HOW TO SLIM DOWN CALVES
A lot of women have large calves. Although a slightly different problem, women such as Misha Barton and Katie Holmes have "cankles" and still look great. Thus, even if you are unable to reduce the size of your calves, remember to focus on the great parts of your body and emphasize those. Depending on the reason for your large calves, if you are unable to slim your calves down, you can stop them getting bigger by avoiding certain 
exercises/ movements.
The reasons for large calf muscles (gastrocnemius and soleus muscles) can include the following:
1. Genetic
If it is genetic (looking at your parents or siblings may help) there isn’t much that you can do to minimise your calf muscles. However, you can focus on ensuring that you avoid movements/ exercises that will make you calf muscles larger.
2. Exercise
Repetitive activity involving walking on the balls of your feet (i.e. bearing your weight on the front of the foot), may lead to building-up of the calf muscles. Avoid any activity, which forces heavy use of the balls of your feet (this includes walking in high heels!)
3. Gait
You could have your gait analysed, as it may be a possibility that you are overusing your calf muscles when walking. This may be because you are overcompensating for weak surrounding muscles. If the muscle at the front of your lower leg i.e. shins (tibialis anterior, which have the opposite function to calf muscles) is weak/ over-stretched, strengthening them, will help lengthen the calf muscle.
4. Fat Tissue
Another reason for large calf muscles it that there may simply be a lot of fat in this area, bulking up the calves and making them look big. Everyone has problem spots, even if they are slim. Unfortunately, these problem areas tend to be the last places that fat shifts from when losing weight. This means that you have to be patient, but because it may be the last place that the fat shifts from your body, when you do get slim legs the rest of your body will hopefully be looking great.
WHAT YOU CAN DO TO SLIM DOWN CALVES:
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Keep your heels down and avoid walking on the ball of your foot.
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Avoid high-impact jumping movements and focus on low-impact cardio such as swimming, walking, cross-training and using the elliptical trainer. The elliptical trainer is an excellent tool for low-impact cardio. It is similar to running, but without the high-impact movement, which also means that people tend to be able to burn more calories on the trainer than by simply running. The elliptical trainer is designed to elevate the heart rate rather than to develop muscles. Walking slims down the lower legs as it lengthens the muscles between the back of the knee and the ankle.
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If you want to run, whether on the treadmill or outdoors, think about the physique of short and long-distance runners. Endurance runners usually have thin legs, as opposed to sprinters. Sprinting develops the calves, but endurance running does not. Run slower, but for longer distances (endurance running). Cardio will not reduce the size of the calf muscle, but will reduce the fatty tissue around it (and everywhere else), that is making the calf look bulky.
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Resistance Training. You can either avoid training this area completely or if you prefer use light weights and high reps.
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Stretching makes muscles appear longer and leaner. Stretching lengthens bulked-up muscles. You could try stretching classes, yoga or pilates. A great stretching exercise for the calf muscles is a wall push-up. Stand with your front foot approximately one foot from a wall and your back foot about three feet from a wall. Your back leg should be straight, the front leg bent and your hands resting against the wall, while you lean forward. Your feet should be pointing straight ahead and your heels on the ground. Hold for 15 – 30 seconds, switch legs and repeat. You should feel the stretch in the back of your leg.
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Pilates is an excellent tool to shape and elongate your body and legs.
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Ankle flexion moves: Hold on to a table and then raise yourself on your toes. Hold for six seconds. Lower yourself back down and rock backwards on your heels.
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Ankle circles moves: Sit on a chair, with your back straight and firmly against the back of the chair. Slowly circle your left foot clockwise. Do this six times. Then repeat counter-clockwise six times. Repeat the exercise with the right foot.
