Effective Exercise for Diabetes Management: Guidelines and Tips

2023-12-18 04:16:34

Diabetes is very common in Hong Kong. According to the 2020-22 Annual Demographic Health Survey conducted by the Department of Health, the overall prevalence of diabetes among people aged 15 to 84, as reported by themselves or through laboratory testing, is 8.5%. In addition to affecting patients’ quality of life, diabetes can also cause related complications, such as kidney failure, retinopathy (commonly known as “diabetes in the eyes”), diabetic feet, etc. To improve and effectively control diabetes, in addition to adjusting your diet, regular exercise, including moderate-intensity aerobic exercise and weight-bearing exercise, is the key. Some studies have shown that 30 minutes of aerobic exercise every day can help improve blood sugar levels.

People with diabetes must exercise consistently Helps stabilize blood sugar

“Finger” is the most common way to measure blood sugar levels. The ideal fasting blood sugar value (fasting for 8 hours) is 3.6 to 5.5mmol/L. If the number is greater than 7mmol/L, you may have diabetes. Cheung Chi-wai, a registered physiotherapist at Sanatorium & Hospital, said that to more accurately diagnose whether you have diabetes, you can conduct a Glycated Hemoglobin (HbA1c) test. Glycated hemoglobin is formed when glucose in the blood combines with hemoglobin in red blood cells. When the glucose concentration in the blood is higher, the glycated hemoglobin value is higher. It reflects the average blood sugar level in the past 2 to 3 months. The normal value is between 4.0% and 5.6%; 5.7% to 6.4% is prediabetes; when it is above 6.5%, diabetes can be diagnosed.

In addition to speeding up metabolism, exercise can also lower the concentration of glucose in the blood, reduce the body’s resistance to insulin, and reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke.

Diabetic patients should maintain regular exercise habits, including aerobic exercise, weight-bearing exercise, etc., to help stabilize blood sugar, but they should not do it too hastily.

150 per weekminutes of moderate intensity aerobic exercise

According to the recommendations of the American Diabetes Association, people with diabetes should engage in at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise each week. If it is carried out on 5 days in a week, each session needs to last for at least 30 minutes. This may be a bit difficult for people who don’t exercise regularly. If you want to do it step by step, you can try to divide the 30 minutes into 3 times, that is, 10 minutes or more each time, and the effect will be the same. Once your body adapts, you can try continuing.

Zhang Ziwei explained that moderate-intensity aerobic exercise is to exercise until the body is slightly sweating, breathing is slightly rapid or panting, and the types of exercise that can achieve this include brisk walking, jogging, or cycling. If you really don’t have time to exercise, the easiest way is to walk briskly until you sweat twice a day, 15 minutes each time, and get off the bus early when you go to work or get off work.

Weight-bearing exercise increases muscle strength Avoid hypoglycemia following exercising before bed

In addition, diabetic patients should also perform weight-bearing exercises, such as palm presses, dumbbell lifting, or squats, 2 to 3 days a week to increase muscle mass, because sufficient muscle mass can help stabilize blood sugar. Each exercise can be performed in 2 to 3 groups of 15 to 20 times, and you can rest for regarding 1 minute between each group.

Zhang Ziwei pointed out that following patients complete exercise, blood sugar control will improve; the body’s sensitivity to insulin will also increase, but this effect generally only lasts for 48 to 72 hours, so it is recommended that patients exercise 3 to 5 days a week. In addition, he also suggested that exercise should be done two hours following a meal, because blood sugar will be relatively stable at this time. It should also be completed 3 hours before going to bed, because following completing exercise, blood sugar has a chance to decrease, such as blood sugar falling following falling asleep. , there is a chance of falling into a coma and being difficult to detect. Check your blood sugar following exercising in the evening. If your blood sugar is lower than 6mmol/L, you need to eat some food (such as bread) before going to bed to avoid hypoglycemia during sleep.

Related reading: Are hyperuricemia and diabetes caused by food? Lao Huotang or one of the culprits?Be aware of often-overlooked dietary pitfalls

Calculate heart rate Reflects exercise intensity and effectiveness

If you want to more accurately measure exercise intensity to obtain the maximum effect of aerobic exercise, Zhang Ziwei said that you can calculate the “target heart rate” through the following methods:

Maximum heart rate = 220 – age

Heart rate reserve = maximum heart rate – resting heart rate

Target heart rate = heart rate reserve x intensity + resting heart rate

It is recommended that patients should maintain moderate intensity when doing aerobic exercise, that is, the intensity should be maintained in the range of 50-70%. And because diabetic patients themselves may also suffer from retinopathy, neuropathy or poor feeling in their feet, they may be injured if they exercise too strenuously.

example:

Age: 60, resting heart rate: 70

Maximum heart rate = 220 – 60 = 160

Heart rate reserve = 160 – 70 = 90

Target heart rate (50%) = 90 x 50% + 70 = 115

（70%） = 90 x 70% + 70 = 133

In the above example, the heart rate during exercise should be maintained at 115 to 133, and the time should last for 30 minutes or more.

Related reading:[Diabetes]Losing control of blood sugar and turning into diabetic foot at any time. 4 warning signs to watch out for: How to take care of your feet daily to avoid amputation of rotten feet

Do not exercise too hastily. If you develop angina or dizziness, stop and seek medical advice.

Zhang Ziwei reminded that there are countless benefits of maintaining a regular exercise habit, but be careful not to do it too hastily. You should warm up properly before exercising and do some cool-down exercises following completing it. If warning signs such as angina, palpitations, dizziness, and abnormal shortness of breath occur during this period, you should stop exercising immediately and seek medical advice. If you have any questions regarding doing exercise, you should also seek professional advice.

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