Walk on your toes loaded and watch your calves complain.
Stay as high on your toes as you can and don't let your heels touch down.
Walking on the balls of your feet keeps the calves contracted the entire set, no rest at the bottom of a rep, just constant tension while the load in your hands presses down. Each step is also a tiny single leg balance test, so your ankles learn stability along with strength. It earns its place as calf work you can do in a hallway, and as ankle prep for jumping and sprinting.
Start with 15 to 20 metres per set, or walk for 30 seconds if space is tight. The set should end because your calves are burning, not because your heels quietly drifted down.
Different jobs. Calf raises let you load a full stretch and contraction through range, toe walks build endurance, constant tension and ankle stability, run both if calves are a priority.
At your sides is the simple default and loads your grip too. The racked position raises your centre of mass and adds a balance challenge, use it once the basic version feels easy.
