With more and more of us working from home and trying to multitask nearly 24 hours a day, there seems to be fewer and fewer opportunities to exercise in a traditional manner.

If you’re looking for something quick and easy to boost your metabolism – and something you can do without leaving your desk – look no further.

Research has found that a small movement in your lower legs can undo some of the negative effects of sitting still for several hours at a time – it can even keep your muscle metabolism going for hours.

It involves the soleus muscles, which is the largest muscle on the back of your lower leg, sitting just below the gastrocnemius. It’s crucial for walking, running, and jumping, and according to this study and accompanying statement, we can unlock its metabolic potential by doing the “soleus pushup.”

“We never dreamed that this muscle has this type of capacity. It’s been inside our bodies all along, but no one ever investigated how to use it to optimize our health, until now. When activated correctly, the soleus muscle can raise local oxidative metabolism to high levels for hours, not just minutes, and does so by using a different fuel mixture.”

This study included 25 people who lived an array of physical lifestyles. It had them perform these soleus pushups from a seated position, using monitors and muscle biopsies to obtain results.

Those results revealed that the soleus pushups led to a 54% improvement in stopping blood glucose changes and reduced insulin requirements by 60% when the participants drank glucose.

Additionally, it burned fat – specifically the kind that contributes to high cholesterol – by boosting the muscles’ metabolism. The fat metabolism doubled compared to normal rates in people not doing the soleus pushups.

The scientists involved say the way this muscle keeps itself energized plays a big role in how it can influence such change.

“The soleus’ lower-than-normal reliance on glycogen helps it work for hours effortlessly without fatiguing during this type of muscle activity, because there is a definite limit to muscular endurance caused by glycogen depletion. As far as we know, this is the first concerted effort to develop a specialized type of contractile activity centered around optimizing human metabolic processes.”

As exciting as this is, there is a trick to the movement that can be hard to master.

“The soleus pushup looks simple from the outside, but sometimes what we see with our naked eye isn’t the whole story. It’s a very specific movement that right now requires wearable technology and experience to optimize the health benefits.”

The team that discovered the benefits is working on perfecting instructions so all of us tied to our desks can start to benefit and stay in shape –  no standing or treadmill desk required.