Happy New Year!
I am 41 years old and have been resistance training for about 25 years, primarily following a barbell-based program for the last decade, with no medical history. On Friday evening, I did some calf raises. Since I rarely perform direct calf exercises, I only completed two bodyweight sets of about 35 reps each, focusing on achieving a deep stretch with every repetition.
The next morning, I proceeded with my usual training session, which included Press and Bench exercises, as well as some rear delt and triceps work. Later that afternoon I did a 15-minute conditioning session on an exercise bike—something I do irregularly and usually for only 10 minutes. After the bike ride, my calves felt a bit tight, but apart from mild DOMS from the previous day’s calf workout, everything seemed fine.
When I woke up on Sunday, however, I experienced intense DOMS in both calves, which significantly impaired my ability to walk. After sitting for a few minutes, it took a while to walk somewhat normally, though the discomfort persisted with every step. I tried stretching to alleviate the pain, but it didn’t help. Despite this, I still managed to walk my usual 10,000 steps that day.
By Monday, the pain in my calves was almost unchanged. I continued to stretch throughout the day and walk 10,000 steps. On Tuesday, the pain began to improve, but I still needed a few steps after sitting to walk without sharp pain but the discomfort persisted. I significantly decreased my step count to 3,500. On Wednesday, there was noticeable progress; although I still felt pain during my initial steps, walking swiftly became more comfortable, and the pain lessened throughout the day. By Thursday, I could walk normally immediately after sitting, and the pain was mostly gone during regular movement. On Friday (today), the discomfort mostly disappeared. That day, I resumed training, albeit with very moderate volume and intensity.
I listened to your podcast about rhabdomyolysis, which made me wonder if my experience might have fallen somewhere on the spectrum between severe DOMS and rhabdo. My urine remained clear throughout, and there was no swelling—just the sharp pain I’ve described. Still, I find it surprising that two sets of 35 deep-stretch calf raises and 15 minutes of biking could result in such a reaction. While I’ve experienced severe DOMS from calf raises in the past, it was never this intense.
Would you recommend taking any additional precautions? Or does it seem reasonable to ramp my training back to its previous level over the next week or two, now that the pain has subsided?
Also, no more direct calf training for me! 
