Soleus Push-Up: How to Do It and Why It Matters

Short answer: A soleus push-up is a seated heel raise lift your heels, keep your toes down, lower with control. It became a research tool after a 2022 University of Houston study used sustained versions of it to study glucose metabolism during sitting. It's not a strength exercise; it's a way to keep one specific muscle active while you stay seated.

How to perform a soleus push-up

Five steps

1
Sit upright in a chair with your feet flat on the floor and your back straight.
2
Keep the balls of your feet in contact with the ground throughout the movement.
3
Slowly raise your heels as high as comfortable, feeling tension in the deep calf.
4
Lower your heels back down with control don't drop or bounce.
5
Repeat rhythmically. The movement is fatigue-resistant and can be sustained for extended periods.

How it differs from a calf raise

Two different goals

Calf Raise

Performed standing or seated
Targets the gastrocnemius (outer calf)
Goal: strength and muscle growth
Fatigues relatively quickly

Soleus Push-Up

Performed seated
Targets the soleus (deep calf)
Goal: sustained activation during sitting
Fatigue-resistant, can be done for hours

The research behind it

Hamilton et al. 2022

reduction in post-meal glucose excursion, plus a 60% reduction in insulin requirement, during sustained soleus activation compared with uninterrupted sitting using a specialised laboratory device to sustain the contraction. Casual heel raises without that device may not produce identical results. Read the full study summary →

Healthy Body Physical Therapy 2025

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body weight force generation by the soleus during high-speed running. With its large cross-sectional area and high proportion of slow-twitch fibres, the soleus is arguably the most important component of the calf complex for runners. Read the full article →

Frequently asked questions

What is a soleus push-up?

A soleus push-up is a seated heel-raise movement designed to activate the soleus muscle, a deep calf muscle. People also search for it as seated heel raise, seated calf raise, or soleus activation exercise.

How is it different from a calf raise?

Traditional calf raises are generally performed to strengthen the calf muscles. The soleus push-up gained attention because researchers used it as a tool to investigate physiology during sitting, not primarily for strength training.

Does the soleus push-up burn calories?

The soleus push-up is low-intensity movement. It is not intended as a calorie-burning exercise. Its primary purpose is to activate the soleus muscle during seated time.

How many soleus push-ups should I do?

Research protocols have varied. The movement is fatigue-resistant, so some people perform it periodically throughout the day. There is no standard recommendation.

Can I do soleus push-ups at my desk?

Yes. The movement is performed while seated, which is one reason researchers became interested in it as a way to study physiology during sitting.