As "Time" magazine reported after a major study on diabetes and exercise was released in 2007, "It's no secret that exercise is key to controlling type 2 diabetes." Exercise is good for type 1 diabetes as well. If you are diabetic, regular exercise burns calories and helps you loss or maintain weight. It also helps regulate glucose levels, which may enable you to use less insulin, improves your circulation, reduces stress, cholesterol and high blood pressure, which decreases the risk of heart attack or stroke. The three types of exercise, aerobic, strength training and flexibility, are all helpful for diabetics.
Aerobic
Aerobic exercise is steady exercise for a period of time that causes you to use more oxygen. Walking briskly, riding a bike, either stationary or outdoors, swimming, dancing, using a treadmill or elliptical machine and aerobics classes are all excellent aerobic exercises. Jogging and jumping rope are good, too, but they can be hard on the feet, so you should check with your doctor before adopting these forms of exercise. Perform aerobic exercises at least three days a week for at least 30 minutes each session.
Strength Training
Until about 2005, doctors advised diabetic patients not to lift weights for fear that it could cause a spike in blood pressure that potentially could result in a heart attack or stroke. But a major study, published in the "Annals of Internal Medicine" and reported by "Time" magazine in 2007, put those fears to rest, although it is still not advisable for diabetics to lift heavy weights. Good strength training exercises for diabetics include the use of resistance bands, squats, lunges, pushups, situps and free weights.
Flexibility
Diabetics can benefit from flexibility exercises such as static stretching, dynamic stretching, which uses movement, yoga and pilates. Yoga and pilates can double as aerobics exercises as well as flexibility exercises. Stretch for five minutes before and after you start flexibility exercises in order to reduce the risk of injury. Avoid any balletic stretches that require bouncing motions.
Considerations
The very best combination for diabetics, according to the 2007 clinical study conducted at the Universities of Ottawa and Calgary and reported in "Time" magazine, is a an exercise routine that involves both aerobics and strength training. A group of diabetic patients that did both showed more improvement in blood sugar control than groups that did just aerobic or strength training. Although all three groups reported improvement, those that did both aerobic and strength training improved blood sugar control by 1 percent, substantially more than the other two groups. A 1 percent improvement doesn't sound like much, but it translates into a 15 to 20 percent reduction in heart attack and stroke risk and a 25 to 40 percent reduction in the risk of diabetes related eye or kidney disease. However, consult with your doctor if you are diabetic before rushing into an exercise program, especially if you are middle-aged or older, overweight or have other health issues.
