Stretching your Achilles tendon effectively requires targeting two different muscles that feed into it, each with a slightly different technique. The Achilles connects your calf to your heel, but the calf is made up of two key muscles: the gastrocnemius (the larger, outer muscle) and the soleus (the deeper, flatter muscle underneath). Stretching with your knee straight targets the gastrocnemius; bending your knee targets the soleus. You need both positions to fully stretch the tendon.
Why Knee Position Matters
The gastrocnemius crosses both the knee and ankle joints, while the soleus only crosses the ankle. This means that if you bend your knee more than about 20 degrees during a calf stretch, the gastrocnemius goes slack and you’re only stretching the soleus. To get a complete Achilles stretch, you need to do each stretch twice: once with a straight knee and once with a bent knee. Skipping one leaves half the job undone.
The Standing Wall Stretch
This is the most common and effective Achilles stretch, and it works well for both beginners and experienced athletes.
Stand about two feet from a wall. Step one foot back, keeping that back leg straight and your heel pressed firmly into the floor. Lean into the wall until you feel a pull through the back of your lower leg. Hold for 30 to 60 seconds. That’s the gastrocnemius version.
For the soleus version, bring your back foot slightly forward and bend that back knee while keeping your heel on the ground. You’ll feel the stretch shift lower, closer to your Achilles. Hold for 30 to 60 seconds. Repeat on the other side.
The Wall Press Stretch
Stand about two feet from a wall and place the ball of your foot against the wall while your heel stays on the ground. Slowly lean your body toward the wall, keeping your knee straight. Hold for 30 to 60 seconds. This variation lets gravity do more of the work and provides a strong, targeted stretch along the full length of the tendon. To shift the stretch to the soleus, slightly bend the knee of the foot that’s on the wall.
The Seated Towel Stretch
If standing stretches feel too intense or you’re recovering from an injury, the towel stretch is a gentler option. Sit on a firm surface with one leg extended straight in front of you. Loop a towel around the ball of your foot and gently pull the towel toward your body, keeping your knee straight. Hold for 15 to 30 seconds, then relax. Repeat three times per leg. This gives you more control over the intensity since you’re pulling with your arms rather than leaning your body weight into the stretch.
Eccentric Heel Drops for Strength and Flexibility
If you’re dealing with Achilles tendon pain or want to build resilience alongside flexibility, eccentric heel drops are the gold standard. Stand on the edge of a stair or step with just the balls of your feet on the surface. Rise up on your toes, then slowly lower your heels below the level of the step over a count of three to five seconds. The slow lowering is the important part.
The standard protocol calls for three sets of 15 repetitions with your knee straight, followed by three sets of 15 with your knee slightly bent, twice a day, seven days a week, for 12 weeks. That adds up to 180 repetitions per day. This is an aggressive schedule originally designed for people with midportion Achilles tendinopathy, so if you’re just looking to improve flexibility rather than treat an injury, you can start with fewer sets and build up.
Warming Up Before You Stretch
Stretching a cold tendon increases the risk of a micro-tear. A few minutes of low-intensity movement beforehand promotes blood flow and makes the tissue more pliable. Walking, easy cycling, or even seated heel raises all work well. Five minutes is enough. Save your deeper, longer-hold stretches for after your warm-up or after a workout, when the tendon is already warm.
How Often to Stretch
Stretching two to three days per week is enough to see measurable improvements in flexibility, but daily stretching produces greater gains in ankle range of motion. Consistency matters more than duration of any single session. Research comparing sustained three-minute holds to shorter 20-second intervals found both approaches effective, so the format matters less than showing up regularly.
A practical daily routine might look like this: two to three minutes of walking or light movement to warm up, then 30 to 60 seconds of the wall stretch with a straight knee on each side, followed by 30 to 60 seconds with a bent knee on each side. That’s under 10 minutes total, and it covers both muscles feeding into the tendon.
Signs You’re Pushing Too Hard
You should feel a noticeable pull during a stretch, but not pain. Sharp pain, a sudden popping sensation, or the feeling of being kicked in the back of the calf are all warning signs that you’ve gone too far. A partial or complete Achilles rupture can happen from overstretching, particularly after an abrupt increase in intensity. Other red flags include swelling near the heel, an inability to push off the affected leg when walking, or difficulty standing on your toes.
Achilles injuries commonly follow sudden jumps in training volume. If you’ve been sedentary and are starting a stretching routine, begin with the seated towel stretch or gentle wall stretches and increase intensity gradually over a few weeks. The tendon adapts more slowly than muscles do, so patience pays off.