Stand with your toes on the block of a standing calf raise machine, your heels extended out into space. Hook your shoulders under the pads and straighten your legs, lifting the weight clear of the support. Lower your heels as far as possible toward the floor, keeping your knees slightly bent throughout the movement in order to work the lower area of the calves as well as the upper, and feeling the calf muscles stretch to the maximum. If possible, try and use a machine with a block that is high enough to get a full stretch when you lower your heels, but low enough so that your heels touch the floor at the bottom so you always know when you have gone far enough.

From the bottom of the movement, come up on your toes as far as possible. The weight should be heavy enough to exercise the calves, but not so heavy that you cannot come all the way up for most of your repetitions. When you are too tired to do complete repetitions, you can try finishing off the set with a series of partial movements to increase the intensity of the exercise. Don't go too crazy on your calves if you have never worked them out before. They can get very, very sore and even make it difficult to walk if you do too much!