The downward dog calf stretch uses the upside-down V position from yoga to stretch your calves one at a time. With your hands and feet on the floor and your hips high, you press one heel toward the floor while the other knee bends, then swap in a slow walking rhythm. The stretch comes and goes, so you will see it in warm-ups as well as in programs for tight calves.

How to do the downward dog calf stretch

Get onto a mat on all fours, with your hands below your shoulders and your knees below your hips. Tuck your toes under.
Straighten both legs out behind you so you are up on your toes in a push-up position, with your weight on your hands and the balls of your feet.
Push your hips up toward the ceiling into an upside-down V. Keep your arms straight and let your head hang between them.
Straighten one knee and press that heel down toward the floor, while the other knee bends and its heel lifts. It is the straight leg that gets the calf stretch.
Swap legs slowly and keep swapping, as if walking on the spot. The heel does not have to touch the floor.
To finish, bring your hips down to the push-up position, then lower your knees to the mat.

What you should feel

A stretch in the calf of the straight leg that moves from one side to the other as you swap. The backs of your thighs often feel it too, and your shoulders and arms work to hold you up.

Common mistakes

Rushing the swaps so the heels bounce, instead of pressing each one down slowly.
Rounding the back to get the heels lower. Let the heels stay up and keep the back long.
Shoulders creeping up toward your ears.
Walking the hands and feet so close together that the V gets cramped.

How often

Many programs use 10 to 20 slow heel presses in total, alternating legs, repeated 2 to 3 times with a rest on your knees in between. Your physio will adjust this.

Stop and check with your physio if

Dizziness, a headache, or pressure building in your head or eyes. Come down onto your knees and rest. If you faint while exercising, call emergency services, even if you feel fine again quickly.
Sharp pain in a wrist, a shoulder, or the Achilles tendon at the back of the heel.
Pain, numbness or tingling running down the back of either leg.
Your calf or thigh becomes swollen, warm, tender, red or darker than usual, or has a throbbing or cramping pain that feels different from normal muscle ache. Stop and get medical advice the same day, as this can be a blood clot. If you are also short of breath or have chest pain, call emergency services.
A sudden pop or snap at the back of your ankle or heel, a feeling that someone kicked you there, or sudden pain there after which you cannot push off or rise onto your toes on that leg. Stop, take the weight off that leg carefully and go to an urgent care center or emergency department the same day, even if you can still walk, as this can be a torn Achilles tendon.

From the clinic

This is a moving version of downward dog. The start is the same, but the heels take turns pressing down, so each calf gets many short stretches instead of one long hold. If the V is too much for your wrists or shoulders, the standing calf stretch and soleus stretch work on the same muscles while you stay upright.

Your head sits below your heart for the whole set. Check with your doctor or physio first if you have high blood pressure, glaucoma, recent eye surgery or a tendency to get dizzy, and come out of the V slowly. If you are pregnant, check with your midwife or physio before you start. Resting on your fists can spare sore wrists. After shoulder surgery, or with a painful shoulder, ask your physio before you put your weight through your arms like this.

After a torn Achilles tendon, with or without surgery, leave calf stretches out until your surgeon or physio clears them. After an ankle fracture or ankle surgery, follow your surgeon's or physio's weight-bearing plan, and start this exercise only when they have cleared you.

If you have had a hip replacement, get the go-ahead from your surgeon or physio before you try the downward dog calf stretch. The upside-down V bends the hips well past a right angle, and many surgeons ask you to avoid that for the first months after some operations.

Written and checked by the PocketPhysio editorial team. Last updated 2026-09-28.

This page is general education, not a diagnosis or a personal treatment plan. If you have pain, an injury or a health condition, see a physiotherapist or doctor before starting new exercises.

Downward dog calf stretch