Maintaining physical activity is critical for the overall health of people with pre-diabetes and type 2 diabetes. Precautions vary depending on the person’s health status.
The benefits of physical activity include movement, which increases energy use, and exercise, which’s a planned or structured physical activity. Exercise helps improve blood glucose levels, weight loss, and well-being.
Regular exercise has tremendous health benefits and helps prevent type 2 diabetes. People with type 1 diabetes also benefit from regular exercise since it improves muscle fitness, cardiovascular fitness, and insulin sensitivity.
There are challenges related to blood glucose management depending on the diabetes type, activity, and the relationship an individual has.
Therefore physical activity and exercise are carefully tailored to suit the specific needs of an individual.
Types of physical activities and exercise
- Cycling, jogging, walking, and swimming are aerobic energy-producing systems that involve the repetitive movement of muscles.
- Lightweights and elastic resistance bands help improve resistance strength.
- Yoga, Tai-chi help in flexibility and improve range of motion around joints and balance.
Benefits of physical activity and exercise
- Aerobic exercises help increase insulin sensitivity, lung function, immunity, and cardiovascular output.
- It lowers insulin resistance, improves cardio fitness, and increases lipid levels in type 1 diabetes.
- Regular training reduces blood pressure and improves insulin resistance for type 2 diabetes.
- Resistance exercise is helpful for people with low muscular strength. It increases their muscle mass, strength, bone density, brain health, lipid function, and cardiovascular health.
There are benefits from resistance exercise. Insulin resistance, blood pressure, and muscle strength are some of the gains.
In type 1 diabetes, resistance exercise helps lower the risk of exercise-induced hypoglycemia.
It would be advisable, to begin with, resistance exercise because it reduces hypoglycemia and then proceeds to aerobics. - Flexibility and balance exercises are recommended for older people since most have limited joint movement that results in advanced glycation during normal aging, and hyperglycemia accelerates the process.
That’s why stretching helps increase joint motion and flexibility. However, it does ‘t affect glycemic control.
Balance exercise helps reduce the risk of falling, yoga and tai-chi improve body balance, glycemic control, lipid levels, and the quality of life in people with diabetes type 2.
Recommendations for people with type 2 diabetes
- People with type 2 diabetes should decrease time spent sitting with intervals of light activity at least every half an hour since it will improve blood glucose benefits.
Extended sitting is associated with poor glycemic control and metabolic risk. A walk and a weight lift resistance activity will help lose weight and improve glycemic control. - At Least exercise daily or every two days to enhance insulin action.
People with type 2 diabetes should do both resistance and aerobic exercises to improve health. - Children with type 2 diabetes are encouraged to have an exercise routine.
- Diet and physical activities are some lifestyle changes adopted to prevent or delay type 2diabetes and people with high risk.
Recommendation for people with type 1 diabetes
- Adults and youth are encouraged to have physical activity. The blood glucose responses to physical activity vary and require different adjustments.
- Carbohydrate intake and insulin reduction help to keep up glycemic balance during or after physical activity.
- Exercise for insulin users can have insulin pumps or basal-bolus injection, even though there are pros and cons for both insulin methods.
- Monitoring glucose levels during physical activity can help detect hyperglycemia.
In conclusion, recommendations to exercise and have physical activity for people with diabetes are part of managing overall health and glycemic control. Precautions vary with the type of diabetes, age, activity, and any other related health complication. They should tailor it to meet the specific needs of each person. Adults are encouraged to break up sitting and sedentary time with some light activities. Lifestyle changes should help to adopt and promote physical activity in their lifetime.
