tips on exercising with type II diabetes?

Do you have Type 1 or 2 diabetes? Do you have any known complications (i.e. neuropathy, sores, etc.) or conditions (i.e. heart disease)?


Here are a couple of links to very general guidelines:


http://www.diabetes.ca/diabetes-and-you/healthy-guidelines/physical-activity-and-exercise/


http://www.diabetes.org/food-and-fitness/fitness/fitness-management/be-active-but-how.html


Contraindications are often related to co-morbidities such as heart disease, osteoporosis, pulmonary diseases, neuropathies, etc. Specific to diabetes, exercise is contraindicated under these circumstances (out of ACSM's Exercise Management for Persons With Chronic Diseases and Disabities text:


- Active retinal hemorrhage is present, or the person has received recent therapy for retinopathy (e.g. laser treatment)

- Illness or infection is present

- Blood glucose is above 250 mg/dl (14.0 mmol/L) and ketones are present (blood glucose should be lowered before intitiation of exercise).

- Blood glucose is less than 70 mg/dl (4.0 mmol/L)- because the risk of hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) is great (if pre- or post-exercise blood glucose is less than 100 mg/dl (5.5 mmol/L), carbohydrate should be eaten and blood glucose allowed to increase before initiation of exercise).


Exercise precautions are as follows:

- During exercise, a source of carbohydrate (that does not also contain fat) should be readily available

- Consuming adequate fluids before, during, and after exercise

- Practicing good foot care by wearing proper shoes and cotton socks, and inspecting feet after exercise

- Carrying medical identification


It's very important to measure your blood glucose levels right before AND right after exercise, so that you know how that exercise session affected you. It's also very important to have clearance to exercise from your doctor, and that you communicate with him/her on a regular basis about blood sugar levels and the possible need for medication adjustments as you get into regular exercise.
 
Thank you for the information and the links! I am interested in info for type 2 diabetes in conjunction with hypothyroid and high blood pressure (and obesity).
 
Have you seen a qualified exercise professional such as an Exercise Specialist or Certified Exercise Physiologist? If you have any conditions such as the ones that you've listed, especially if you're dealing with them all at once, it's best to have some guidance from someone who will see you in person, review all of your medical history, and monitor whatever numbers that are required to be monitored during exercise (blood glucose, blood pressure, etc.)


In Canada, Exercise Specialists and Certified Exercise Physiologists are most often certified through either the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology (CSEP) or the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM).


Here is a bit of a comparison and brief description of the credentials:


http://www.csep.ca/english/view.asp?x=750
 
i am a type one diabetic for 26yrs .. Ive always been a active kid and now adult . I am 31 yrs old. I workout in the morning when there is no insulin in my system as my sugars fall i eat carbs and i always start with my egg whites . my carb choices are either bread oatmeal or yogurt . i eat lots of vegs. and dont have carbs unless a low after 3 . i workout doing whatever i want weights circuit trainin hitt training . i also use a heart rate monitor to use as a guide for how hard i am workouting suchas when i workout hard i burn more carbs as if i were just walking..need more help send me a message
 
Hi, I had gestational diabetes when I was pregnant, but I was able to maintain a certain level of glucose through dieting. I'm having a hard loosing my pregnancy weight because I work the whole day sitting, I just gave birth 4 months ago and I want to start this year healthy. I started walking for 15 minutes in the morning. Thank you for the useful links that you posted. :)
 
That would be great for you, but please try to remember not to let yourself exhausted, it will be hard to deal with especially when the complications arises...


In some countries, Diabetes is what they call a "Rich man's sickness" because of the complications that can't just be controlled unless they have bunch of money for hospital bills and check-ups.

But, so far so good, many can still survive even this times of distress, and medicinal innovations that are available for us...
 
For diabetic patients walking and jogging on daily basis is effectively very important as it helps increase metabolic rate which thus helps stabilizing the sugar level swings.
 
Be sure you are eating enough protein and consuming the amino acid leucine to help you lose muscle and not fat. Leucine is found in chicken and other things. Just google it. I have a diabetic friend using Shaklee 180 protein smoothees and it is helping her control her blood sugar. Good luck!
 
With the high blood pressure make sure you don't do weight bearing exercises like bench pressing/weights etc and concerntrate on cardiovascular. I too have high blood pressure and Diabetes T II. I always have a drink of weak squash when I work out to help the sugars but my own diabetes is diet controlled and I don't take medication for it. I take BP medication and live in hopes to lower the dosage (I take 10m of Ramipril). I've lost almost 56lbs and it hasn't had any effect on my BP at all so don't bank on weight loss alone lowering it. Make sure your Dr's helps you control it.
Good luck with it all.
 
Pay attention to signs of nerve damage, as is common with type II Diabetes, and try to supplement your body with nerve health supportive nutrients. Your nerves can regenerate over time.
 
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