My shitty calf genetics have been overcome through 1 set calf workouts

[figgs]

1 set once a week is all I need to FINALLY get my calves progressing! HIT style!!! SUPER HIGH INTENSITY!!!!

Here's the routine:

1 set of standing calf presses-15-30 reps with perfect form and rhythm to ABSOLUTELY FAILURE-UNTIL WEIGHT CAN NO LONGER BE BUDGED BY THE MILLIMETER!!!!!

This 2 minute workout produces the best results. Compliments of Mike Mentzer. Now get serious and get growing!! Stop being bitches and welcome the pain!

[davie]

1 set once a week is all I need to FINALLY get my calves progressing! HIT style!!! SUPER HIGH INTENSITY!!!!

Here's the routine:

1 set of standing calf presses-15-30 reps with perfect form and rhythm to ABSOLUTELY FAILURE-UNTIL WEIGHT CAN NO LONGER BE BUDGED BY THE MILLIMETER!!!!!

This 2 minute workout produces the best results. Compliments of Mike Mentzer. Now get serious and get growing!! Stop being bitches and welcome the pain!

I take it the 1st fifteen reps are full reps with good form, and then after that the range of motion per rep gets shorter and shorter until u cant move the weight??

davie

[figgs]

I take it the 1st fifteen reps are full reps with good form, and then after that the range of motion per rep gets shorter and shorter until u cant move the weight??

davie

No, the thing is to get full reps each time. My last reps are like this, I get stuck at the bottom in a stretch position and try with ALL my might to start getting the weight up again and once I feel I'm rising after a few seconds of pressing I keep going up and up and it might take me 10 seconds to get that full rep but once I'm up I pause and then lower slowly and try for another. It's really intense, man.

[natural al]

I had no calfs what so ever until I started doing them dC style which is kinda what your doing.  The only thing I "tweaked" was after my one super heavy set to failure I did one set of partials, I always shot for 30 reps and go until I literally can't move the weight at all, not even a 1/4 inch.  My calfs aren't pro material but they're pretty good considering how shitty they were for so long.

[haider]

Ok, I'll give it a go...though I would hate having sore calves for a couple of days. But seeing that I'm too lazy to hit calves these days with the limited amount of time I have, I might as well give this a try. So 15-30 full reps followed by partials until I can't more anymore right?

[haider]

Ok one set, maybe twice a week once I'm used to it. I like frequency.

[davie]

Yeh i might try it,once u get ur 30 good reps u up the weight!

and by the mid 20's its gonna take u a few seconds to do the positive part of the rep?! How long do u make the negative last +do u pause at the stretch position for set amount of time??

davie

[davie]

Also bro, if ur finding this HIT style technique so effective  (well done for figuring out what works for u), then have u considered trying it on rest of ur body?

davie

[figgs]

Ok, I'll give it a go...though I would hate having sore calves for a couple of days. But seeing that I'm too lazy to hit calves these days with the limited amount of time I have, I might as well give this a try. So 15-30 full reps followed by partials until I can't more anymore right?

Right. Just don't aim for partial reps. Try to get as many full reps as you possibly can. Even if you get stuck, don't just give up but keep trying and you'll make it all the way to the top. You'll be surprised at how effective the efforts will be. You'll feel it, that's for sure!

Once a week is good enough for me. Maybe if I hit a plateau I'll go for twice a week.

Also bro, if ur finding this HIT style technique so effective  (well done for figuring out what works for u), then have u considered trying it on rest of ur body?

davie

I do super intense workouts for each muscle. My bicep workout is as low as 3 sets. My longest workout is for back which might be 5-6 sets.

The thing is you need to really dig deep into the reserves of your own willpower because it is an extreme challenge to train to absolute failure on every single working set.

Yeh i might try it,once u get ur 30 good reps u up the weight!

and by the mid 20's its gonna take u a few seconds to do the positive part of the rep?! How long do u make the negative last +do u pause at the stretch position for set amount of time??

davie

The positive is so slow because it's so difficult at that point. The negatives are a 2-3 second descent. You stretch for about a second just until you've reached the maximum flexibility of your ankle. Then rise under control and pause at the top for a second. Keep a rhythm going. That rhythm is what gets me through the set. It's what I focus on and what keeps my mind off the pain I feel. When I feel I've reached the point of absolute failure I step off, nearly collapse because I have zero balance on my feet and get my calves into a fully stretched position. Now this is the hardest part because the burn gets even worse. You stretch the calves for about 30 seconds of intense tortorous burning! And then you're done. 2-3 minute workout. More effective than any 30 minute calf training routine you might have ever done.

I wish you the best of luck and remember to never doubt yourself. When you're done with the set, any set, reflect on it and judge it. Judge how your form was, how intense you were and whether or not 1 set stood between you and the point of absolute failure. Let me know how it works out!

[pumpster]

My last reps are like this, I get stuck at the bottom in a stretch position and try with ALL my might to start getting the weight up again and once I feel I'm rising after a few seconds of pressing I keep going up and up and it might take me 10 seconds to get that full rep but once I'm up I pause and then lower slowly and try for another. It's really intense, man.

He's describing something like but not the same as partials-he stays with the reps however long it takes to complete the ROM at the top. Gruelling but effective.

IMO all variations can be effective and should be tried-this version, partials, rest-pause reps AFTER reaching failure..all similar in requiring great intensity, and necessary to shock the muscle into growth. Bottom line as mentioned is intensity. Easy to say much harder to actually do-a training partner's essential for true HIT IMO, and close to essential for enhancing any type of training with high intensity needed, especially over a longer period of time.

Each method-HIT like this and other methods each should be tried, to determine which will work. Also, some will work but only for a period of time.

I think any of the top BBs who have underdeveloped calves (or othe muscles) should try all of these before claiming it's due to genetics.

[figgs]

He's describing something like but not the same as partials-he stays with the reps for however long it takes to get it to the top. Gruelling but effective.

IMO all variations can be effective and should be tried-this version, partials, rest-pause reps AFTER reaching failure..all similar in increasing the intensity. Bottom line as he mentioned is intensity-easy to say much harder to actually do it-a training partner's essential for HIT and for pushing the envelope in most training, IMO, especially in order to sustain the intensity over a period of time.

Each method-HIT like this and other methods each should be tried, to determine which will work. Also, some will work but only for a period of time.

I think any of the top BBs who have underdeveloped calves (or othe muscles) should try all of these before claiming it's due to genetics.

Yes, thanks for bringing that up. I forgot to mention the importance of a training partner. They're absolutely necessary to maximize the intensity of each workout.

Also you're right. Partial reps, rest-pause, 21s, drops sets, etc. are all ways to increase the intensity. It doesn't just have to be one normal set to absolute failure. Something else I forgot to mention is that I plan to use these techniques to keep my calves guessing.

I think the calves are the most beautiful muscle of the body and although I think it's unfortunate that I'm not blessed with the best calves, I'm not producing any excuses to give up on them.

[pumpster]

This is not unlike Schwarzenegger's story of upping the weight and intensity on calves, at the suggestion of Reg Park. 10 sets with very heavy weight. He said it made a huge difference because of the intensity, which can be achieved in different ways. I laugh when I read about guys doing sets and stopping prior to reaching failure.

I doubt that BBs that have undersized calves have covered all of these bases before saying they can't get them bigger.

Vince Gironda and Larry Scott's training revolved around intensity like this-the intensity was common to their training and to HIT though it was achieve by different means. True HIT means going to full negative failure with the help of a training partner.

Others to try are to occasionally change the rest periods: max. should be a minute but sometimes go with 45 seconds, 30 or even just 15 in some workouts. Another would be to increase or decrese the number of sets.

[buffbong]

i used to do this thing for calves i would put a 50 pound dumbell in my belt tops and would do 6 sets of 15 reps on a step but a really slow on the way down and up with only ten seconds rest between sets my calves would be on fire.

[pumpster]

This is a hint though not conclusive that many BBs with weak calves could probably do something about it if they wanted to.

Can either do full reps that get harder and harder to do, or do partials "burns" after reaching failure, to achieve the same ache. Ache = growth - for any muscle, IMO. The burn's integral to the mind-muscle connection; not irrelevant as some claim, as is proved here.

[JOHN MATRIX]

i have tried ALL THAT THERE IS TO TRY for calves. i have destroyed them so brutally that i had to literally walk like a gimp for a week at a time. i would train them so furiously that i could not straighten my leg enough to stand flat-footed. they were so sore it hurt like fuck.

but for all that...they never grew and bigger.

some people with poor claf genetics CANNOT GROW THEIR CALVES. look at some pro bbers, they bodybuild for a living and take tons of juice and some of them STILL have no calves.
people like me (and poor bast) dont have shitty claves through any lack of effort. its all genetic

[darksol]

Also bro, if ur finding this HIT style technique so effective  (well done for figuring out what works for u), then have u considered trying it on rest of ur body?

davie

But that makes too much sense...

[pumpster]

i have tried ALL THAT THERE IS TO TRY for calves. i have destroyed them so brutally that i had to literally walk like a gimp for a week at a time. i would train them so furiously that i could not straighten my leg enough to stand flat-footed. they were so sore it hurt like f**k.

but for all that...they never grew and bigger.

some people with poor claf genetics CANNOT GROW THEIR CALVES. look at some pro bbers, they bodybuild for a living and take tons of juice and some of them STILL have no calves.
people like me (and poor bast) dont have shitty claves through any lack of effort. its all genetic

1/ I doubt you really have gone to the limit or have explored all possibilities.

2/ If you have and haven't grown but otherwise have a decent physique, you're in the minority.

[figgs]

i have tried ALL THAT THERE IS TO TRY for calves. i have destroyed them so brutally that i had to literally walk like a gimp for a week at a time. i would train them so furiously that i could not straighten my leg enough to stand flat-footed. they were so sore it hurt like f**k.

but for all that...they never grew and bigger.

some people with poor claf genetics CANNOT GROW THEIR CALVES. look at some pro bbers, they bodybuild for a living and take tons of juice and some of them STILL have no calves.
people like me (and poor bast) dont have shitty claves through any lack of effort. its all genetic

It's very frustrating, I know. I'm just keeping an eye on my calves because I'm afraid that my routine will grow stale soon. Calves are my favorite muscle. I think well developed calves are the most beautiful muscle of the human body. And to be deprived sucks, to say the least. I totally wish I had calves like Dorian, Mentzer or Arnold.  Just never give up!

[Cold]

I had no calfs what so ever until I started doing them dC style which is kinda what your doing.  The only thing I "tweaked" was after my one super heavy set to failure I did one set of partials, I always shot for 30 reps and go until I literally can't move the weight at all, not even a 1/4 inch.  My calfs aren't pro material but they're pretty good considering how shitty they were for so long.

takes the word out of my mouth