Why is your calf called your second heart?

Have you ever heard that your calf is considered your second heart? No? Well if not, you heard it here first, folks! The reason for this is because our bodies are actually engineered so that when we walk, our calf muscles pump venous blood back toward our hearts. The calf veins function as a reservoir for blood that our body does not need to circulate at the moment. These veins are known as the soleus muscle.

But what’s the importance of knowing this? To make sure we treat calves with care!

A few ways to do that are by regularly rolling out your calves, inverting your legs up the wall, and going on daily walks. Daily movement is so important for so many reasons and here’s proof of one more!

And here are a few ways to strengthen your second heart: walking, biking, and standing calf raises can help you prevent dangerous blood clots and Deep Vein Thrombosis. The most important thing is to keep moving.