Have you finally found some time to get back into running, football, tennis, or another sport you enjoy? Unfortunately, one of the oldest stories in community sport is the injured weekend warrior. After weeks or months of building momentum, a sudden calf strain can quickly bring progress to a halt.
Calf muscle injuries are among the most common soft tissue injuries in running and field-based sports. Despite this, they have often been underestimated when it comes to assessment and rehabilitation. Historically, calf injuries have been managed by allowing symptoms to settle, gradually rebuilding strength, and ensuring an athlete can complete around 25 single-leg calf raises before returning to sport.
While these measures provide useful information, emerging research suggests they may not fully reflect the demands placed on the calf muscles during high-speed running, acceleration, deceleration, and repeated athletic efforts (Hamner et al., 2010).
For many years, calf strains were viewed as an “older athlete's injury.” While age is certainly a risk factor, it is only one piece of the puzzle. Other factors, such as body composition, training loads, previous injury history, and physical capacity, can also influence injury risk (Green & Pizzari, 2017).
More importantly, if your goal is not simply to return to participation but to return to performance, we often need to look beyond the number of calf raises you can complete.
Why sport-specific rehabilitation matters
One of the most important principles in sports rehabilitation is specificity. Simply put, rehabilitation should prepare your body for the specific demands of your sport.
A footballer, distance runner, and tennis player may all suffer a calf strain, but the demands placed on their calves are very different. The way their rehabilitation progresses should reflect those differences.
When designing a rehabilitation program, we ask questions such as:
- What movement does the sport require?
- How much force is being produced through the calf muscles?
- How quickly does that force need to be generated?
- How often are these movements repeated during competition?
The answers help guide a rehabilitation plan that progressively rebuilds the capacity required for a successful return to sport.
The cost of reinjury
One reason we take calf rehabilitation seriously is the high impact of recurrent injuries. Research has shown that when a calf strain recurs, athletes typically lose more time than they did with the initial injury. In elite Australian football, the average time lost from an initial calf strain was approximately 25 days, while recurrent injuries resulted in an average of 37 days lost (Green et al., 2025).
In many cases, investing a little more time in rehabilitation upfront can significantly reduce the risk of losing even more time later.
How we assess calf function
At Back In Motion Eltham, we utilise VALD force plate technology to gain a more detailed understanding of calf function throughout rehabilitation.
This technology allows us to assess:
- Peak calf strength in sport-specific positions
- How rapidly force can be generated
- Side-to-side differences following injury
- Strength, power, and endurance deficits that may not be obvious during standard clinical testing
By measuring these factors, we can make more informed decisions about rehabilitation progressions and return-to-sport readiness.
Rather than relying solely on symptom resolution, we can build a clearer picture of the calf's true capacity and identify areas that may still require development.
Better capacity, better performance
The benefits of calf strengthening extend beyond injury rehabilitation.
Research suggests that improving lower limb strength can contribute to better running economy and performance, meaning that a stronger calf complex may not only help reduce injury risk but also improve athletic output (Beattie et al., 2017).
Whether you're preparing for your next fun run, returning to local football, or chasing a new personal best, ensuring your calf muscles can meet the demands of your sport is a key part of staying healthy and performing at your best.
Looking to get back to running or sport?
If you're currently dealing with a calf injury, or want to understand your risk of recurrence, our team can help.
Using a combination of evidence-based rehabilitation and objective strength testing, we can identify performance deficits, guide your recovery, and help you return to the activities that matter most to you.
Book an appointment with our team to discuss how we can help you recover, perform, and stay injury-free.
This blog was written by Alastair Clayton, Physiotherapist at Back In Motion Eltham.
References:
- Chen, Z., Wang, J., Zhao, K., & He, G. (2025). Adherence to strength training and lower rates of sports injury in contact sports: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine, 13(5), 23259671251331134.
- Beattie, K., Carson, B. P., Lyons, M., Rossiter, A., & Kenny, I. C. (2017). The effect of strength training on performance indicators in distance runners. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 31(1), 9-23.
- Green, B., & Pizzari, T. (2017). Calf muscle strain injuries in sport: a systematic review of risk factors for injury. British journal of sports medicine, 51(16), 1189-1194.
- Green, B., McClelland, J. A., Semciw, A. I., Schache, A. G., McCall, A., & Pizzari, T. (2022). The Assessment, Management and Prevention of Calf Muscle Strain Injuries: A Qualitative Study of the Practices and Perspectives of 20 Expert Sports Clinicians. Sports medicine - open, 8(1), 10. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40798-021-00364-0
- Green, B., Schache, A. G., & Pizzari, T. (2025). What is a recurrence? The onset, frequency and time loss impact of recurrent calf muscle strain injuries in elite male Australian football players over a decade. BMJ open sport & exercise medicine, 11(3), e002865. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjsem-2025-002865
- Hamner, S. R., Seth, A., & Delp, S. L. (2010). Muscle contributions to propulsion and support during running. Journal of biomechanics, 43(14), 2709-2716.
- O'Neill, S., Barry, S., & Watson, P. (2019). Plantarflexor strength and endurance deficits associated with mid-portion Achilles tendinopathy: The role of soleus. Physical therapy in sport : official journal of the Association of Chartered Physiotherapists in Sports Medicine, 37, 69–76. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ptsp.2019.03.002