Any fitness/exericse/muscles experts? How to soften up calf muscles?

[Bob]

Not just a stretch.  I can do that.  I've looked this up a bit online and haven't come up with *the* solution yet.

This is for the upper part of the calf muscle, the part that's more like a ball shape instead of straight up and down, if that makes sense.

That part's a bit tight.

I can stretch out the whole thing.  I can massage it, etc.  The ball part still stays fairly tight.  I just want to soften it up a bit so it feels better, springy, and stretches more easily.

I'm thinking it's something with stretching/massaging it while it's actually in use, while it's firm to some extent, because that's where the tension is. 

But I can't figure it out.  It's something in that 'work on it when it's a bit firm' I think.  I've tried stretching exercises I've found online for several months.  Not quite the results I'm looking for. 

Any ideas?

[timothy42b]

Cycling tends to tighten that muscle, swimming tends to loosen it.  (Of course a triathlete needs to do both.)

Starret (the guy who teaches flexibility/mobility to the Crossfitters) says that soft tissue does not begin to change until you hold a position for a minimum of 2 minutes.  Perhaps you just aren't holding your stretch long enough - or you're doing it in such a manner that you activate the antagonist response. 

You might try some of these:
http://running.competitor.com/2014/04/injury-prevention/the-10-best-mobility-exercises-for-runners_36329

[Bob]

Found the opposite might be an answer too... Stretch the muscle out for length, then firm it up.  Same idea.  It stretches something in the inner part of the muscle that just lengthening it doesn't get at.

Yes... More might be the answer too.  Or holding the stretch, not moving a little around as much or at all. 

Or mental concentration on it more to melt it.  More time would help with that. 

I'm thinking it's something with activating that part of the muscle though somehow. 

[Bob]

Interesting.
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Just putting more weight on it was in the back of my mind too.  Thanks for the link.

[ahinton]

I cannot help but wonder how the successful softening up of calf muscles, be it by means of exercise or anything else, might impact on anyone's piano playing; OK, I realise that this is the Anything but piano thread, but...

Best,

Alistair

[rachmaninoff_forever]

Bob how old are you?

[Bob]

I'm this many.  *Bob holds up... this many... fingers.*

Old enough I want to exercise more because it's probably easier to do some now rather than get crunched later.