Calf stretching exercises: A guide for patients

Calf stretches are used to treat a number of different conditions affecting the foot and ankle. Stretching your calf muscles is a lunge exercise but with your hands on a supporting surface.

How to do calf stretches

• Place your hands on a wall with your arms outstretched.
• Your hand should be in line with your shoulders.
• Put one leg in front of the other.
• Your feet should be as wide apart as your pelvis/hips; you do not need to be pigeon-toed or have your feet too far apart.
• Your feet should be at a right angle (90 degrees) to the wall; the same direction that your nose is facing - you should be looking at the wall.
• Foot position is important. At the beginning, you may need help in positioning your feet.
• With the back leg behind, you must keep your foot on the ground and your knee extended and locked. The leg that is behind you is the leg that you are stretching.
• Once you have the position, you bend the front knee and move your hips and upper body, as a whole, towards the wall. It is important not to bend your back towards the wall as this will not put a stretch on the leg.
• You will feel a stretch coming down the back of the leg. Once this happens, hold the stretch and do not bounce. Hold the stretch for one minute.
• After one minute, swap legs, reposition yourself and stretch.
• In total, you will stretch each leg for three minutes - a minute for each leg; alternating between the two - a minute on the left then a minute on the right etc.
• Stretching should be carried out at least twice a day, three times a day, if possible.

Another method of calf stretching is by using a calf stretch board, which you can buy. Please ask us or search for a supplier online.