Physical Activity

By Sheri R. Colberg, PhD, FACSM

There is no official ideal blood glucose range to start with and maintain during physical activity, but we do know that being too low negatively impacts performance, as does being too high. As for what blood glucose target or range most athletes aim for, it depends on a number of factors, including the type, intensity, and duration of their activity. A consensus statement about exercise and type 1 diabetes published in The Lancet in 2017 suggested that a reasonable target for most people doing aerobic exercise lasting up to an hour is 126 to 180 mg/dL (7.0 to 10.0 mmol/L), only aiming higher for added protection against lows in some situations.

Short duration, high intensity resistance exercise to increase muscle strength and mass shown beneficial.

By Sheri R. Colberg, PhD, FACSM

Whether you have type 1 or type 2 diabetes, if you use insulin, you may choose to use a specialized insulin pump for both your basal and bolus insulin delivery. Pumps have a small catheter placed under your skin and are programmed to cover your basal insulin needs by delivering small doses of fast-acting insulin to mimic normal insulin release by the pancreas. Insulin pumps are programmed to deliver small, basal doses of fast-acting insulin to mimic normal insulin release by the pancreas throughout the day. These pumps are not ideal for everyone, and the choice to use one should be an individual one.

Study aims to determine whether exercise training at two distinct times of day would have differing effects on 24-hour glucose levels in men with type 2 diabetes.

Small but frequent activity helps improve insulin concentrations and sensitivity in children with excess weight and obesity.

Older adults with diabetes may be able to benefit from specific exercise recommendations.

By Sheri R. Colberg, PhD, FACSM
At each dawn of a new year, many people make resolutions to be more physically active—only to fail in changing their lifestyle habits in a sustained manner. Don’t be one of the many who start exercising only to stop again a few months later. Read more about why daily release of feel-good brain hormones is so important and why you should learn how to relax more as well.

In mid-November 2018, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services finally released new physical activity guidelines (as a 2nd edition) to update their previous set from a decade before. Various activity guidelines for adults with diabetes have been updated several times in the interim, including a 2010 position statement on exercising with type 2 diabetes published jointly by the American College of Sports Medicine and the American Diabetes Association; a 2016 ADA position statement on exercise and physical activity for all types of diabetes; and a consensus statement on being active with type 1 diabetes published in The Lancet in 2017.

Small but frequent activity helps improve insulin concentrations and sensitivity in children with excess weight and obesity.

A 60-year-old woman with type 2 diabetes and no serious health complications began an exercise program as part of a research study. It involved doing an hour of moderate aerobic exercise three days per week in a supervised setting (at a local Y). She showed up to all the training sessions, stating about a month into the 12-week training program that she was so happy to be active again, that she felt so much better physically and mentally and felt like she had “found herself” again.