A weighted calf raise is a standing calf raise with a dumbbell held at each shoulder to add load. You rise onto your toes with your knees straight, then lower your heels slowly. It usually comes later in a program, once calf raises on both feet with body weight alone feel easy.

How to do the weighted calf raise

Stand tall with your feet about hip width apart, a dumbbell in each hand.
Lift the dumbbells up and rest them on the front of your shoulders, elbows bent, as the video shows.
With both knees straight, push up onto the balls of your feet and go as high as you can control.
Take your heels slowly back down to the floor and rise again, knees straight for the whole set.
At the end of the set, lower the dumbbells back down to your sides before you step away.

What you should feel

Your calves working, building to a burn near the end of the set. The weight should rest easily on your shoulders, and you should not feel sharp pain at the back of the heel or in the arch.

Common mistakes

Bending the knees to bounce up or to get extra height.
Leaning back or arching your lower back as the weight gets heavier.
Dropping the heels fast instead of lowering them with control.
Picking a weight so heavy that you only rise halfway.

How often

Many programs use 3 sets of 8 to 12 with a weight that makes the last few repetitions hard but still smooth, 2 or 3 times a week. Your physio will adjust this, including how heavy to go and how quickly to add weight.

Stop and check with your physio if

Sharp pain in the Achilles tendon, heel, arch or calf.
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.
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.

From the clinic

The video shows the raise done with nothing to hold. With weights on your shoulders, a wobble is harder to catch, so stand close to a wall or counter. If your balance is poor, hold one dumbbell down at your side and rest your free hand on the counter instead, then swap hands for the next set. Start with calf raises using body weight only if you have not done them before.

With Achilles tendon pain, add weight in small steps. Tendon pain or stiffness that is clearly worse the next morning means the jump was too big, so drop back and check with your physio. Following an Achilles tendon repair or ankle surgery, your surgeon's protocol and your physio decide when extra weight can go on.

Written and checked by the PocketPhysio editorial team. Last updated 2026-09-26.

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.

Weighted calf raise