Why do my calves hurt when I walk?

Dear Reader, 

It’s great that you’ve joined a health club and that you’re balancing your busy schedule with some exercise time! Regular physical activity, no matter if it’s running, walking, lifting weights, or more, has many benefits for overall health. However, experiencing pain during exercise can be unpleasant, inconvenient, or even worrisome. There are many reasons for pain, which could be due to the exercise itself, or a sign of a more serious condition like blood clots. Read on to learn more about calf pain and how to manage it! 

There are many possible causes of the pain you’re experiencing in your calves. Some of them may be related to your leg muscles, while others might be related to issues with blood flow. A few potential reasons for pain are: 

• Tight muscles 
• Strains from injury or overstretching 
• Muscle cramps or spasms  
• Tendonitis, such as inflammation of the Achilles tendon 
• Contusions, which lead to bruising or prevention of blood from reaching your legs 
• Blood clots, which could lead to conditions like deep vein thrombosis  
• Blocked arteries leading to claudication, which could indicate peripheral artery disease  

List adapted from Cleveland Clinic 

There are also some circumstances that put people at higher risk of calf pain. These could be genetic or due to diet, medications, and behavior. Common risk factors are: 

• Short or tight calves from genetics 
• Medical conditions like hypothyroidism, diabetes, or liver disease 
• Swelling in the legs 
• Heat exhaustion, dehydration, or loss of electrolytes through exercise or dialysis 
• Smoking or using tobacco 
• Certain medications 

List adapted from Cleveland Clinic 

As for suggestions to treat calf pain, there are some methods you can try on your own, while others may be done under the guidance of a professional. One treatment you can try at home is RICE, which stands for Rest, Ice, Compress, and Elevate. Resting your body, icing the impacted area, applying compression, and raising the impacted leg can give sore muscles or injuries some time to heal. Other treatments might include physical therapy or surgery for more serious injuries, but it’s recommended to speak with a health care professional about these options. 

For preventing calf pain, it’s recommended to do both static and dynamic stretches on the muscles used in walking before exercising. These may help warm up the legs and prepare your body for walking on the treadmill.  Some examples include calf stretches, leg swings, butt kicks, lunges, knee hugs, quad stretches, and runner’s stretches. Cross training with weightlifting or core exercises can also help strengthen your leg bones and muscles to reduce pain from weakness. 

Finally, your calf pain could be occurring due to how you’re walking or the equipment you’re using. To get to the bottom of what’s causing the pain, some questions you can ask yourself include: 

• Are you using a high incline on the treadmill?  
• Are you wearing appropriate footwear? 
• What does your walking form look like? 
• How frequently or intensely are you exercising? Are you pushing yourself too hard? 
• Are you allowing your body and legs to rest?  

While these suggestions are mostly focused on the calves and muscle pain, there could be other reasons your legs hurt, such as shin splits or flat feet. If the RICE treatment or stretches don't seem to improve the problem, it’s advised to speak with a health care provider, podiatrist, physical therapist, or personal trainer about your calves.