Exercise Data
Main Muscle Worked: Calves
Other Muscles Worked: None
Equipment: Machine
Mechanics Type: Isolation

Tips: The tables anterior is a muscle that is highly underrated. People focus on developing the gastrocnemius, but the tibialis can make just as much impact on making the calf area bigger. It adds both width to the leg from the front, and thickness from the side. The main way to work the tibialis is by doing reverse calf raises; these are the opposite of normal calf raises; instead of lifting the toes off the ground, you lift the heels. The main problem I find with most reverse calf raises is that when you add resistance it becomes hard to maintain balance, but smith-machine reverse calf raises alleviates this by giving you the support to stand upright. To do smith-machine reverse calf raises, position the bar high enough on the rack so it can lie comfortably on the shoulders. Use a platform to stand on; the same you’d use for normal raises, but instead of keeping your heels on the floor, this time the toes start on the floor with heels elevated onto the platform. Align the platform so it is inline with the bar. If you put it forward/back, it will emphasize higher or lower on the calf. Similarly, the stance you use can affect where it hits; the closer your feet are, the sides will hit isolated, whereas the further apart feet are, the more front tibialis will hit.

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