My calves are getting BIGGER!

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Oo_BrookeNicole_oO
Oo_BrookeNicole_oO Posts: 165
in Health and Weight Loss
Ok, I'm loosing inches from everywhere except for my calves. They've gone up. :( My calves were a huge motivation for me to start loosing some weight. Unfortunately larger calves (and legs) run in my family, and consequently I never can find boots that fit! Any exercises that are good for slimming them down? Currently I'm walking at 4-10% incline on my treadmill. Could that be what's causing it?

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  • workingthisout
    workingthisout Posts: 35 Member
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    I'm not sure if that's what's causing it, but it's probably adding to it. Have you tried doing the elliptical? I think the incline might be building muscle, which will make them look bigger. Maybe try something like pilates that is designed to lengthen instead of bulk up
  • gabadabadoo
    gabadabadoo Posts: 49
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    Cycling should lengthen your muscles - or pilates?
  • blueham5
    blueham5 Posts: 67 Member
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    Perhaps the calves are the last area that you lose fat from. So building muscle there would make your calves bigger in the short term.
  • cryspetstalerson
    cryspetstalerson Posts: 147
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    My mom and I have big calves and we were told it is because we walk using our toes.. It's confusing to explain but basically we put more weight on the front of our foot than the back.
  • douglasmobbs
    douglasmobbs Posts: 563 Member
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    If you are losing weight any significant increase in size will be muscle gain from exercise. Swimming is a good exercise that is mainly focused on upper body, and with a float between the legs you can focus it more on upper body
  • ryanherbert
    ryanherbert Posts: 79 Member
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    Any exercises that are good for slimming them down? Currently I'm walking at 4-10% incline on my treadmill. Could that be what's causing it?

    Walking at that level of incline isn't going to build muscle, it's going to burn fat! Plus you're not going to build muscle if you have a calorie deficit, so I wouldn't be worried about that. Try calf raises if you're keen to work on the shape of that area :)
  • AntWrig
    AntWrig Posts: 2,273 Member
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    Ok, I'm loosing inches from everywhere except for my calves. They've gone up. :( My calves were a huge motivation for me to start loosing some weight. Unfortunately larger calves (and legs) run in my family, and consequently I never can find boots that fit! Any exercises that are good for slimming them down? Currently I'm walking at 4-10% incline on my treadmill. Could that be what's causing it?
    It's your genetics. You're reducing body fat, so it appears you're calves are getting larger. What is actually happening is your body fat is being reduced all over.
  • Aesop101
    Aesop101 Posts: 758 Member
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    I like my big calves. But then I'm a guy. Those rascals are so muscular that they are split in high definition. Unfortunately the rest of my body causes me to hang my head in shame. Oh well, hopefully those other areas will fall into place. Not sure if "fall" is the right word.
  • Krazycatlady
    Krazycatlady Posts: 5 Member
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    I have big calves also, Ive had them growing up even when i was only weighing 110-120lbs they were always big. I was looking online before for ways to slim them down and tone them up and i read that doing the elliptical is better for that, but I do a little of both because I want to trim down other areas too and I want the treadmill for that. Try doing yoga and pilates too and calf raises .

    I feel your pain here though! I try on so many boots and skinny jeans and they just dont look right or fit right with my calves :(
  • Tindomerel
    Tindomerel Posts: 28 Member
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    I'm the same! :sad:
    It's rubbish isn't it?
  • ironanimal
    ironanimal Posts: 5,922 Member
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    Are they solid or fatty? If they're solid, congrats - for a lot of people they're the absolute worst muscle to work on :happy:
  • brindlechewy
    brindlechewy Posts: 84 Member
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    When I started working out, I walked for one hour per day on the treadmill at a 15% incline. I had the same thing happen--my calves got so big that I couldn't wear my skinny jeans anymore. Like others have said, the incline may be building muscle. I know that's what was happening in my case, plus I wasn't eating at a deficit, so I ended up gaining a LOT of size in my calves. Now that I'm better informed, I use more variety in my workouts (elliptical, p90X, running, etc.) and have improved my diet. My entire body has gotten smaller and my calves are much less bulky. My pants fit again. I'd say that you need to lose the incline and make sure that you're not eating too much.
  • finchase
    finchase Posts: 174
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    I have large calves also. I think part of mine is edema, i.e., swelling. They are large all the way down to the feet which are normal-slzed. I've never been able to wear boots and straight-leg jeans are a challenge. Even socks are mostly too tight to go up around the calves where they belong and consequently bunch unbecomingly around my ankles. I've been told that I should use compression sleeves, but even though I bought the largest size, the openings bind so tightly they cut my circulation off, which definitely isn't what I want. My trainer has me using a foam roller now; he says that should help improve circulation there which causes the swelling. I've been doing this several times a week for a few weeks now, but I can't say I've seen any improvement yet. When I go back to see my doctor in April I intend to discuss this with him to see if he has any suggestions.
  • KatrinaG2012
    KatrinaG2012 Posts: 359 Member
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    I have very muscular legs for a women also. They have been both a blessing and a curse. I know that most say that women don't build muscle the same as men but from my personal experience I do in fact bulk calf and thigh muscle. That being said the suggestion of pilates is a good one that I have found helpful in my own experience.
  • tigersword
    tigersword Posts: 8,059 Member
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    Cycling should lengthen your muscles - or pilates?

    You cannot change the length of your muscles.

    As for calves. They are some of the most dense muscles in the body, due to the fact that they pretty much have to support all of your body weight at all times. You're not going to get them to shrink, unless you spend a few years in a wheel chair to let them atrophy. Besides, muscular calves are HOT.:love:
  • jilld76
    jilld76 Posts: 324
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    I HATE my calves! Even though it is mostly muscle, they are still huge and I hate to wear skirts or shorts because I'm so self conscious about them.

    I can never find boots to fit either!

    I'm really hoping that my workouts will help me to decrease my calves!
  • KatrinaG2012
    KatrinaG2012 Posts: 359 Member
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    My personal belief is NOT that pilates, yoga or dance elongate the actual muscle but rather improve general posture thereby elongating the body and giving the illusion of a slimmer calf. Which unfortunately mean those smoking hot boots I covet will never happen.....damnit:grumble:
  • runner2runner
    runner2runner Posts: 1,937 Member
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    My mom and I have big calves and we were told it is because we walk using our toes.. It's confusing to explain but basically we put more weight on the front of our foot than the back.

    If you and your mom's calves are big and it's all muscle, then it's possible. It's basically like doing calf raises all day and if you've been walking with more weight on the front of you feet that the back, then it can explain why you both have big calves. But then it could also be mostly genetics.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,395 MFP Moderator
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    Ok, I'm loosing inches from everywhere except for my calves. They've gone up. :( My calves were a huge motivation for me to start loosing some weight. Unfortunately larger calves (and legs) run in my family, and consequently I never can find boots that fit! Any exercises that are good for slimming them down? Currently I'm walking at 4-10% incline on my treadmill. Could that be what's causing it?
    It's your genetics. You're reducing body fat, so it appears you're calves are getting larger. What is actually happening is your body fat is being reduced all over.

    This.. Also, if they are actually getting larger, it's due to inflammation of the muscles... water retention.

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