sedentaryit has become a global epidemic. There is such a muscle in the body: its weight represents only 1% of body weight, but as long as it is exercised, it can burn blood sugar and blood lipids in the blood, reduce the effects of prolonged sitting and consume energy similar to the walk.
sedentaryLack of exercise is the fourth leading cause of human death
Sitting for long periods of time is a common problem in modern lifestyles. Whether it is due to the demands of the nature of work or a change in lifestyle, people are sitting longer and longer. In 2012, The Lancet made it clear that physical inactivity and sedentary behavior are another “epidemic” in the world.[1]。
The trend survey shows that from 2007 to 2016, people’s self-reported daily sedentary time increased by about 1 hour on average[2]Data from the U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey and a meta-analysis of systematic reviews suggest that adults’ mean daily sedentary time may actually be much higher than self-reported estimates, ranging from 7 to 11.5 hours. .[3][4][5]。
Inactivity increases with age, is greater in women than in men, and is more severe in high-income countries[6]。
And one of the consequences of a lack of regular, sedentary exercise is a significantly increased risk of cardiovascular disease[7]. Compared to people of all other age groups, people over the age of 65 had the lowest levels of physical activity and, consequently, the highest risk of cardiovascular disease.
Additionally, physical inactivity can lead to diseases such as stroke, type 2 diabetes, breast and colon cancer[8]According to a 2017 article in The Lancet, among adults over the age of 25, the mortality rate from physical inactivity is 17 per 100,000.[9]According to the World Health Organization, physical inactivity is now the fourth leading cause of human death, with 3.2 million deaths each year.[10]。
Muscles accounting for only 1% of body weight can move the whole bodymetabolism
Marc Hamilton, Professor of Human Health and Performance at the University of Houston, and his team just posted a groundbreaking discovery on iScience[11]。
on our calvessoleus musclealthough the weight is only about 1 kg, accounting for only 1% of body weight, but it has magical abilities.If exercised correctly, it can burn a lot of blood lipids and blood sugar, taking advantage of the body’s oxidationmetabolismAnd this high level of burning can last for hours[12]。
Normal muscles usually get energy by breaking down glycogensoleus muscleIt relies less on glycogen and more on fat and sugar for energy, which makes this muscle a big boost to the body’s metabolism.
“We never thought this muscle had this ability,” Hamilton said.
The soleus muscle of the human lower leg is a long, flat muscle in the shape of a soleus.
It goes from the back of the knee to the ankle and joins two more muscles to form the lower leg triceps[13]The soleus has the largest physiological cross-sectional area of the calf muscle and provides up to 71% of the calf triceps strength[14]it also allows us to maintain an upright posture[15]。
It has curved capillaries that shrink relatively slowly and is resistant to fatigue. In the soleus muscle, most are slow twitch fibers, with an average ratio of 80%. In contrast, the mean proportion of slow twitch fibers in the adjacent gastrocnemius and vastus lateralis is approximately 57%.[16][17]。
Unlike fast twitch fibers, which burn a lot of energy quickly during exercise and then feel tired and need rest, slow twitch fibers burn energy slowly and evenly, which helps them stay on track for long periods of time without running out of energy quickly.
Soleus push-up to control blood sugar and resist the effects of a sedentary lifestyle
Sometimes our sedentary behavior can be unconscious, but more often we cannot do without it, such as the need to work at a desk or convalescence due to an illness, or the mobility of the elderly or disabled has worsened, making it impossible for us to autonomy and stable.
Hamilton has designed a special exercise for the characteristics of the soleus muscle: the soleus push-up, which provides a new solution for people who want to change the bad habit of sitting for a long time and it is uncomfortable to get up and move.
In Hamilton’s experiment, the subjects were divided into two groups and each drank a liquid containing 75 grams of glucose. One group was mainly meditating, while the other group continued to do push-ups on their pussy. Over the next three hours, testing related indicators, the researchers found that those who performed the flounder push-up significantly improved glucose homeostasis, reduced postprandial blood glucose fluctuations by an average of 52%, and reduced hyperinsulinemia. on average 60%.[18]。
In another Hamilton experiment, subjects who did push-ups with difficulty spent 2.25 times more energy overall than the seated group.
Furthermore, the body’s oxygen consumption in the flounder push-up group was more than double that of the seated group. This is because flounder pushups apparently consume a lot of fat and blood sugar.
Therefore, compared to the seated group, the people who performed the flounder push-up group also had significantly lower blood triglycerides.
The experimenters also tested the oxygen consumption of the subjects’ specific lower limb muscles and the energy expenditure of the lower limb muscles. It has been found that doing pushups on the flounder allows the muscles to consume more oxygen than walking and running on a treadmill.
And overall, doing push-ups on the pussy has a smaller range of motion than walking, but the energy expenditure is close to that of walking.
This is because the soleus muscle can use oxygen directly to burn fat and blood sugar instead of breaking down glycogen for energy.
It can be said that the movement of the soleus muscle is like a lever, and by leaning on a small fulcrum, it can improve the metabolism of the whole body.
How to do soleus pushups?
The soleus push-up is actually very simple, just raise the heel while sitting:
1. Sit with your feet flat on the floor, shoulder-width apart and relax your muscles; the knees can of course be at an angle of 90 degrees or less.
2. Lift your heels while the front of your feet still touch the ground and stay still.
2. After the heel has reached its highest point, it naturally falls and touches the ground.
This is a full push-up of the soleus, which allows this muscle to contract effectively.
It is worth noting that when we take the sitting position, our knees are bent about 90 degrees and at this time the heel is raised, the gastrocnemius muscle of the calf is almost inactive and the load is almost entirely supported by the soleus muscle.[19]. In this way, the soleus muscles get the most efficient exercise.
The researchers also explained that while the soleus push-up looks similar to walking, the mechanism of the exercise is the opposite: due to the structure of our body, walking minimizes the use of the soleus’ energy. use of the soleus muscle is exactly the opposite is the minimum. Researchers designed this movement to reverse the fact that the soleus muscle consumes less energy when walking, so that it consumes as much energy as possible.
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Responsible editor: Li Qingfeng ◇
