A research team at the University of Houston made a groundbreaking discovery: a simple exercise that effectively elevates oxidative metabolism, lowering blood sugar and burning fat. This exercise is especially suitable for people who lack time for physical activity or cannot exercise vigorously. This simple exercise, tailored for sedentary individuals, is called the soleus pushup (SPU).
The soleus pushup (SPU) exercise
In today’s busy lifestyle, many people spend long hours sitting due to work requirements. An unhealthy diet or prolonged poor posture may also lead to undesirable changes in the body. According to the research team, this exercise, involving repeatedly raising and lowering the heels while sitting, can significantly lower blood sugar and burn fat.
The soleus is a gastrocnemius muscle at the back of the calf extending from the knee to the heel. It is named after its flat shape, which resembles a sole fish. The soleus pushup is performed while seated with feet flat on the ground. The heels are lifted without lifting the toes off the ground, and after reaching the top, the heels are passively dropped down and repeated continuously.
Improvements in metabolism and blood sugar
During the testing process, the research team recruited 25 participants who performed the SPU for up to 270 minutes daily. Researchers sought to understand whether this exercise would impact the body’s metabolism and blood sugar levels. As the study progressed, they found that the participants’ postprandial blood sugar fluctuations improved by 52 percent, insulin requirements decreased by 60 percent, and the average fat metabolism rate between meals doubled, effectively reducing the fat concentration in the blood.
The lead author, Professor Mark Hamilton, stated: “We never dreamed that this muscle has this capacity. It’s been inside our bodies all along, but no one ever investigated how to use it to optimize our health until now. When activated correctly, the soleus muscle can raise local oxidative metabolism to high levels for hours, not just minutes, and does so by using a different fuel mixture.”
Regarding the function of the gastrocnemius muscle in the body, Professor Hamilton noted that within three hours of carbohydrate intake, all of our 600 muscles typically contribute only 15 percent of the entire body’s aerobic metabolism. However, even though it only accounts for 1 percent of body weight, the soleus muscle can raise the metabolic rate during SPU exercise, thereby easily doubling the oxidation of carbohydrates in the entire body.
If performed correctly, the SPU can significantly increase aerobic metabolism for several hours, further improving blood sugar regulation. According to the research team, no known pharmaceuticals, exercises, weight loss methods, or intermittent fasting methods come close to raising and sustaining whole-body oxidative metabolism at this magnitude.
Professor Hamilton believes that this discovery may address health issues caused by prolonged low muscle metabolism, such as increases in the risk of heart disease, diabetes, dementia, and other conditions. Andrew Huberman, a neuroscientist at the Stanford University School of Medicine, expressed excitement about the research findings, stating that it is excellent news for those who lack time for exercise or the ability to do so, but still seek to improve their health.
Translated by Katy Liu
