How2Day: Tendons of the Calf

The tendons in your calf muscle are some of the most powerful in your body. Thinkstock/Comstock/Getty Images
A variety of tendons are around the calf muscle in your leg. Some are long and some are short, but all of them attach somewhere to the bones in your foot. Knowing about the tendons in your lower leg can be helpful in understanding sports injuries and the stretches that can help to prevent them.

The Achilles tendon is the rock star of the lower half of your body. It carries all of your body weight with each step you take. Warming up and stretching it are vital before participating in sports or exercise because injuries can be extremely painful and debilitating. Stretch it by pushing against a wall or solid object with your feet pointed toward the wall. The smaller the angle against the wall the greater the stretch. The Achilles tendon is the longest tendon associated with the calf muscle. Its name comes from the ancient Greek legend who was slain by a weakness in his ankle.

The posterior tibial tendon is in charge of the height of the arch in your foot, it also aids you in pushing off your toes when walking, running or jogging. Injury to this tendon could eventually cause you to become flatfooted.This tendon is between the length of the Achilles and peroneal tendons. You can stretch this tendon by flexing the muscles in your foot. Try spreading your toes apart and clenching them again inside your shoe. Generally, though, injuries to these tendons are only the result of traumatic accidents that you cannot prepare for them.

You have two peroneal tendons in both of your feet that attach to the muscles in your lower leg. These are the smallest tendons associated with the calf. Problems with these tendons cause pain just behind the "lateral malleolus" bulge on the outer part of the ankle. You can stretch these tendons by standing on one foot and rotating the other foot in the air 360 degrees clockwise for 30 seconds and counter-clockwise for another 30 seconds.

How2Day