Soleus Pushups (calf raises) to improve blood glucose and lipid regulation

[Vermonter]

Came across this the other day-

Article on it- https://stories.uh.edu/2022-soleus-pushup/index.html

The study- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9404652/

TLDR: the soleus muscle uses minimal stored glycogen and instead uses glucose directly from the blood stream to function and can help regulate after meal blood sugar spikes. You can do seated calf raises at your desk while working but adding heavy weight appears to be most beneficial.

 

[Charles West]

Came across this the other day-

Article on it- https://stories.uh.edu/2022-soleus-pushup/index.html

The study- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9404652/

TLDR: the soleus muscle uses minimal stored glycogen and instead uses glucose directly from the blood stream to function and can help regulate after meal blood sugar spikes. You can do seated calf raises at your desk while working but adding heavy weight appears to be most beneficial.

Horse straddles work too!

 

[RCA]

Silly nonsense. Just do 30-40 squats throughout the day.

 

[Charles West]

Silly nonsense. Just do 30-40 squats throughout the day.

That's what a horse straddle is but you hold it mid squat until you can't, burns like fire

 

[DTB]

That's what a horse straddle is but you hold it mid squat until you can't, burns like fire

When I was coaching hockey we called that a wall sit in the skier's position. The kids would get wobbly legs pretty quickly.

 

[RCA]

That's what a horse straddle is but you hold it mid squat until you can't, burns like fire

My philosophy is to have the body go through the full movement, stretching and balance. With the ability to alter the intensity according to the time of day and what you feel like doing.

So, a squat all the way down until the fingertips or knuckles touch the floor, keeping the eyes forward to maintain the correct back posture, then all the way up arms as high as possible, back stretched upward and finally standing on your toes, - then tilt to the left and right as far as possible to improve flexibility and balance, -- then back down. 10-40 times for a set. If you are feeling good you might do 2-4 sets of 40 reps each.

And then do this 3-4+ times throughout the day.

I have about 5 pairs of Hoka shoes. 3 for jogging and 2 for daily use. They have very thick soles that make balance a little more difficult.

I also have a set of 20lb dumbbells(2x20lbs=40lbs) I often use for upper-body strength. The doctor said more weight would just cause problems. Sometimes I think I would like to go to get a set of 25 and 30-lb dumbbells to use once in a while. But given I used to do Olympic style weightlifting and looking at the health and age stats for well-known weightlifters - I will probably just stay with the 2x20lb. dumbells. I don't need more sciatic nerve type problems.

I run every 2-3 days, but at my age it is typically very slow jogging, with fast running in between. I can still run at an 8 min/mile pace for short distances, a mile in 11-12 minutes if I push myself, but otherwise I am slow - I've decided from putting on too much weight, - especially for more than 1 mile runs..

Running does seem necessary for me. That can be overdone, as well. All the years of long-distance running I did (50+miles/week) - in the sun - since the early 70's has had its legacy, - leaving me with occasional surgery for skin cancer on my face and scalp. Although new studies from Australia show that 1000mg of niacinamide two times daily, greatly reduces the incidence of skin cancer. So far, I think it makes a difference.

 

[Vermonter]

Silly nonsense. Just do 30-40 squats throughout the day.

Of course that would be better, but you missed the point

 

[RCA]

Of course that would be better, but you missed the point

It's a question of philosophy and belief. I find it hard to believe that the so-called soleus push-ups will do much for anyone's health. But, I suppose for some people, who otherwise don't get good exercise, it might have some beneficial effect.

IMO, the human body is an organic whole with many interdependencies and feedback mechanisms that have evolved over time. Replicate what our ancestors had to contend with:

1. Balanced nutrition that avoids processed foods and tends towards organic variants.

2. Occasional to daily/intermittent fasting.

3. Balanced full-movement exercise that mimics what our ancestors performed on a daily basis: Walking/Running, Lifting, Climbing, Full Movement from point A to B, balance, coordination and so on.

There are good arguments for those who avoid drugs such as the vast array of hormones (insulin, etc.), cholesterol reducing drugs and so on - which often just compensate for not abiding by the above basics. Hormones in particular cause all kinds of interactions we don't even begin to understand. Doctors once tried to get my wife to take insulin because of her high AC1. Over the years I have convinced her to avoid eating so much - especially red meat, grains, and bread. Now her AC1 is manageable without insulin.

Of course one can argue that food nowadays do not contain nearly the amount of nutrients they used to. -- And that we have to sometimes compensate with vitamins. But, people simply eat too much and the one thing that can help most is intermittent fasting, eating in a 6-hour window, plus occasional 3-6 day fasting.

And of course plenty of exercise.

 

[Vermonter]

It's a question of philosophy and belief. I find it hard to believe that the so-called soleus push-ups will do much for anyone's health.

You can believe whatever you want, the fact that the soleus muscle operates differently from most of the rest of the muscles in the body and pulls glucose directly from the blood is proven.

3. Balanced full-movement exercise that mimics what our ancestors performed on a daily basis: Walking/Running, Lifting, Climbing, Full Movement from point A to B, balance, coordination and so on.

When we were hunter gathers, this was easy to accomplish, now we sit in the car or at the desk for most of the day.

The point of the soleus pushup is as a supplemental exercise that it can be done sitting at your desk while working, not a replacement for a proper exercise routine

 

[KYLECODY]

Do you know what really helps with blood glucose, lipids, cholesterol, triglycerides, etc? Lose 20 pounds for starters. Its like magic for most people. If we are hoping seated calf raises improve our health or think it will change your actual blood work, we have a whole lot of other issues going on.