Q: I am a 25 years old male. I am 5 feet 9 inches tall and I weigh 70 kg. I have a proportionate body. My legs are weak as compared to the upper body. I do squats and leg press in the gym and I gained some mass on my thighs and my quadriceps. Please recommend some exercises for the shin. My shin is very thin and it looks very odd.

A:Following are the exercises that should help you build your calf muscles: Exercise 1: Hold a bar-bell of 10 - 20 lb. weight behind the back with arms crossed, heels together, toes pointed outwards. Now make a deep knee bend, rising on your toes, parting your knees, until almost squatting on your heels. Rise again to first position. Repeat five times, adding one repetition per week up to twenty repetitions, after which increase weight by 5 lb. and start afresh. Exercise 2: Jumping. Take running and standing high and long jumps, but standing jumps particularly. Jump with and without weights and also practice hop, step and jump; three forward jumps, hop, cross and jump. Exercise 3: Skipping exercise, especially with long runs on the toes of one foot, which will be found particularly beneficial to the calf muscles. Exercise 4: Stand with feet apart. Rest your hands on the back of a chair. Take a big step backward with your right leg. Bend your left knee. Transfer your body weight forward keeping your back straight. Hold the stretch. Exercise 5: Stand on the toes of the right leg. Bend the left hip and knee up as far as possible trying to hold the stretch. Relax. Repeat with the left leg. Take care that the weight used and number of repetitions recommended for this exercise can only be approximate. The first essential is to secure and maintain a perfect balance, where for a very light bar-bell indeed may be used until a perfect equilibrium has been secured.