.
Form in detail
What does good form look like?
The version in our demo
With the knees bent the soleus does most of the work.
Starting position
Sit tall on the end of a flat bench, feet hip-width with the balls of the feet on the edge of a 10 cm block and the heels off it, shins about vertical, knees about 90–105°. Stand a dumbbell upright on each lower thigh just above the knee and hold it there.
The movement
Lower the heels to a full stretch below the block, pause, then rise as high as possible onto the balls of the feet and hold. Only the ankles move; the knees and dumbbells ride up and down.
Breathing
Breathe in on the way down, breathe out as you rise.
Tempo
1.2 s down, a 0.3 s pause in the stretch, 0.9 s up, a 0.6 s hold at the top.
Form in numbers
What are the angles and distances?
| Measure | Target | Good range | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ankle | 30° plantarflexion at the top → 20° dorsiflexion at the bottom | full range | |
| Heels vs the block | 8–9 cm above → 5.5–6.5 cm below | below the block at the bottom | |
| Knee travel | 8–10 cm | — | |
| Knees | 104° (male) / 95° (female), shins about vertical | 85–110° | |
| Balls of the feet | on the block, 4.5 cm in from its edge | don't slide | |
| Dumbbells | upright on the lower thighs, held by the hands | don't roll |
The targets our 3D demo was built to, from the references below. Bodies differ, so treat the ranges as a guide for your own build.
For coaches
Use this demo in your clients’ programs
The Dumbbell Seated Calf Raise is in Trainaq’s exercise library. Add it to a workout, and your client sees this demo in the free Trainaq app above the sets they log.
Sources
Sources
- ExRx.net, "Barbell Standing Calf Raise" (rise onto the balls of the feet, lower until the calves stretch)
- NSCA, Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning, 4th ed. (2016)
