American Health & Medical Research Association
Evidence review

The soleus pushup cut blood sugar in a lab, but sitting breaks have more proof

A 2022 University of Houston lab study introduced a seated calf move called the soleus pushup. We walk through what long sitting does to blood sugar and the heart, and which breaks hold up in trials.

By the Health Research USA editorial team

Published Last updated October 2026

Written from the sources listed below; links checked October 2026. It touches on medicines, doses or health conditions and has not yet been reviewed by a licensed clinician, so use it to prepare for a conversation with yours. How we research and review

Sources14, listed below Reading time15 minutes

Where the evidence stands

  • Strong evidence Short activity breaks lower blood sugar and insulin during a day of sitting
  • Promising but early Easy walkingStrength-style moves: half-squats, calf raises, buttock squeezes, knee raisesSoleus pushups (seated heel raises)Swapping 30 sitting minutes for any movementBreaks lower triglyceridesSoleus pushups lower blood sugarVery long daily sitting is linked to heart failure, diabetes and high blood pressure
  • Not enough evidence Standing in placeRegular breaks improve long-term healthMeeting the weekly exercise goal erases those linksStanding more lowers heart risk

Each use is rated separately, from the scorecard in this guide. Safety cautions are spelled out in the guide itself. How we grade

On this page
  1. A calf move cut blood sugar in one small lab study
  2. Four years on, the follow-up studies are small
  3. When your muscles sit still, blood sugar lingers
  4. Breaks every half hour cut sugar and insulin in dozens of lab studies
  5. Long sitting tracked with heart failure, even in people who exercised
  6. Standing still isn't the fix
  7. Guidelines now say break it up every 30 minutes, on modest evidence
  8. The sitting-break menu
  9. What the evidence shows
  10. Questions readers ask
  11. The bottom line

Key takeaways

  • In a 2022 University of Houston lab study of 25 volunteers, a seated heel-raising move called the soleus pushup cut the rise in blood sugar after a sugary drink by up to 52% and the insulin response by up to 60%12.
  • Follow-up research is thin: an open-label 2026 trial of 384 adults with type 2 diabetes in India found an extra A1C drop of 0.34 points, which its own authors called modest4.
  • In a 2020 review of 37 pooled lab studies, short activity breaks during long sitting moderately lowered blood sugar and insulin and slightly lowered triglycerides7.
  • In nearly 90,000 adults who wore motion sensors, sitting more than 10.6 hours a day went with a 45% higher relative risk of heart failure than sitting 8.2 to 9.4 hours, and the link held even in people who met exercise goals89.
  • The American Diabetes Association’s 2026 Standards advise breaking up sitting at least every 30 minutes, but standing still isn’t the fix: in one large study, more standing wasn’t linked to less heart disease1113.

In 2022, University of Houston professor Marc Hamilton published a study about a small calf muscle called the soleus12. It makes up only about 1% of your body weight1.

His team taught volunteers a seated move. You lift your heel while the front of your foot stays on the floor, then let the heel drop1. They called it the soleus pushup.

After a sugary drink, volunteers who kept doing the move had up to a 52% smaller rise in blood sugar than when they sat still. Their insulin response fell by an average of 41% to 60%, depending on how hard they worked the muscle. The team reported the results in the journal iScience2.

It’s a striking result, but from a small lab study. We walk through what the wider research says about how long sitting changes the way you handle sugar and fat, and which breaks hold up. Our article on sitting and TV time covers sitting and early death.

A calf move cut blood sugar in one small lab study

Hamilton’s team ran two experiments with 25 volunteers, men and women ages 22 to 82, with a wide range of body sizes2. Each person was tested both ways, doing the move and sitting still2.

In one experiment, 10 people did the move for up to 270 minutes while researchers took small muscle samples2. In the other, 15 people drank 75 grams of glucose, a type of sugar, and kept doing the move through a 3-hour blood test2.

The university’s story also said fat use about doubled during fasting stretches and a blood fat called VLDL triglyceride fell1.

The authors were clear about the limits. It was a lab study, not a clinical trial, and they didn’t test long-term effects2. Doing the move at home, without sensors that read the muscle’s electrical signals, hadn’t been tested2.

Hamilton said the method “requires wearable technology and experience to optimize the health benefits”1. We couldn’t find a funding statement on the pages we opened.

Four years on, the follow-up studies are small

A preprint in prediabetes. In November 2024, a team posted a pilot study on bioRxiv, a site for papers that haven’t yet passed peer review3. Ten adults with prediabetes, average age about 53, did soleus pushups during a 2-hour glucose test3.

Compared with their own test sitting still, blood sugar exposure fell 37% for those who watched sensor feedback and 26% for those who didn’t3. The authors noted the tiny sample and that diets weren’t controlled beforehand3.

A 12-week trial in type 2 diabetes. In September 2026, doctors at a teaching hospital in Tamil Nadu, India, published a randomized trial of 384 adults with type 2 diabetes4. Randomized means people were assigned by chance. Half added seated soleus pushups, 30 minutes a session, five days a week, to their usual care4.

After 12 weeks, A1C, a lab test of average blood sugar, fell 0.69 points in the soleus group and 0.35 points with usual care alone4. That’s an extra 0.34 points. Fasting blood sugar fell about 12 mg/dL more4.

The authors called the A1C gain modest, below the 0.5-point mark they had set as meaningful4. Everyone knew who was in which group, and the comparison group did no added activity4. We found no funding statement.

Our rating: Promising but early. The move is free, seated and gentle. It hasn’t been shown to work as well at home as in the lab.

When your muscles sit still, blood sugar lingers

Insulin is the hormone that helps move sugar from your blood into your cells. Insulin sensitivity is how well your body responds to it.

In a 2016 science advisory, the American Heart Association (AHA) said insulin sensitivity drops during long stretches of sitting, and that short bouts of activity may counter the drop5. Whether sitting harms health apart from too little exercise needed more study, it added5.

Working muscles may help in a second way. The Australian team behind a 2016 sitting trial suspected that contracting muscles pull in sugar partly on their own, without waiting for insulin6. They said the exact reasons remain unclear6.

Our article on insulin sensitivity explains why muscle is the body’s biggest sugar sink, and our sitting article covers animal research on a fat-clearing enzyme.

None of this needs a gadget, a pill or a gym. It fits a core natural-health belief: the body works best when it’s used all through the day. On sitting, that old instinct and modern lab data agree.

Breaks every half hour cut sugar and insulin in dozens of lab studies

In 2016, Australian researchers published a careful test in the journal Diabetes Care6. They recruited 24 inactive adults with type 2 diabetes, average age 62, who managed it with diet or metformin alone6.

Each person spent three lab days eating the same meals6. On one, they sat without a break. On the others, every 30 minutes they took a 3-minute break6.

  • Walking breaks: slow treadmill walking at 3.2 kilometers an hour, about 2 miles an hour by our math6.
  • Strength-style breaks: half-squats, calf raises, buttock squeezes and knee raises, done in 20-second turns6.

That added up to 12 breaks and 36 minutes of movement in a day6. Both kinds of break cut the total rise in blood sugar after meals by about 39%, and insulin by about 36% to 37%6.

Only the strength-style breaks lowered triglycerides, a type of blood fat, by about 40%6. Australia’s national medical research council paid for the study, and the authors reported no conflicts6.

How well does that hold up? A 2020 review in the journal Sports Medicine gathered 42 studies and pooled the results of 377. Blood sugar data came from 620 people7.

Pooled together, the studies showed breaks beat unbroken sitting by a moderate margin for blood sugar and insulin. For triglycerides, the edge was small7. People with a higher body mass index (BMI) tended to see bigger drops in sugar and insulin7.

The team also compared breaks with one continuous workout that burned the same energy. Spreading the activity out did a little better for blood sugar, with no difference for insulin or triglycerides7.

Studies were small, some with as few as 9 people, and the triglyceride results showed signs that weaker studies may have gone unpublished7. Most were one-day lab tests, so they show what happens that day, not years later.

Our carbohydrate article covers a review comparing walking and standing breaks, and our full-time work article covers a trial of different break schedules.

Long sitting tracked with heart failure, even in people who exercised

In November 2024, a team led by Ezimamaka Ajufo reported on 89,530 adults in the UK Biobank, a large British health study89. Participants, average age 62, wore a wrist motion sensor for a week8. They averaged 9.4 sedentary hours a day and were followed for about eight years8.

Over that time, 2.1% developed heart failure and 0.94% died of heart or blood vessel disease8. For both outcomes, extra sitting barely mattered up to about 10.6 hours a day. Past that point, risk turned sharply upward8.

Compared with people sedentary 8.2 to 9.4 hours a day, those above 10.6 hours had a 45% higher risk of heart failure and a 62% higher risk of cardiovascular death9. If the comparison group’s risk were near the overall 2.1%, a 45% rise would mean about one extra case per 100 people over eight years, by our rough math. The true gap is probably a bit smaller, since that average includes the heaviest sitters.

The surprise came among people who met the standard goal of 150 minutes a week of moderate-to-vigorous exercise. For them, sitting’s links to an irregular heartbeat called atrial fibrillation and to heart attack shrank a lot8. The links to heart failure and cardiovascular death remained89.

“Avoiding more than 10.6 hours per day may be a realistic minimal target,” said co-senior author Shaan Khurshid8. That cutoff simply marked the top quarter of sitters, though. It isn’t a tested safe limit, and the study watched people rather than assigning them to sit.

In April 2026, the same team screened 761 diseases in that group, in the journal JACC: Advances10. Top-quarter sitters had an 18% higher relative risk of diabetes, 13% of high blood pressure and 14% of chronic kidney disease10. If those links are causal, that much sitting would explain roughly 1% to 2% of new cases of each, the authors estimated10.

Standing still isn’t the fix

Is standing the cure? Not by itself, a 2024 University of Sydney study suggests11. Matthew Ahmadi’s team used wrist sensors on 83,013 UK Biobank adults, average age 61, then followed them about seven years1112. There were 6,829 cases of coronary heart disease, heart failure or stroke1112.

There were also 2,042 cases of what the team called orthostatic circulatory disease12. That group includes varicose veins, chronic venous insufficiency, venous ulcers and orthostatic hypotension, a drop in blood pressure when you stand up11.

Standing more than 2 hours a day wasn’t linked to lower risk of heart disease or stroke1112. Each extra half hour of standing beyond 2 hours went with an 11% higher relative risk of those circulation problems1112.

Sitting more than 10 hours a day was worse on both counts. Each extra hour went with a 15% higher risk of those heart and stroke events and a 26% higher risk of the circulation problems1112. One caveat from the authors: a wrist sensor can’t always tell standing from sitting12.

Ahmadi’s point, in short: to help your heart, you have to make it work, so pair standing with movement11. He reported funding from Australia’s National Heart Foundation11.

Our full-time work article reviews sit-stand desks. Treat yours as a place to start moving, not a place to stand still.

Guidelines now say break it up every 30 minutes, on modest evidence

The American Diabetes Association’s Standards of Care in Diabetes—2026 tell clinicians to check activity and sitting time for everyone with diabetes or at risk of it, a B-grade recommendation13.

They also advise counseling people to interrupt long sitting at least every 30 minutes for blood sugar and other benefits13. That advice gets a C grade, a step lower13. ADA suggests brief standing, walking or other light activity, and lists benefits for blood sugar, the heart and blood vessels13.

The AHA’s 2016 advisory set no daily sitting limit; its chair, Deborah Rohm Young of Kaiser Permanente Southern California, said the evidence wasn’t enough for one14. The advisory noted there’s no gold-standard way to measure sitting, and it called “sit less, move more” a fair message5. Our sitting article covers World Health Organization and federal advice.

Who gains most? People with type 2 diabetes saw large drops in the Australian trial6, and people with a higher BMI saw bigger drops in the pooled review7. Our articles on full-time work and life after retirement cover two long-sitting stretches of life.

The sitting-break menu

We built this menu from the trials above. Pick one break, tie it to a cue you already have, and repeat it about every 30 minutes, the interval ADA suggests13.

Break How long and how often What it did in trials Evidence How to fit it in
Easy walking 3 minutes every 30 minutes Cut after-meal sugar about 39% and insulin about 36% in 24 adults with type 2 diabetes6 Promising but early Refill your water, walk during calls, loop the hallway
Strength-style moves: half-squats, calf raises, buttock squeezes, knee raises 3 minutes every 30 minutes, in 20-second turns Same sugar drop as walking, plus about 40% lower triglycerides6 Promising but early A round beside your chair at each TV break
Soleus pushups (seated heel raises) Through a 3-hour lab test; or 30 minutes, 5 days a week Up to 52% smaller sugar rise in the lab2; an extra 0.34-point A1C drop in one open-label trial4 Promising but early While reading or on a call; home results unproven
Standing in place Hours at a time Not linked to lower heart risk; long standing tied to vein and blood pressure problems1112 Not enough evidence for a heart benefit Stand up to start moving, then walk
Swapping 30 sitting minutes for any movement 30 minutes a day Linked to 7% lower heart failure risk, even in active people sitting over 10.6 hours9 Promising but early (observational) Trade one show or one seated chore

Treat breaks as a bonus, not a swap for exercise. ADA still advises most adults with diabetes to get at least 150 minutes a week of moderate-to-vigorous activity, over at least 3 days13.

What the evidence shows

Claim Evidence level What it rests on
Short activity breaks lower blood sugar and insulin during a day of sitting Strong evidence 37 pooled lab studies with consistent, moderate effects7
Breaks lower triglycerides Promising but early Small pooled effect, possible missing studies; only strength-style breaks worked in one trial67
Regular breaks improve long-term health Not enough evidence Mostly one-day lab studies7
Soleus pushups lower blood sugar Promising but early One lab study, one preprint and one open-label trial234
Very long daily sitting is linked to heart failure, diabetes and high blood pressure Promising but early Large sensor studies, but they observe rather than test8910
Meeting the weekly exercise goal erases those links Not enough evidence Heart failure and cardiovascular death links held in active people in one large study89
Standing more lowers heart risk Not enough evidence No link in one large study; more standing tied to vein problems1112

Questions readers ask

Can soleus pushups replace my walks or workouts?

No study has tested that. Hamilton’s study was a short lab test, and its authors said long-term effects are unknown2. ADA still advises at least 150 minutes a week of moderate-to-vigorous activity for most adults with diabetes13. Treat the calf move as a bonus.

How much sitting is too much?

No one has set a tested limit, and the AHA’s 2016 advisory named none514. The 10.6-hour mark in the heart study was where the top quarter of sitters began9. The most specific advice, from ADA, is to break up long sitting at least every 30 minutes13.

Should I wear a glucose monitor to see whether breaks help me?

It isn’t needed. Our article on glucose sensors explains how to read them if you don’t have diabetes. If tracking starts to feel stressful, the helpline in the box above can help.

The bottom line

The soleus pushup is a real finding from a careful but small lab study. Early follow-ups suggest a modest benefit, and no one has shown that the home version matches the lab.

The stronger case is for ordinary breaks. Getting up every half hour to walk or do a few squats and calf raises lowered blood sugar and insulin across dozens of lab studies. Standing still doesn’t count as a break, and a daily workout may not fully cancel out a very long sitting day.

About this article

This article was researched using peer-reviewed trials and reviews, large sensor-based cohort studies, a preprint (labeled as such), American Heart Association and American Diabetes Association guidance, and university and journal news reports, all listed below. It was reviewed in October 2026. It is general education and not medical, legal or financial advice.

Sources

  1. University of Houston. “Discovery Unlocks Potential of ‘Special’ Muscle” (on the soleus pushup study). UH Stories, 2022. stories.uh.edu
  2. Hamilton MT, Hamilton DG, Zderic TW. “A potent physiological method to magnify and sustain soleus oxidative metabolism improves glucose and lipid regulation.” iScience, 2022;25(9):104869. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  3. “The effects of soleus push up on glucose tolerance among individuals with prediabetes.” bioRxiv preprint (not peer reviewed), posted November 2024. biorxiv.org
  4. Ragupathy S, Sadasivam K, Brabakar R, Kanagaraj TS, Ayyavoo S, Periasamy P. “Effects of Soleus Push-Up Exercise on Glycemic Control in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: A Randomized Controlled Trial.” Asian Journal of Pharmaceutical and Clinical Research, 2026;19(9):229–233. journals.innovareacademics.in
  5. American Heart Association. “Top Things to Know: Sedentary Behavior and Cardiovascular Morbidity and Mortality” (on Young DR, et al., Circulation, published online August 15, 2016). u1-cd-professional.sc.heart.org
  6. Dempsey PC, Larsen RN, Sethi P, et al. “Benefits for Type 2 Diabetes of Interrupting Prolonged Sitting With Brief Bouts of Light Walking or Simple Resistance Activities.” Diabetes Care, 2016;39:964–972 (Australian Catholic University repository). acuresearchbank.acu.edu.au
  7. Loh R, Stamatakis E, Folkerts D, Allgrove JE, Moir HJ. “Effects of Interrupting Prolonged Sitting with Physical Activity Breaks on Blood Glucose, Insulin and Triacylglycerol Measures: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.” Sports Medicine, 2020;50:295–330 (Kingston University repository). pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  8. American College of Cardiology. “JACC Study Finds Sitting Too Long Can Harm Heart Health” (on Ajufo E, et al., Journal of the American College of Cardiology, 2024). November 16, 2024. acc.org
  9. UK Biobank. Publication record: Ajufo E, et al. “Accelerometer-Measured Sedentary Behavior and Risk of Future Cardiovascular Disease.” Journal of the American College of Cardiology, published November 15, 2024. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  10. UK Biobank. Publication record: Ajufo E, Kany S, Rämö JT, et al. “Accelerometer-Measured Sedentary Behavior, Future Disease, and Cardiovascular-Kidney-Metabolic Health.” JACC: Advances, published April 9, 2026. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  11. Neale T. “Standing Alone Will Not Offset Sitting’s CVD Risks, Study Suggests” (on Ahmadi MN, Coenen P, Straker L, Stamatakis E, International Journal of Epidemiology, 2024;53(6):dyae136). TCTMD, October 21, 2024. tctmd.com
  12. Ahmadi MN, Coenen P, Straker L, Stamatakis E. “Device-measured stationary behaviour and cardiovascular and orthostatic circulatory disease incidence.” International Journal of Epidemiology, 2024;53(6):dyae136 (PubMed Central full text). pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
  13. American Diabetes Association Professional Practice Committee. “5. Facilitating Positive Health Behaviors and Well-being to Improve Health Outcomes: Standards of Care in Diabetes—2026.” Diabetes Care, 2026;49(Suppl 1) (continuing-education copy, Weitzman Institute). education.weitzmaninstitute.org
  14. Lawrence L. “Increased Sedentary Time Ups Risk for CVD, Diabetes, and Death, the AHA Says.” TCTMD, August 18, 2016. tctmd.com