It’s no new phenomenon that diet and exercise are the two keys to managing diabetes, but did you know that certain methods of exercise can be harmful to you? Did you also know that exercise could be used to reverse type 2 diabetes or greatly lessen the health risks associated with it?

Caution and Safety

First, you should check with your doctor to see what type of exercise is appropriate for you.

It’s important as a diabetic to ease into exercise, particularly if you’ve been a couch potato for a while. Too much intense exercise at once can cause blood glucose levels to spike, either when you begin exercising or once you stop. The importance of monitoring your blood glucose levels cannot be stressed enough.

Blood glucose levels can change based on the length and intensity of your workout. There have even been reported cases of glucose levels going up or down during exercise based on the time of day.

At least for the first few times you exercise, monitor your levels before and after so that you can get an idea of how your body responds. If you can keep up this degree of monitoring long-term, that would be ideal, but if it would deter you from working out, just monitor your levels often at first, and then sporadically.

Everyone’s body reacts differently. Keep in mind that you may need to make some minor changes based on how regularly you exercise and how your body responds to it.

The Role of Exercise in Type 2 Diabetes

Exercise has tremendous benefits for diabetics. Not only does it help you burn off fat, but it also shrinks the risk of heart disease, helps your body process insulin (thus lowering blood sugar), strengthens your muscles, reduces blood pressure, reduces the chances of a stroke, and improves blood circulation (which can be a problem for diabetics that can lead to limb amputation).

Nearly all of these things are associated with the long-term effects of diabetes – stroke, heart disease, etc. By combating these things through exercise, you are essentially reversing the effects of Type 2 diabetes on your body!

How to Exercise as a Diabetic

The two keys to remember in regards to exercise are:

1. Moderation
2. Consistency

Intense exercise, especially at first, can be harmful to your blood glucose levels. Studies actually show that more moderate exercise over a longer period, such as walking, is the most beneficial kind of exercise of all.

Your muscles spend more time absorbing glucose, thus reducing your blood sugar levels. Consistency is also incredibly important. Weight loss is a process, and once the weight is lost, exercise is needed in order to keep off the weight.

Think of it like brushing your teeth. If you only do it rarely, then your teeth will turn yellow over time. It’s the same with exercise. You must remain consistent in order to manage your weight and blood glucose levels.

Best Exercises

Aerobic exercise works the heart and burns fat and calories.

Aerobic activity includes:

• Walking
• Running
• Cycling
• Swimming
• Fitness classes
• Hiking
• Dancing
• Exercise machines, such as treadmills, bikes and elliptical machines

Brisk walking is one of the best options, in fact, experts report that taking a walk after meals can balance blood sugars and lessen the impact of food. Be sure to warm up and cool down for 5-10 minutes before and after your workout so that your body can easily adjust to it.

Strength Training

Strength training helps to build lean muscle tone that helps to increase metabolism and is highly recommended as part of a well-balanced fitness regimen. As people age muscle mass declines and strength deteriorates, which can cause serious issues in old age, including inhibited mobility, higher risk of falls and others.

Expert Assistance

Those with type 2 diabetes are well served by hiring a certified personal trainer that can help devise a safe and personalized workout plan for you. Since diabetes is an important consideration in working out, and the ways in which you exercise can depend on your age, current weight, and fitness level, an expert can be very helpful in devising the right plan.

Exercise for Diabetic Neuropathy

People with diabetic neuropathy have suffered damage to their nerves. Part of the problem is that the circulation to the arms and legs does not reach well to the small vessels that supply these nerves. The high blood sugar in the bloodstream of diabetics who are out of control with their diabetes may also damage and inflame nerves without the circulation effects. The nerves most affected are the ones as far away from the heart as possible, namely the toes and feet, and the hands.

Symptoms of Diabetic Neuropathy

Diabetics can have peripheral neuropathy, autonomic neuropathy, diabetic amyotrophy, or mononeuropathy.

Peripheral Neuropathy

The most common type is peripheral neuropathy, which affects the feet first.

The symptoms include the following:

• Tingling or burning feelings of the toes or feet
• Numbness of the feet (or arms)
• An increase in the ability to sense touch so that even mild touch is painful
• Cramps or sharp pains
• Muscle weakness
• Loss of ankle reflexes
• Diabetic foot ulcers
• Bony or joint pain
• Loss of balance of feet
• Loss of coordination of hands

Autonomic Neuropathy

If the autonomic system is involved in neuropathy, you get symptoms affecting the bladder, lungs, intestines, sex organs, eyes, and heart. You lose the ability to detect when your blood sugars are low and you can suffer from urinary retention or incontinence. Diarrhea or constipation can occur. There can be gastroparesis or slow emptying of the stomach, difficulty swallowing, and male and female sexual difficulties. It can be difficult to regulate your body temperature and your heart can race, even at rest. There can be sharp drops in blood pressure upon standing and difficulty adjusting the eyes from lightness to darkness.

Diabetic Amyotrophy

If you develop diabetic amyotrophy, the nerves of your buttocks, hips, thighs, and legs are affected, usually on one side of the body. It can manifest itself as severe pain in the above areas, weak muscles of the thigh. Eventually you can’t rise from a sitting position and lose muscle weight loss.

Mononeuropathy

Mononeuropathy involves single-nerve damage. The nerve can be anywhere on the body and can cause severe but temporary nerve pain or dysfunction of the nerves of the eyes or face.

The Best Types of Exercise Diabetic Neuropathy

Just because you have diabetic neuropathy doesn’t mean you can’t exercise. One caveat, however:  if you are doing an exercise that involves wearing shoes, you should have custom tennis shoes made for you. Most insurance companies and Medicare will pay for a new custom pair of shoes each year. The shoes will be molded to fit the feet without pushing on prominences of the toes or feet.

Some great exercises for diabetics include the following:

• Walking: With the right shoes, you can walk as far as you are able. Start slow if you are not used to it and build up your speed and length of walk as you become stronger. Walk with headphones or a friend to make the walk enjoyable and fun. Be sure and check your feet for blisters or abrasions after each walk and wear socks while you walk.
• Yoga: Yoga is perhaps the best exercise for diabetics. It is usually done bare foot so that you don’t have to put extra pressure on your feet from shoes. There are many types of yoga, some that focus strictly on stretching, while others focus on balance and even some cardio work. It is an activity for all ages of diabetic, and can be relaxing and focusing. Several poses help to massage the pancreas in order to release toxins and therefore improve the diabetic outlook.
• Pilates: Pilates focuses particularly on the strength of the core muscles of the body. It is also often done barefoot so you can free your feet from pressure. There are many Pilates DVDs on the market there so that you can change up your routine as you strengthen your muscles.
• Swimming: Swimming is a great aerobic exercise for diabetics. You get to use all your muscles in a smooth, free flowing exercise that can get your heart going and keep you invigorated.  Muscle strengthening, particularly of the arms and legs can be achieved using this exercise.

Always check with your doctor before starting any exercise program.