Achilles Tendon Strength: Why You Need More Weight Than You Think
How heavy should you load calf raises to build tendon strength?
📊 You may be surprised to find out that strong athletes often require HUNDREDS of pounds for a single leg calf raise to be adequately challenging.
We tested Lily's single leg calf raise with an overcoming isometric then loaded her up to ~70% maximum for an ISO hold.
🏋🏽♀️ She needed 100lb DBs in each hand or 220lbs on the trap bar to get to 70% max contraction strength.
This means that bodyweight calf raises, seated calf raises with a DB on the knee, standing calf raises holding a 20,40, or even 60lb DB are not realistically enough load for her to build tendon strength. Even if those exercises feel challenging.
📈 Find a tolerable entry point to loading, but set the bar HIGH because it takes a lot of load to make meaningful progress to building tendon properties.