Mine are BIG, even though I don't work them out!
Any way to make them smaller? there is no fat in them... just muscle!

Genetics have predisposed your calve size to a great degree. Dont go crazy trying to reduce your calve size because there is not much you can do about it, sorry.

Intentionally trying to reduce a naturally muscular area is actually quite difficult. It requires, just as gaining muscle does, a fairly individual specific approach to nutrition and training.

Anyway, one of the problems here is likely water retention in the lower leg... which is fairly common, especially for women. First off, few people actually have "fat" calves. Basically, you have to be extremely obese before you'll start storing fat at the extreme reaches of your body. Many people with large calves and/or "thick" ankles have a much larger problem with water retention than with fat storage and/or overly large musculature. Since water retention, especially in the extremities, looks nothing like fat (it can actually appear quite "solid") most people mistakenly assume that the problem is overly large muscle mass, which is actually pretty rare.

I've known several women who've gone from hating their lower legs to really liking them simply by getting their water retention problems under control.

Some tips:

drink lots of water. The minimum recommended amount is 64 ounces/day... most people require more than this.
watch sodium intake.
exercise regularly. Exercise improves overall circulation, which helps carry fluid out of your extremities... while it also reduces water through sweating.


Granted, you likely are genetically predisposed to larger calves. In this case, it becomes even more important to keep them "dry" in order to minimize the appearance of ankle thickness and overall lower leg bulk.

Andrew

Thank you!!!!

I have the same issues with my calves as the original poster. The tips AML listed are great, but I was wonder if stretching would help in addition to salt reduction and drinking more water.
Thanks!

Stretching, when done properly, won't really hurt... but, it won't help much with something like this. More vigorous types of exercise have a greater overall effect on circulation (which plays a big role in reducing water retention) than things like stretching.

Andrew