November is Diabetes Awareness Month. While 4.2 million Americans—just over 1 in 10—have diabetes, 1 in 3 Americans have prediabetes. Even though this number has been on the rise, the good news is that there are steps you can take to prevent, slow down, or even reverse the most common form of the disease known as Type 2 diabetes.
One of the biggest factors that impacts a person’s chance of developing diabetes is being overweight. Exercise is one of the best ways to reach a healthy weight, and can help to keep Type 2 diabetes from starting or getting worse. It will also help your bones, muscles, heart, and lungs to perform better and combat other diseases. Most importantly, exercise has been proven to boost your mood, reduce stress, and help you to sleep better.
The American Diabetes Association recommends three ways to use exercise to improve your health:
- Cardiovascular Exercise- This is the type of exercise that gets your heart pumping. Pick an activity you like such as biking, walking, or swimming. Make exercise part of your day for at least 3 days, and make it a priority to move. For more fun, find a friend to join you, listen to your favorite music or podcast, or to buy some new gear that makes you feel good. Be proud of your effort as it helps to decrease the danger of insulin resistance which causes your blood sugar to fluctuate in unhealthy ways.
- Weight (Strength) Training- This is where you build more muscle to increase your cardiovascular health, regulate weight, and strengthen muscles and bones. This also helps to regulate your blood sugar levels. There is no need to join a gym. A quick search on the internet for “body weight exercises” will provide you with an endless list of great options to help make you stronger with each session. Aim for weight training exercise 2-3 days a week.
- Stop sitting so much! Sedentary behavior, such as working long hours at a desk or spending an entire evening on the couch watching TV, increases your risk of becoming pre-diabetic and developing Type 2 diabetes. If you are working, set a timer to get up and walk around a few times each hour. If you are watching television, use each commercial break to stand up or, even better, to do some exercises such as squats or walking in place. The average TV show of 30 minutes has almost 10 minutes of commercial time. That easily provides 30 minutes of exercise during a regular evening of your favorite programs or sports events!
No matter how you decide to move, always speak with your physician first and ask for guidance. Have fun on your way to better health that doesn’t include diabetes!
All Blogs are written by Professionals in the fields of Nutrition, Human Development and Diabetes.