According to the American College of Sports Medicine and Exercise is Medicine (1), exercise is good for people who have diabetes 2 because it improves the way that your body uses insulin. Exercise helps with controlling your weight and ensures calorie deficiency as well.

If you are considering to start exercising with Diabetes 2, there are some things you need to consider and do.

• Start slowly. This isn’t just for people who have been diagnosed with Diabetes but for everyone who are starting any type of workout program whether you are a beginner (never exercised in your life before) or whether you are just picking it up again. Begin with walking for 10 minutes (2) and increase it to 30 minutes per day. This or any other type of aerobic exercise can be done, 3-5 times per week.
• Do strength training by either using your body weight, resistance bands or weights if you do have them on hand (3). But remember, you do not have to buy any equipment any time soon. Start with your own body weight and if you do not know what to do, consult a professional or contact me. Guideline is 2-3 times per week for strength training.
• Also keep a close eye on your blood sugar levels throughout the time that you do workout especially if it is more than a hour, to make sure you know when to have a snack. Even cyclists do this when they do long races. They take snacks with them to have when they feel the need and throughout the race to sustain their energy levels to complete the race.

Exercise with Diabetes 2 is possible and do activities you like. Do the exercise not only for your health but also because you know there are many other benefits to it as well like improving your mood with all those endorphins pushing through your body after the exercise session.

Resources

(1) – https://www.exerciseismedicine.org/assets/page_documents/EIM_Rx%20for%20Health_Diabetes.pdf

(2) – https://www.diabetes.co.uk/exercise-for-diabetics.html

(3) – https://www.webmd.com/diabetes/exercise-guidelines