Diabetes is a disease that affects approximately 3 million French and 92% of them suffer from type II diabetes. This disease can be easily controlled with a medical treatment, but other factors can also improve daily life. This is the case with physical activity. Playing sports on a regular basis, when you are diabetic, coupled with insulin treatment as well as a balanced diet is probably the best way to fight the disease.
Why practice physical activity when you have diabetes?
According to figures from the European Center for the Study of Diabetes, more than 460 million people in the world suffer from diabetes, this figure might reach the 578 million by 2030. When you have type II diabetes, practicing regular physical activity will contribute to:
- strengthen the muscular mass
- maintain (or even reduce) weight in correlation with a balanced diet
- promote the welfare physical but also strengthen the mind and psyche.
In the early years of diabetes, perform a regular physical activity can sometimes be enough stabilize your diabetes. An alternative that can be very interesting, especially for some patients who are reluctant to have to take drug treatment. But sport alone is not enough. Each case must be assessed individually because depending on the type of diabetes, its stage, but also the sport chosen and the frequency of physical activity practiced, the impact of sport on the health of the diabetic will be different. In some cases, sport can help reduce daily insulin doses.
What is the interest of sport when you are diabetic?
Exercising when you have type II diabetes doesn’t just lower blood sugar. By moving, we move away from the cardiovascular risks to which we are particularly exposed when we suffer from type II diabetes. Indeed, physical activity promotes:
- the decline of glucose level
- the drop in blood pressure
- the decrease in cholesterol level
- improving the general condition of vascular health.
And sport has every interest in being practiced preventively. According to French Federation of Diabeticsas a preventive measure, playing sports when you are pre-diabetic reduces the risk of becoming diabetic by 50% in the medium term.
What kind of activity can you practice when you have diabetes?
In a type II diabetic, walking 30 minutes a day lowers blood sugar significantly and physical activity when practiced regularly on a daily basis can significantly improve blood sugar balance. The recommendations revolve around 150 to 200 minutes of physical activity per week. It is recommended to alternate between:
- THE endurance activities such as Nordic walking, cycling, swimming, running or any other sport that works on endurance…
- Work in resistance with weights or dumbbells of 1kg minimum to be used every other day.
Physical activity also takes place on a daily basis, without our even realizing it. For example, we prefer take the stairs rather than the elevator or escalators and we favor walking as much as possible. Just 30 minutes of physical activity a day, 3 times a week, is enough to reverse the trend!
When to practice your sport when you are diabetic?
A study published in the journal Diabetologia1 demonstrates that the sport practiced at certain strategic times of the day would be more effective for lower blood sugar. The followingnoon or evening would be the most suitable times to practice your sport when you are diabetic and want to better control your blood sugar level. This study confirms that with training at the end of the day, the body better absorbs insulin, the hormone that controls blood sugar levels.
The national “DiabetAction” program offers people at risk of developing diabetes adapted sports lessons and tips for a healthier lifestyle. You can find suitable sports classes near you on this official website.
1Timing of physical activity in relation to liver fat content and insulin resistance.
Read also:
-
What are the best devices for working out at home?
-
Varicose veins, diabetes, depression: hereditary or not?
