Seated calf raise: reaching the soleus underneath

The seated calf raise is done with your knees bent under a padded lever, pressing your heels up while seated. Bending the knee changes which calf muscle does most of the work compared with the standing version.

Muscles worked and why the bent knee matters

Your calves are made of two muscles stacked on top of each other: the gastrocnemius, which crosses the knee and the ankle, and the soleus underneath, which only crosses the ankle and works whenever your ankle bends, regardless of knee position. Bending the knee slackens the gastrocnemius, taking much of it out of the movement, and shifts the load onto the soleus — a muscle that gets comparatively little direct work from standing exercises or even walking and running at a normal pace.

Benefits

The soleus is a highly fatigue-resistant, endurance-oriented muscle, and training it directly with a seated raise supports ankle stability and stamina for running, hiking, and standing sports. Because the exercise isolates a muscle that other calf and leg exercises mostly miss, it fills a real gap in most training plans rather than duplicating work already done elsewhere. Some coaches also link a stronger soleus with better calf endurance late in a run, when the more powerful gastrocnemius starts to fatigue.

Technique in detail

Sit at the machine with your knees under the padded lever, bent to roughly 90 degrees, and the balls of your feet on the platform, heels hanging off the edge. Lower your heels into a full stretch at the bottom, then press up onto your toes as high as you can, pausing briefly with a hard squeeze at the top. Lower slowly back down rather than letting the weight drop — the soleus responds well to a slow, controlled tempo, and rushing through reps removes much of the benefit. Keep your torso still and avoid rocking forward to help the weight up, which quietly shifts effort away from the calf and onto momentum.

How to program it

Because the soleus is built for endurance, higher rep ranges tend to work well here — 3 sets of 15–20 reps is a common recommendation, sometimes more. It can be trained more frequently than many other muscles without excess soreness, so two or three sessions a week is reasonable for most people. Keep rest short, 45–60 seconds, matching the muscle's endurance-oriented nature. Progress the weight in small increments once every rep feels controlled through the full stretch-to-squeeze range, rather than adding load at the expense of range of motion.

Seated vs. standing calf raise

The seated version, with the knee bent, emphasizes the soleus underneath; the standing calf raise, with straight knees, emphasizes the larger gastrocnemius on top. Neither replaces the other — most complete calf-training plans include both, since they reach different parts of the muscle group and contribute differently to the overall shape and strength of the calf.

No machine? Train the same pattern anyway

If a seated calf raise machine is not available, sit on a chair or bench with a loaded barbell or heavy dumbbells resting across your knees, then press through your toes the same way. A step or block under your feet lets you add the same deep stretch at the bottom that the machine provides. Keep the weight light at first, since balancing a loaded barbell across your knees while seated takes a bit of practice to control safely.

Safety notes

Avoid bouncing at the bottom of the stretch, which can irritate the Achilles tendon under repeated load. Anyone with Achilles pain, a recent calf strain, or ankle instability should reduce range and check with a physiotherapist before continuing. Stop if you feel sharp pain in the ankle or Achilles rather than a muscular burn in the calf.

Where it fits in your workout

Place it near the end of a leg session, after your main squat or leg press work, since it is a low-fatigue, low-risk exercise that pairs well with a standing calf raise for complete calf training in the same session. Runners and hikers in particular benefit from including it regularly, since the soleus plays a large role in steady, repetitive ankle push-off over long distances.