The Muscle That Helps You Walk Farther & Faster

Dr. Alyssa Kuhn, the arthritis specialist physio, shows us how:

O soleus mio,

Oft overlooked, the soleus muscle is found underneath your larger calf muscle, and works to propel you forwards, with every step, support your body weight, and thus help maintain a larger stride.

However, when your soleus becomes weaker, your steps will tend to become smaller, and walking may require more energy, causing your legs to feel heavier.

So, exercises against this, in sequence:

• Seated heel raises: sit near the edge of a chair with your knees bent to about 90°. Lift your heels as high as you can (while keeping the ball of your foot on the ground!), then slowly lower them back down. Keeping your knees bent is important because this position emphasizes your soleus.
• Add resistance: once the seated version feels easy, you can put a dumbbell or kettlebell across your legs and do the same heel raises. Use a blanket or pillow underneath the weight if needed for comfort. If you only have lighter weights, work one side at a time.
• Supported standing heel raises: hold onto a stable surface with both hands and sit your hips back so your knees naturally bend. From this position, lift your heels while maintaining the knee bend.
• Full standing version: once you are comfortable with the supported variations, do the heel raise while keeping your knees bent and using your hips to sit back slightly.

A common mistake to avoid: it may feel tempting to keep your chest upright and simply push your knees forwards to create the bend. Instead, sit your hips back first so that your knees bend naturally, which makes the movement more comfortable for your knee.

For more on all of this plus visual demonstrations, enjoy:

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Want to learn more?

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Take care!