Sedentary behavior has become a major problem in modern life. But with simple exercises, he can build muscles that weigh just 1% of his body weight while sitting. Strengthening this muscle burns sugar and fat in the blood, reducing the negative effects of sedentary behavior.
Sedentary behavior is rampant.Inactivity is the fourth leading cause of death
“Inactivity and sedentary behavior” has become another pandemic in the world for years. paper It was published in the magazine Progression of cardiovascular disease 2021 years.
Trend analysis shows that from 2007 to 2016, people’s self-estimated total sitting time increased by about one hour each day. Other reports suggest that the average US adult sitting time is probably much longer than self-estimate.it might 7 to 11.5 hours daily.
As people get older, they become more inactive. The situation is worse for women than men, and worse in high-income countries than in low-income countries, he reported in 2012, The Lancet.
One consequence of physical inactivity and sedentary behavior is a significantly increased risk of cardiovascular disease. May 2021. According to the report, those at greatest risk for cardiovascular disease are those over the age of 65, who have lower levels of physical activity than people of all other ages.
In addition, lack of exercise can also lead to other diseases such as stroke, breast cancer, coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and colon cancer. Lack of physical activity has become the fourth leading cause of death. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), about 3.2 million people died due to lack of physical activity.
Only 1% of your body weight in muscle can boost your whole body’s metabolism
Mark Hamilton, a professor of health and human performance at the University of Houston, and his team recently published a startling discovery in the journal eye science.
According to the article, you only weigh 1 kg and about 1% of your body weight, but your calf soleus can do a lot to improve your metabolism. Hamilton and his team found that in addition to “elevating local oxidative metabolism to high levels for hours,” it also burns more fat and blood sugar (sugar) if activated correctly. can be made
Most muscles break down glycogen for energy, but soleus muscles primarily use fat and glucose. Therefore, this muscle can greatly contribute to improving metabolism.
The soleus muscle is a long, flat muscle in the shape of the soleus muscle.
It extends from the back of the kneecap to the heel and forms the calf muscle or triceps with two other muscles. It also has the largest physiological cross-sectional area (CSA) of any calf muscle. The soleus also provides up to 71% strength of the triceps. In addition, The soleus muscle helps us maintain our standing posture.
They contract relatively slowly and have tortuous capillaries that are resistant to fatigue. The soleus muscle is composed mostly of slow-twitch fibers, averaging around 80%. In contrast, the gastrocnemius and lateral thigh muscles adjacent to the soleus contain an average of approximately 57% slow-twitch fibers.
Unlike fast-twitch fibers, which quickly expend a lot of energy during exercise and need to rest when fatigued, slow-twitch fibers expend energy slowly and evenly, allowing you to work longer without running out of energy quickly. You can keep working hours. .
Soleus push-ups help control blood sugar and keep you sedentary
People can be forced to sit still. For example, some people need to work at a desk, while older people and people with disabilities may not be able to walk on their own.
Hamilton and his team have developed a method that takes advantage of the special properties of the soleus muscle.
In Hamilton’s experiment, the subjects were divided into two groups and all received 75 grams of glucose. The control group sat motionless, while the experimental group performed the “soleus push-up” (SPU), a move developed by Hamilton’s team. Three hours later their blood was tested. The team found that SPU activity can help the soleus muscle. It can also reduce postprandial glucose excursions by 52% and hyperinsulinemia by 60%.
In another experiment, the whole-body energy expenditure of participants in the SPU group was 2.25 times higher than that of a sedentary, inactive control group.
Oxygen consumption in the SPU group was more than double that in the control group. This is because SPU can consume more fat and sugar in the blood.
Blood triglyceride levels were also significantly lower in subjects in the SPU group compared to controls.
In an experiment examining oxygen and energy consumption in the lower extremities, the team found that muscles were able to consume more oxygen when doing SPU compared to walking or running on a treadmill.
Moreover, although the SPU movement is much smaller than walking, its energy expenditure is almost the same as walking.
This is because the soleus muscle can burn fat and sugar in the blood directly with oxygen instead of breaking down glycogen to obtain energy.
SPU method
SPU is actually very simple. Just sit and move your heels.
- Sit with your feet flat on the floor and your feet shoulder-width apart. He can bend his knees about 70-90 degrees.
- Raise your heels, keeping your front feet on the floor. stay still.
- Raise your heels to the highest point and let them naturally touch the floor.
The SPU method effectively contracts the soleus muscle.
A tip for this exercise is to bend your knees 70-90 degrees. Thus, the soleus muscle can give more plantar flexion work, while the other muscles in the calf remain relaxed.
His team also explained that SPU is similar to walking, but the mechanisms are opposed to each other. Due to the anatomy of the human body, the energy expenditure of the soleus muscle during walking is minimal. This means that this muscle is the least used. However, the SPU method reverses the situation. Helping the soleus muscle work and the other in the calf he expends more energy instead of using two muscles.
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Flora Zhao is a health reporter for The Epoch Times. Any tips? Email her: flora.zhao@epochtimes.nyc
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