Overview
With over 600 muscles in the human body, muscles have a variety of functions and support us in carrying out simple activities such as walking and grabbing objects to more complex ones like running and jumping. The soleus is one of the major muscles that support the calves in our legs and works with the Achilles tendon and gastrocnemius to effectively position our feet to push off from when getting ready to sprint or sink a basket.
About Muscles
Muscles work on their own, helping to pump blood through your heart or with your intention of carrying out a specific task. They are made up of elastic tissue and fibers, and come in the form of smooth, cardiac and skeletal muscles. Smooth muscle assists the digestive process in your stomach and throat, and is considered involuntary, as is cardiac muscle. Skeletal muscle is voluntary, as you control its movement.
The Soleus Muscle
The soleus muscle lies beneath the gastrocnemius and originates at the upper portion of the tibia and fibula bones in the lower leg. This broad, flat muscle joins the gastrocnemius and attaches to the Achilles tendon at the heel. The majority of this muscle is made up of Type 1 fibers described as darker appearing and rich in enzymes needed for oxidative metabolism by “Wheeless’ Textbook of Orthopaedics.”
Function
The soleus muscle works with the gastroc to flex the ankle when the knee is bent, allowing your foot to extend down to carry out actions like kicking a ball. This is called plantar flexion. It also stabilizes the foot when you’re standing so you won’t lean forward.
Common Problems
The soleus muscle is most prone to strains caused by overexertion when the calf muscles are tight, and from sudden exertion when the muscles aren’t ready in sports like running, basketball, hurdles, football and soccer. AuroraHealthCare.org describes muscle strain as occurring when the muscle fibers are stretched farther than they can withstand, causing a tear in the fibers and resulting in pain, tenderness, stiffness, bruising or weakness.
Preventing Injuries
Stretching before and after exercising can help prevent injuries to the soleus muscle. Stretching beforehand increases blood flow to the calf muscles and stretching following exercising helps the muscles to cool down. Former athlete and physical therapist Debbie Pitchford warns against overstretching and bouncing the muscle, as it will have the counter-productive effect of shortening the muscle.
About this Author
Pamela Wake began writing in 1996, working in marketing communications and currently contributes health and nutrition articles to The Healthy Times newspaper and is the Alternative Health Examiner for Examiner.com in San Diego. She received a Master of Science degree from Pacific College in San Diego.
