Written By Alecsa Stewart
Scientifically Reviewed by Daniel Chantigian

Between spending long periods of time sitting at our desks at work, commuting for long hours, and often not exercising as much as we should, many of us complain of heavy and tired legs at the end of the day. As we age, we are more likely to experience balance issues and/or loss of muscle mass in the legs. So, you may be wondering if there are any exercises that you can do at home to support your leg health.

The good news is that you do not need to spend your hard-earned money on expensive equipment, gym memberships, or a personal trainer. You can improve your leg health and make your heavy legs feel better by following an at-home routine using your body weight. Keep in mind that scientific research shows that stretching, especially active stretching, can reduce fluid buildup to improve your comfort. So, after a long day, be sure to do these stretches and exercises for heavy legs to help you boost blood flow and drain fluid build-up in your legs so you can feel comfortable again.

Top 10 Exercises for Heavy Legs

Here are some easy “do anywhere” exercises for heavy legs you can try at home at the end of the day to soothe pain or aches, alleviate the feeling of heaviness, and improve your lower body strength. For these exercises, do not push yourself! The goal is to alleviate your leg heaviness, not to squeeze in an intense workout.

To maximize the benefits of most of these exercises for heavy legs, wear compression socks while you perform them! Scientific research has shown that compression socks can improve circulation, which can help you feel more comfortable.

1. Calf Stretch

You can perform this while standing up, facing a wall that you can push against with your palms. This helps keep you stable. While pushing on the wall with your arms extended, take one step back (but not too far) with a straight leg, while bending the front knee into a lunge. Make sure you can feel the stretch in your calf muscles, but do not over-extend your leg to avoid any injuries. Ensure your feet are flat on the ground. Keep the stretch for about 30 seconds on each side.

 

Alternatively, use the wall to place the ball of one of your feet against it, then lean forward to get a stretch in the calf muscle, as in this video. This stretch can also be held for 30 seconds on each side for good results.

2. Downward-Facing Dog

Stretch the lower back, hamstrings, and calves with the classic yoga pose of downward-facing dog. Starting on your hands and knees, push your hips up and back. You should feel this stretch in the back of your legs. While in this position, you can make it more active to get a little bonus stretch by bending your knees, one at a time, nice and slow. Science shows that pumping your muscles improves blood flow, which can help you alleviate heavy or tired legs. This will also give you an additional stretch in your calves. Plus, this stretch helps release your lower back and encourages blood flow throughout the body, helping you feel more energized.

3. Legs Raises Up the Wall

Another great exercise for tired legs is the yoga stretch known as “Legs Up the Wall.” What is great is that you get to lay down for this one! So, start by laying on the floor with legs up the wall. One scientific study found that keeping your legs at a 60-degree angle is effective at reducing the amount of fluid in your legs. This inversion helps fluid drain from the legs to reinvigorate tired, heavy legs. Stay here for a few minutes, or as long as your body allows (plugging in a podcast or pulling out your book is a great way to encourage yourself to settle in).

If you do not find legs up the wall comfortable, try putting your legs up on a yoga ball. Research found that this posture also reduces fluid retention in the legs.

 

Soothe aching limbs with a stylish pair of graduated compression socks.

 

 

4. Couch Stretch

While you are still nice and close to the wall, use it for the next stretch. The couch stretch targets your quads and your hip flexors (the muscles that connect your quads with your lower back). To get into this one, kneel in front of the wall with the wall behind you. Place both hands on the ground in front of you, and shift one leg back so your shin is parallel to the wall, with your knee on the ground. Try to get your knee as close to the wall as possible.

The goal here is to sit up as upright as you can, supporting yourself with your hands on your front leg. If you cannot get upright, no sweat! This tends to be a tough stretch for most people as we spend a lot of time sitting, causing us to have tight hip flexors. Improved hip flexor mobility will come over time, which will help you feel more comfortable throughout the day. The key here is feeling the stretch in the front of the leg that is placed against the wall.

5. Squats

While stretching is a great way to relieve tired legs, you can also do a few at-home exercises to strengthen your muscles. Strong legs lead to improved stability, balance, and overall energy levels. This is particularly important for those who stand a lot at work or have to be on their feet all day. Further, research shows that strength training improves limb blood flow, which is especially important as we age.

Squats are fantastic exercise for the legs and for improving back stability. You can start with a chair squat and take your time squatting slowly towards it, as if you are about to sit down. If you can, lift yourself back up before hitting the chair. If you cannot, that is fine! Sit down, then slowly get back up, feeling the gluteal and quadriceps muscles working. Perform three sets of 10 repetitions.

You can then move on to not sitting down (just hovering above the chair), and eventually do unassisted squats with just your body weight. Eventually, you will want to increase the number of sets or even add weights to your squats as you get stronger. The key is to progress gradually.

6. Lunges

Performing lunges improves your balance and range of motion, while strengthening the leg muscles. And you just need your body weight to begin with! From standing with your feet hip width apart, take a long step forward, keeping the ball of your back foot on the floor. Ensure your front knee is bent at 90 degrees, without going over your toes (or being too far back). The knee needs to just be over the front toe. Then stand up and bring your back foot up to meet the front foot.

You can do several forward lunges on one side only, or alternate legs, for a total of 8 lunges per leg and 3 sets. For extra balance practice, do at least one set of backward lunges (so stepping backwards rather than forward). If you’re a complete beginner, you can use a chair for support like in this video.

7. Calf Raises

It’s great to strengthen the calf muscles so you’re less likely to suffer a sprain when you’re out walking and running. Plus, stronger calves will also support you better when you are on your feet all day!

The simplest calf raises are performed while holding on to a chair for balance. Then lift yourself up on tiptoes, hold at the top for 2-3 seconds, and slowly lower back down. Do this for 20-30 repetitions. You will feel the calf muscles working. To progress, use a small stepper and balance yourself against a wall or chair with your hands. Allow your heels to fall past the edge of the stepper (so you are only staying on the balls of your feet), then slowly raise yourself up onto tiptoes. This larger range of motion helps the muscles pump more to get fluids moving out of your heavy legs.

8. Inversions

In yoga, inversions refer to any pose where your head is below your hips (like downward-facing dog). For a good lower back and hamstring stretch, a simple inversion involves bending forward to try to touch your toes. Start with feet hip width apart, keep your back straight at first, and slowly imagine you are rolling from the top of your head, down through your spine, gradually moving down while your arms are hanging heavy. Only go down as far as your range of motion allows you to at first.

Spend 10-15 seconds with your arms down (touching the ground or not), rock gently from side to side, nod your head, and relax. You will feel the stretch in your hamstrings and lower back. Then, slowly roll yourself back up again, until you are standing straight. Perform these inversions a few times, trying to reach further down with each iteration. You will be surprised by how quickly your flexibility increases!

 

Boost blood flow in your calf muscles with compression sleeves.

 

 

9. Water Aerobics and Swimming

If you want to do some strength and flexibility training without the impact of gravity, aqua aerobics or jogging and swimming are some of the best ways to get fitter with low risk of injury. Exercising in water has been shown to improve balance and flexibility in older people and it is also a recommended way of getting back into working out after an injury. You remove the risk of falling or hurting yourself, all while working against water resistance to develop leg strength.

Sign up for an aqua fitness class at your local pool or gym to benefit from better cardiovascular fitness and increase strength and flexibility. Swimming is another great exercise for heavy legs - focus on kicking and moving your legs rhythmically during your swim session to get fluid moving and to soothe the muscles (thus turning your sessions into leg workouts, not just for the upper body).

10. Walking or Running

Finally, it may feel like the last thing you want to do if you are feeling tired and aching, but there is a reason for the expression “walk it off.” After sitting at a desk all day or after a long stint spent traveling, moving the legs by walking will loosen them up, help get the blood flowing through the lower limbs, and can reduce feelings of pain or heavy legs. Walking can release tension, reduce inflammation, and help reduce blood and lymph pooling around the ankles. The result? Lighter, more comfortable legs!

For those who love jogging, going for a quick run achieves similar results. But pace yourself. If you are a beginner, only go for a 10 or 20-minute easy jog or, better yet, combine walking and running (4 minutes walking, 1 minute running, repeated 4 times for a total of 20 minutes of exercise). This ensures you will not get injured or make your legs more uncomfortable than they may feel.

Always consult with your doctor or a physical therapist before starting to run or walk long distances.

 

Pick a pair of comfortable and functional compression leggings for your walks.

 

 

Why Your Legs Feel Heavy and Tired

Wondering why you are experiencing heavy, tired legs? There are a few common causes that most people can relate to: 

• Poor circulation - lack of proper blood flow in the lower legs can cause edema, varicose veins, or other bigger issues. Medical research has found that stretching can improve peripheral circulation, especially for people with heart problems.
• Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) - a condition where narrowed arteries hinder the flow of blood around the body (primarily encountered in the legs). You should avoid wearing compression socks if you suffer from PAD, wearing diabetic socks instead.
• Overtraining syndrome - when athletes train too much, they can end up with a decline in performance. Use recovery techniques such as compression socks to boost blood flow in the legs, soothing aching muscles.
• Restless leg syndrome - a condition that causes an uncontrollable urge to move the legs because of discomfort.
• Chronic venous insufficiency - a situation in which weakened leg veins do not allow blood to flow back to your heart. The build-up can become painful and lead to more serious health problems like DVT. Medical grade compression socks can help.
• Heavy legs during pregnancy - accumulated fluid in the body’s tissues, caused during pregnancy by the adrenal glands, can become painful and uncomfortable.

 Read more about the causes of heavy legs and some additional methods to get relief here.

Wearing Compression Socks for Heavy Legs

We have mentioned a few scenarios in which compression socks can be a real help for tired, heavy legs above. This is because graduated compression socks stimulate upwards blood flow from the lower limbs to the heart to improve quality of life. This has been shown to:

• Reduce blood pooling, especially around the ankles, which can reduce feelings of heaviness and discomfort.
• Bring down inflammation.
• Soothe aching muscles and better support them during physical activity.
• Reduce the impact of micro-vibrations from landing on hard surfaces when running or walking.
• Support the joints when standing for long periods of time.
• Energize the legs when standing or sitting for a long time, keeping a healthy blood flow, and reducing the risk of circulatory problems.

Compression wear can also be stylish and blend into your work and casual outfits, giving you a pop of color while supporting your leg health. Browse our range of knee-high socks, sleeves, or tights to find the perfect pair for you (or several!). 

References

Menegatti, E., Mandini, S., Pagani, A., Mandini, B., Zerbini, V., Piva, T., Raisi, A., Fabbri, M., Fogli, M., Mazzoni, G., Zamboni, P., & Gianesini, S. (2022). The Effect of Active Stretching Training in Patients with Chronic Venous Insufficiency Monitored by Raster-Stereography. Sensors (Basel, Switzerland), 22(21), 8509. Read it here.

Li, Y., Meng, Q., Luo, B., Li, M., Fang, J., Allred, S. R., & Fu, M. R. (2023). Exercises in activating lymphatic system on fluid overload symptoms, abnormal weight gains, and physical functions among patients with heart failure: A randomized controlled trial. Frontiers in cardiovascular medicine, 10, 1094805. Read it here.

Charles, T., Mackintosh, D., Healy, B., Perrin, K., Weatherall, M., & Beasley, R. (2011). Merino wool graduated compression stocking increases lower limb venous blood flow: a randomized controlled trial. Advances in therapy, 28(3), 227–237. Read it here.

Sugisawa, R., Unno, N., Saito, T., Yamamoto, N., Inuzuka, K., Tanaka, H., Sano, M., Katahashi, K., Uranaka, H., Marumo, T., & Konno, H. (2016). Effects of Compression Stockings on Elevation of Leg Lymph Pumping Pressure and Improvement of Quality of Life in Healthy Female Volunteers: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Lymphatic research and biology, 14(2), 95–103. Read it here.

Chen, Y. L., Cheng, Y. T., Ye, J. N., Huang, T. L., & Chen, W. N. (2020). Posture and Time Arrangement Influence Shank Circumference Reduction When Performing Leg Raising Exercise. International journal of environmental research and public health, 17(16), 5735. Read it here.

Hotta, K., Kamiya, K., Shimizu, R., Yokoyama, M., Nakamura-Ogura, M., Tabata, M., Kamekawa, D., Akiyama, A., Kato, M., Noda, C., Matsunaga, A., & Masuda, T. (2013). Stretching exercises enhance vascular endothelial function and improve peripheral circulation in patients with acute myocardial infarction. International heart journal, 54(2), 59–63. Read it here.

Anton, M. M., Cortez-Cooper, M. Y., DeVan, A. E., Neidre, D. B., Cook, J. N., & Tanaka, H. (2006). Resistance training increases basal limb blood flow and vascular conductance in aging humans. Journal of applied physiology (Bethesda, Md. : 1985), 101(5), 1351–1355. Read it here.

Waller, B., Ogonowska-Słodownik, A., Vitor, M., Rodionova, K., Lambeck, J., Heinonen, A., & Daly, D. (2016). The effect of aquatic exercise on physical functioning in the older adult: a systematic review with meta-analysis. Age and ageing, 45(5), 593–601. Read it here.