5 Yoga Poses for Strong Calves

Calves are often overlooked at the gym, but they play an important role in helping you balance and stand up.

The calves are one of the strongest muscles in the body, so it's time to give them some love. Yoga is a great way to build strength in this area and improve balance. On that note, here are a few poses that can help you strengthen the calves:

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Yoga Poses for Strong Calves

Here's a look at five such poses:

#1 Adho Mukha Vrksasana

The Adho Mukha Vrksasana (Handstand Pose) is a great way to improve flexibility while working on the calves. It employs the arms and shoulders to support your inverted body but utilizes and stretches the calves, helping you build muscle there.

Here's how it's done:

• To enter a handstand, start in the downward dog position.
• Straighten your legs, and lift your feet off the floor so that you're balancing on your hands and heels.
• Once you've achieved this position and feel comfortable, slowly lean forward while keeping both hips parallel to the ground.
• Extend one arm out to the side till it reaches a 90-degree angle with your body or farther, depending on what's comfortable for you.
• Swing that same arm up towards the ceiling while simultaneously reaching back with your other hand. If done correctly, that should result in getting both hands on one side above head level (or as close as possible, as gravity is pulling down.

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#2 Baddha Konasana

Baddha Konasana (Bound Angle Pose) is a great way to open up the lower body and test the limits of your flexibility.

Here's how you can do this yoga pose:

• Place your legs in a comfortable position.
• Separate your knees, keeping the soles of your feet together and pointing upwards.
• Bend forward so that you can place your hands on top of each other with palms touching, and fingers pointing towards each other.
• Keep the elbows in by bending them outwards from the body at 45 degrees so that they do not touch the floor or ground. That helps in stretching out both hamstrings and calves while improving concentration, as it requires one to be more focused while practicing this pose.

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#3 Virabhadrasana (Warrior II)

The warrior pose is a very grounding, strengthening yoga pose. It opens the hips and knees, strengthens the back muscles, and tones the calves.

When you do this pose correctly it can help balance out the body by strengthening one side of it at a time. The left leg is going to be turned out 90 degrees, with the front knee bent at about 90 degrees as well.

You're going to lift your arms up overhead, and reach down towards the front of your left leg with that arm.

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#4 Utthita Hasta Padangusthasana

This yoga pose is a great way to open up the calves, which can feel tight and sore after too much time spent on them.

Here's how it's done:

• Inhale; extend your leg, and raise your arms.
• Exhale; lift your knee, and raise your arms.
• Hold your raised leg with one arm, and flare out the other. Repeat for five breaths before switching sides.

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#5 Ardha Chandrasana (Half Moon Pose)

This variation is excellent for people who have difficulty balancing, as it allows you to put all of your weight on one foot at a time instead of alternating between both legs.

To do this pose:

• Stand with your feet together, and fold forward into a squatting position.
• Bring one leg up so that it's parallel with the ground, and bend it over so that it touches the ground directly in front of your other foot (keeping both heels flat).
• Extend both arms out in front of you till they're fully extended, but make sure not to lock them into place; keep breathing deeply.
• Hold the position for 30 seconds before repeating on the other side.

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Takeaway

If you’ve been looking for ways to strengthen your calves, the aforementioned yoga poses are a great place to start. They can be challenging, but they can also help improve your flexibility and balance.

Remember: don’t be afraid to take it slow. You don’t have to go all out as a beginner. Take your time, and focus on proper alignment in each pose so that you get the most benefit possible out of each one.