By RealJock Staff

This exercise provided courtesy of Billy Polson, founder and co-owner of DIAKADI Body training gym, voted best personal training gym in San Francisco by CitySearch in 2006.

Benefits
For these single calf raises, you'll sit at a leg press machine and use speed and power to go fully onto your toe and stretch as far below the platform as you can with your heel. You'll use controlled speed and power to give your calves that extra bit of workout.

Muscles Worked
Legs (calves)

Starting Position
Sit at a leg press machine. Put one foot on the floor of the machine and place your other foot on the lower edge of the leg press platform, with the ball of your foot resting on the edge (see Photo 1).

Exercise

1. From the starting position, push out with your toe as hard as you can, so that you go fully onto your toe. Focus on power and speed as you push. You should feel the flex in your calf (see Photo 2).
2. When you have extended as far as you can, reverse direction and slowly lower back down to the starting position (see Photo 3).
3. Repeat the number of recommended reps with one leg, then switch legs and repeat on the other side.

About Billy Polson: Billy Polson is the founder and co-owner of DIAKADI Body training gym, which was voted the best personal training gym in San Francisco by CitySearch in 2006. A competitive swimmer and triathlete in his own right, Polson has over 15 years of experience working as a coach and trainer, and was recently named by Men's Journal Magazine (December 2005) as one of the Top 100 Trainers in America.