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Smith Calf Raise

Building an impressive set of legs requires well-organized leg workouts. Large muscle groups such as the quads, hamstrings, and glutes make up a lot of leg mass. However, smaller muscle groups like the calves play equally important roles.

While it’s true that building bigger calves can be tough, it’s certainly not impossible with the right approach. The Smith calf raise is a fixed-path calf isolation exercise that’s great for targeted calf work. We discuss the correct form, muscles worked, and main benefits below.

How To Do

Set a barbell at shoulder height with a suitable weight. Place a pair of safety stops below with a plyometric box in front of the bar.
Inhale and engage your core. Step onto the plyometric box and unrack the barbell.
Ensure that you use a wider-than-shoulder-width overhand grip. The bar should be resting on your upper back with your elbows pointing down.
Bring your heels off the back of the plyometric box so the balls of your feet are the main contact point. Keep your chest up and look forward with a neutral back position.
Exhale and bring the bar directly up by plantar flexing your ankles. The balls of your feet should stay on the box.
Pause briefly as you reach the top range of motion. Inhale and slowly lower down to the starting point.
Repeat for the desired sets and repetitions.

Tips From Expert

Use the safety stops for added security when learning the correct movement. Set them up just below the full range of motion.
Place the plyometric box just in front of the bar movement path. This ensures the correct exercise motion for targeted isolation.
Keep your elbows in the same position to form a suitable bar shelf. Ensure you maintain a firm grip on the barbell to reduce the possible injury risk.
Avoid bouncing back up as you come to the bottom of the lift. Use a controlled lifting tempo. This ensures targeted isolation and reduces the possibility of a calf strain.

Optimal Sets and Reps

The ideal sets and reps programming table offers general guidelines depending on your training focus. Use them for the Smith calf raise.

Training Type	Sets	Reps
Strength Training	3–5	4–6
Hypertrophy	3–4	8–10
Endurance Training	3–4	12+
Power Training	3–5	1–3 (Explosive)

Optimal Sets & Reps of Smith Calf Raise

How to Put in Your Workout Split

The Smith calf raise is a machine-based lower-body exercise that isolates the calf muscles.

When performed correctly, the benefits include calf muscle isolation, improved range of motion, and better explosive performance. You can program it using different options.

Bodybuilding Routine — Program the Smith calf raise as part of a lower body or leg lesson. Perform it at the end following the compound movements such as squats and leg presses. This works well as part of a 3-day workout split.
Machine-Based Gym Session — Use it alongside other machine-based exercises at home or in the gym. Perform it following movements such as hack squats and leg extensions.
Strength-Building Accessory Exercise — Add it to your strength-building routine as an accessory exercise. Perform it after the main strength lifts to work the accessory muscles used in most of these movements.

For each option above, consider 10 weekly working sets as the minimum volume to perform. This provides a suitable amount of work for muscular hypertrophy to occur. A 5-day workout split can also be used if that better fits your lifestyle.

The correct loading recommendations will depend on your training goal. These are based on your one repetition maximum or 1RM. This is the amount of weight you can lift for one repetition with good form.

Strength And Power — 80–100% of your 1RM.
Hypertrophy — 60–80% of your 1RM.
Endurance — 40–60% of your 1RM.

Ensure each repetition is performed using a controlled lifting tempo. The same technique cues as discussed above should be used each time.

For strength and power training, a rest period of 2–3 minutes is needed. For hypertrophy and endurance training, a shorter rest period of 60–90 seconds is enough.

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Equipment

Smith Machine

This is great for working on pressing and pulling movements whilst reducing accessory muscle activity. Make sure to set up safety bars.

Who Should Do?

Walkers And Runners

When walking and running, the feet and ankle joints are the first contact points. Walkers and runners perform this repeated action with a much higher frequency throughout the day. Because of this, their ankles take a much larger amount of impact.

The calf muscles cross the ankle joint, meaning they contribute to ankle stability. Therefore, performing the Smith calf raise for walkers and runners can improve stability and reduce injury risk.

Recreational Gymgoers

As a recreational gymgoer, you tend to focus on the larger muscle groups at the start of your training. This is good as it allows you to develop a solid lifting foundation. However, the smaller muscle groups deserve equal attention when learning the basics.

The Smith calf raise is easy to perform with a small initial learning curve. This makes it great for recreational gymgoers who are looking to learn the correct form.

Bodybuilders

When judged purely on appearances, bodybuilders need to perform a well-rounded resistance routine that works the full body. Alongside the larger leg muscles, the calves make up a significant proportion of the lower legs. Because of this, training them is important for overall leg development.

The Smith calf raise targets the gastrocnemius and soleus to a lesser extent. Program it as part of your bodybuilding leg workout alongside seated variations.

Who Should Not Do?

Those With Chronic Ankle Issues

Ankle tendonitis or arthritis are two examples of chronic ankle issues that cause pain and reduce range of motion. When this occurs, care needs to be taken when moving or working against resistance. A suitable treatment plan will often need to be programmed.

The Smith calf raise works against resistance and requires a large ankle range of motion. In the case of these chronic conditions, it might not be the most suitable exercise.

Anyone With Knee Problems

While the ankles are the main joints involved, the knee joints stabilize the leg position. This allows them to function correctly, maintaining enough balance to come onto the balls of the feet.

The knees are one of the most commonly injured joints. In a study to look at the global prevalence of knee osteoarthritis, results showed an incidence rate of 16%. This is a degenerative joint disease that results in the loss of protective cartilage.

With knee problems, it’s best to act cautiously before performing the Smith calf raise. Consult a qualified professional who will assess your situation first.

Benefits Of The Smith Calf Raise

Isolates The Calf Muscles

The Smith calf raise is an isolation movement that targets both calf muscles — the gastrocnemius and the soleus. Because the knee is straight, it provides more targeted gastrocnemius work which is the larger of the two.

To increase calf size, both seated and stranded variations should be performed. This allows even development and improves the overall size of the calves.

The Smith calf raise is a great variation to add to your training alongside seated variations. This provides a good amount of training volume for muscular hypertrophy to occur.

Improves Calf Range Of Motion

Whenever the calves contact the floor, they need to plantar flex to move. Because of this, they are constantly plantar flexing during movement and exercise.

The Smith machine calf raise uses an eccentric movement pattern that trains the calf muscles through their full range of motion. This is as you lower your ankles down past the plyometric box to the starting position.

Letting your heels travel deeper than the plyometric box helps to improve flexibility and range of motion.

This improved range of motion plays a primary role in functional movement, especially as an older adult. This direct calf training and improved function also show possible balance applications. This may have functional and performance-based applications.

Better Explosive Performance

The calves are primarily responsible for plantar flexion. When the knees are straight, the gastrocnemius do most of the work. When bent, the soleus muscle plays a bigger role.

Plantar flexion is the action of pushing off the toes to propel the body forward or upwards. Any movement that involves jumping, bounding, or sprinting requires calf activation. Examples include the 100m sprint and the high jump.

Isolating the calf muscles with the Smith calf raise improves calf strength and function. Better function can therefore help to improve explosive performance.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the Smith machine good for calf raises?

The Smith machine is a good way to perform calf raises. It provides constant tension throughout the full range of motion and reduces the stability requirements. This makes it a good exercise for populations such as beginners and bodybuilders.

Are heavy calf raises good?

Calf raises are a useful resistance exercise that isolates the calf muscles. Alongside this, they help to improve the range of motion and improve explosive performance when performed correctly. Ensure you follow the technique cues above for maximum effectiveness.

Do calf raises make the calves bigger?

Calf raises provide a targeted resistance training stimulus to the gastrocnemius and soleus muscles. When programmed with enough training volume, this leads to calf muscle hypertrophy. This means that your calves will get bigger.

Is it okay to do calf raises every day?

Performing calf raises every day can be done if desired. However, this wouldn’t be optimal for muscle recovery and may cause overtraining. Ensure at least 48–72 hours of rest between sessions.

Resources

Endomondo.com refrains from utilizing tertiary references. We uphold stringent sourcing criteria and depend on peer-reviewed studies and academic research conducted by medical associations and institutions. For more detailed insights, you can explore further by reading our editorial process.

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About the Author

Chris Marshall, MSc, PT Personal Trainer

Chris is a seasoned health and wellness writer with a passion for empowering individuals to achieve optimal health and well-being through making meaningful lifestyle changes. He aims to use his background in fitness training and nutrition to deliver evidence-based, informative content to educate and inspire others. Alongside health and wellness.. See more

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