Contents:
- Medical Video: How the food you eat affects your brain - Mia Nacamulli
- Benefits of exercise for diabetics
- Type of exercise for diabetics
- 1. Brisk walking
- 2. Tai chi
- 3. Yoga
- 4. Cycling
- 5. Weight training
- 6. Swim
- What needs to be considered by diabetes patients when exercising
Medical Video: How the food you eat affects your brain - Mia Nacamulli
Applying exercise regularly is very important, especially for diabetics. An important benefit of exercise for diabetics is helping to increase insulin sensitivity and keep their blood sugar under control. However, what are the recommended sports for diabetics? Consider the following review.
Benefits of exercise for diabetics
Sports can maintain fitness and health for anyone, including diabetics. This activity helps diabetics to lose weight or maintain their body weight. Because, people who have type 2 diabetes are at risk of obesity. In addition, when exercising, the body needs extra energy. This causes the muscles in the body to absorb glucose, which helps reduce blood sugar levels.
According to Everyday Health, Sheri Colberg-Ochs, Ph.D., founder of Diabetes Motion Academy in Santa Barbara, California, and professor at Old Dominion University said, "I recommend that anyone over 40 years with diabetes to take balance training as their weekly routine. At least 2-3 days per week. "
The duration of physical activity recommended for healthy people aged 18-64 years according to the World Health Organization (WHO) is 150 minutes per week. Diabetic patients can use these guidelines in making sports plans, for example 3 times a week with a duration of 50 minutes per day or 5 times a week with a duration of 30 minutes per day.
To start the exercise, you should start exercising in 10 minutes per session. Gradually, patients can increase the length of time they exercise per session by 30 minutes. This will help you adjust your body condition to the exercise you are doing.
Type of exercise for diabetics
The following types of exercise for diabetics are easy to do in daily routines, such as:
1. Brisk walking
This activity is easy and often done by everyone. This sport is one of the most appropriate activities for diabetics. Patients can also adjust their speed as a form of aerobic exercise to increase heart rate so that blood flow becomes smoother.
2. Tai chi
Tai chi is a series of slow and smooth body movements to calm the body and mind. This is very beneficial for diabetics because it increases fitness and mental health, controls blood sugar levels, and reduces nerve damage due to diabetes complications.
3. Yoga
This sport combines body movements that build flexibility, strength, and balance. It helps diabetic patients to reduce stress, improve nerve function, fight insulin resistance, and improve blood sugar levels because it increases muscle mass and reduces stress. Another plus, patients can do this exercise as often as possible.
4. Cycling
Cycling is a form of aerobic exercise that strengthens the heart and improves lung function. In addition, this exercise also increases blood flow to the legs and burns calories to maintain weight. To avoid falls and injuries or bad weather, this exercise should use a static bicycle.
5. Weight training
This exercise is recommended because its main benefits are to increase muscle mass. As muscle mass increases, it is easier to control blood sugar. However, for this type of exercise patients must really get permission from a doctor because this sport is quite risky with injury.
6. Swim
This sport is ideal for diabetics because it does not put pressure on the joints. Swimming can also reduce stress levels, burn calories, and reduce cholesterol levels. This is easier to do than brisk walking because the patient must reduce blood flow to the small blood vessels excessively which can make the patient lose sensation in the legs, if this happens. However, pay attention to safety from not slipping or scratching because the wound will be slow to heal and susceptible to infection.
What needs to be considered by diabetes patients when exercising
Before starting exercise, patients must consult first with the doctor. This will make it easier for patients to choose sports according to their conditions. In addition, the doctor will also help the patient in making a plan for sports time, be it the length of the exercise, the type of exercise performed, or the rest session for each exercise.
Don't forget to always check blood sugar, before and after exercise. Then, do a warm-up and cooling exercise for five minutes. Prepare drinking water so that the body remains hydrated, consume the medication your doctor prescribes, and don't forget to always provide snacks as recommended by the doctor. We recommend that you invite the closest person to help you monitor your exercise time, rest time and safety while exercising.
