Calf muscles are present at the back of your lower legs. Like other parts of your body, you can accumulate fat in calves too. So, the question is, how to reduce calf fat and make your legs look shapely?

Gaining fat in the calves may make your lower leg look bigger than the thighs. Do not worry, we can help you get rid of the excess calf fat. Just a few tweaks in your diet, workout, and lifestyle can make your calves slimmer. Read on to know how to lose calf fat the healthy way.

 Exercises To Lose Calf Fat

Exercising is a great way to lose overall body fat. Though there are no spot reduction methods to get rid of fat from one part of your body, a few exercises, when done correctly, can help reduce the size of your calves, build long and slender muscles, and make your legs appear slimmer. Here are 12 exercises that will help you lose the excess fat from your calf area. Take a look:

1. Standing Calf Raises

 Target – Calves and hamstrings

 How To Do

1.  Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, chest out, and shoulders rolled back. Place your hands on your waist and look ahead.
2.  Raise both the heels and balance your body on the balls of your feet.
3.  Hold this pose for a second, and then lower your heels to the floor.
4.  Repeat this quickly to feel your calves burn and melt some fat.
5.  Do 3 sets of 25 reps.

2. Seated Calf Raises With Weights

 Target – Calves

 How To Do,

1.  hold a dumbbell in each hand and sit on a stool or chair. Place your feet flat on the floor, and the handles of the dumbbells on your thighs, just above your knees. Point your elbows slightly out, keep your spine straight, and legs shoulder-width apart, and look straight.
2.  Keeping the balls of your feet on the floor, raise your heels.
3.  Hold this pose for a second, and then lower the heels to the floor.
4.  Do 3 sets of 20 reps.

3. Weighted Sumo Squat With Calf Raise

 Target – Calves, hamstrings, quads, and glutes

 How To Do

1.  hold a dumbbell with both hands. Stand straight with your legs wider than shoulder-width apart. Turn your feet out, keep your back straight, roll your shoulders back, put your chest out, and look straight.
2.  Flex both the knees and lower your torso until your hips are almost in line with your thighs.
3.  Hold this pose for a moment and then slowly raise your body. Right before your legs are straight, raise your heels.
4.  Place the heels down and flex both your knees and get down to a sumo squat.
5.  Do 3 sets of 12 reps.

4. Plié Calf Raises

 Target – Calves, glutes, and quads.

 How To Do,

1.  stand straight with your legs wider than shoulder-width apart. Squat down, keep your back straight, and extend your hands in front of you and join them as shown in the image.
2.  Raise your heels and balance your body on your toes – almost like you are wearing high heels.
3.  Lower your heels a little, and just when they are about to touch the floor, raise them back to the original position.
4.  Do 3 sets of 12 reps.

5. Skater Hops

 Target – Calves, hamstrings, quads, and glutes

 How To Do,

1.  stand straight with your legs together.
2.  Bend both your knees slightly and lift your right foot off the floor. Bend your right knee fully so that the shin and thigh are at 90 degrees to each other. Lean forward slightly and get into a “runner stance” (as shown in the image).
3.  Hop on your left leg and land on your right foot so that the legs are wider than shoulder-width apart. Lift your left foot off the floor simultaneously. Flex your left knee fully so that your shin and thigh are at 90 degrees with each other.
4.  Hop on your right leg and land on your left foot.
5.  Do 3 sets of 12 reps.

6. Arm Plank With Knee Dips

 Target – Calves, hamstrings, core, and shoulders.

 How To Do,

1.  get into an elbow plank pose. Keep your core engaged.
2.  Flex your right knee and touch the floor with it. Bring it back to the plank pose.
3.  Flex your left knee and touch the floor with it.
4.  Do 2 sets of 12 reps.

7. Endurance Running

 Target – Full body

 How To Do,

1.  do a light warm-up like spot jogging, jumping jacks, and stretching before you start.
2.  Start jogging on the road or on the treadmill. If you are running on the treadmill, set the incline to 3 degrees.
3.  Run slow and for a longer duration to lose overall body fat as well as calf fat.
4.  Do it every alternate day for 15-30 minutes.

8. Stair Climbing

 Target – Calves, hamstrings, quads, and glutes

 How To Do,

1.  you can do this on the stairs at home or work or at the gym on a StairMaster machine.
2.  Warm up by spot jogging and doing a few warm-up stretches.
3.  Climb up and go down the stairs at a moderate pace.
4.  Use your toes instead of the entire feet so that you can work on your calves.
5.  Increase your running speed gradually with time and practice.
6.  Do 2 sets of 3 reps.

9. Jump Squats

 Target – Calves, hamstrings, quads, and glutes

 How To Do,

1.  stand straight with your legs shoulder-width apart, chest out, and shoulders rolled back.
2.  Push your buttocks out, bend your knees, and get into a squat or sitting on a chair pose.
3.  Swipe your hands up above your head and jump.
4.  Land softly on the floor.
5.  Do 3 sets of 15 reps.

10. Single Leg Squats

 Target – Calves, hamstrings, quadriceps, and glutes

 How To Do,

1.  stand straight with your legs hip-width apart.
2.  Lift your right leg off the floor in front of you, raise both your arms in front of you, at the shoulder level, and with the palms facing down. This is the starting position.
3.  Bend your left knee and get into a sitting posture. Keep your right foot flexed.
4.  Hold this pose for a moment and then straighten your left leg and get back to the starting position.
5.  After you complete 10 reps, switch legs and repeat the same.
6.  Do 2 sets of 10 reps.

11. Hand Under Foot Pose

 Target – Calves and hamstrings

 How To Do,

1.  stand straight with your legs shoulder-width apart.
2.  Keeping your back straight, bend forward and slip a hand under each foot.
3.  Slowly bring your head toward your knees and bend your elbows outward so that you can achieve this pose easily.
4.  Hold this pose for 5 seconds and then go back to step 2.
5.  Do 2 sets of 3 reps.

12. Calf Stretch

 Target – Calves and hamstrings

 How To Do,

1.  stand facing a wall. Place your right foot forward near the wall and the left foot behind it. Make sure that the foot is facing the wall. Place both your elbows and forearms on the wall, shoulder-width apart.
2.  Lower your glutes and core and press against the wall with your forearm so that you feel a stretch in your left calf and hamstring.
3.  Switch your legs and repeat.
4.  Do 2 sets of 3 reps.

 Diet And Lifestyle Tips To Lose Calf Fat

•  Avoid Consuming Fattening Foods – Avoid foods like wafers, bagels, pizza, burger, processed meat, deep-fried chicken, and fries. Unless you lose the overall body fat, you will not lose an inch of flab from your calves.
•  Consume Slimming Foods – Foods like veggies, fruits, grains, nuts, healthy oils, lean protein sources (fish, eggs, lentils, beans), brown sugar (in limited amounts), whole wheat flour, and quinoa will help you slim down by mobilizing the accumulated fat
•  Avoid Wearing High Heels – Wearing high heels can make your calf muscles look bulky and short. Also, wearing them regularly without proper foot support can also be harmful for your hips and low back.
•  Avoid Exercises That Put Too Much Resistance On Your Calves – Your aim is to lose calf fat. But doing too much resistance training that targets your calves will only make them look bulkier. Lose the calf fat first by doing cardio and moderate resistance training.
•  Avoid Cardio At A High Incline – Running or brisk walking is great for losing calf fat. But if you do it on an incline of more than 3 degrees, you will end up making your calves look broader.
•  Avoid Sprints – Sprints are great for building muscle strength and power. But right now, you should focus on endurance or long runs so that you can shed the calf fat.
•  Avoid High Knee Exercise – Doing high knee exercises will build the calf muscles. And if you build muscle without losing the fat, your calves will look bulkier than before.
•  Get A Massage – Getting a massage in your calf area can help increase the rate at which the fat is being mobilized. This will help you lose the calf fat quickly.
•  Avoid Late Night Eating – If you have followed all the instructions throughout the day, only to succumb to late-night cravings, you will not be able to lose fat. Brush your teeth before you go to bed to curb your cravings.