Department of Human Movement and Health, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa 920-8640, Japan.
J Physiol Anthropol. 2010;29(1):23-8. doi: 10.2114/jpa2.29.23.
The soleus, one of the triceps surae muscles, greatly contributes to standing and walking. Strength training focused on the soleus could be important to prevent age-related deterioration in these functions. We therefore investigated the effects of regular heel-raise training focused on the soleus for the elderly. Forty-nine healthy women aged 60 to 79 years trained for at least 40 days in a period of two months. Training consisted of a set of 100 repetitions per day of heel-raise with both legs in a standing position. The training effect was evaluated by changes in each muscle thickness of the soleus and gastrocnemius medialis, which was measured using an ultrasound scanner, as well as plantar flexor strength. The subjects' ability to perform the training and their subjective opinions of its effects were assessed by a questionnaire survey. Plantar flexor strength and thicknesses of the soleus and gastrocnemius medialis were increased significantly by the training. The percentage increase in thickness was significantly greater for the soleus than for the gastrocnemius medialis (12.7% vs. 6.6%). These improvements did not significantly correlate with age. The questionnaire results suggested that the elderly were able to safely and easily perform the heel-raise training at home. This study demonstrated that regular heel-raise training is an effective muscle training method for the elderly, focused on the soleus.
比目鱼肌是小腿三头肌的一部分，对站立和行走有重要作用。针对比目鱼肌的力量训练对于预防与年龄相关的这些功能下降可能很重要。因此，我们研究了针对老年人的常规提踵训练对比目鱼肌的影响。49 名年龄在 60 至 79 岁之间的健康女性在两个月的时间里至少进行了 40 天的训练。训练包括每天双腿站立进行 100 次提踵。使用超声扫描仪测量比目鱼肌和腓肠肌内侧各肌肉厚度的变化以及跖屈肌力量来评估训练效果。通过问卷调查评估了受试者进行训练的能力以及他们对训练效果的主观意见。通过训练，跖屈肌力量和比目鱼肌及腓肠肌内侧厚度均显著增加。比目鱼肌厚度的增加百分比明显大于腓肠肌内侧（12.7%比 6.6%）。这些改善与年龄无显著相关性。问卷调查结果表明，老年人能够在家中安全、轻松地进行提踵训练。本研究表明，针对比目鱼肌的常规提踵训练是一种针对老年人的有效肌肉训练方法。
