Home Diabetes. Diabetes and exercise. Actions for this page Listen Print. Summary Read the full fact sheet. On this page. Benefits of exercise Diabetes — precautions to take before starting an exercise program Diabetes, exercise and foot care Diabetes, exercise and blood glucose levels Diabetes, exercise and ketoacidosis Diabetes complications and exercise Where to get help.

The guidelines recommend the following physical activity: Children — 3 hours of various physical activities each day, including energetic play such as crawling, walking, jumping, dancing. Adults 17 — 64 years — 2. Older adults 64 years and over — 30 minutes of moderate intensity physical activity on most days such as walking, shopping, gardening.

None of these activities need to be done all at once. Several shorter sessions can add up over the day. Exercise helps to: improve mood and sleep improve muscle strength and bone mass lower blood glucose levels BGLs lower cholesterol and blood pressure improve heart and blood vessel health maintain or achieve your healthiest body weight reduce stress and tension improve mental health If you are at risk of type 2 diabetes , exercise can be part of a healthy lifestyle that can help to reduce this risk.

Diabetes — precautions to take before starting an exercise program While exercise has many benefits it is also important to know about some guidelines for diabetes and exercise.

Make sure you have an individualised diabetes management plan — your diabetes health professional can help you with this. If you have never exercised before, start with low impact exercise such as walking and go slowly.

This will help build exercise tolerance. You will also be more likely to continue doing regular exercise and prevent injuries. Consider seeing an exercise physiologist for an individualised exercise program. This is especially helpful if you have pain or limited movement.

Discuss with your doctor or diabetes educator the most appropriate areas of the body to inject your insulin, especially during exercise. Diabetes, exercise and foot care People who have had diabetes for a long time or those who have consistently high BGLs are at higher risk of developing foot problems.

You can prevent foot injuries and infections by: wearing well-fitting socks and shoes — check that shoes are long enough, wide enough and deep enough wearing the right shoe for the activity you are doing inspecting your feet daily having annual foot checks by a podiatrist reporting to your doctor any changes to your feet, such as redness, swelling or cuts or wounds, as soon as you detect them.

Diabetes, exercise and blood glucose levels Exercise causes your muscles to use more glucose, so it can lower your BGLs. Hypoglycaemia Hypoglycaemia or a low BGL 4. You can reduce your risk of hypoglycaemia during and after exercise by: checking your BGLs before exercise — make sure your BGL is at least 7.

Your risk of hypoglycaemia during exercise is increased if: you have type 1 diabetes you inject insulin or take a sulphonylurea you have had recurring episodes of hypoglycaemia you are unable to detect the early warning signs and symptoms of hypoglycaemia you have an episode of hypoglycaemia before exercise as both exercise and hypoglycaemia reduce your ability to detect further hypoglycaemia you have drunk alcohol before exercise alcohol reduces your ability to detect hypoglycaemia.

Diabetes, exercise and ketoacidosis People with type 1 diabetes are at risk of developing a build-up of ketones ketoacidosis if they are unwell or have forgotten to take their insulin. Diabetes complications and exercise If you have existing diabetes complications such as heart, eye or kidney problems, check with your diabetes specialist if it is safe to do certain types of activity.

Adding more physical activity to your day is one of the most important things you can do to help manage your diabetes and improve your health.

Regular physical activity, along with eating healthy and controlling your weight, can reduce your risk of developing diabetes complications such as heart disease and stroke.

Aerobic exercise is continuous movement such as walking, bicycling or jogging that raises your heart rate and breathing. Benefits of aerobic exercise include:. Aim for minutes of aerobic exercise per week. You may have to start slowly, with as little as five to 10 minutes of exercise per day, gradually building up to your goal.

The good news is that multiple, shorter exercise sessions of at least 10 minutes each can be as useful as a single longer session of the same intensity. Aerobic exercise is continuous exercise such as walking, bicycling or jogging that elevates breathing and heart rate. If you decide to begin resistance exercise, you should first get some instruction from a qualified exercise specialist, a diabetes educator or exercise resource such as a video or brochure and start slowly.

Interval training involves short periods of vigorous exercise such as running or cycling, alternating with 30 second to 3 minute recovery periods at low-to-moderate intensity or, rest. Your goal should be to complete at least minutes of moderate- to vigorous-intensity aerobic exercise each week, e.

You may have to start slowly, with as little as 5 to 10 minutes of exercise per day, gradually building up to your goal. The good news, though, is that multiple, shorter exercise sessions of at least 10 minutes, adding up to minutes per week, can have some benefits for people with diabetes.

Almost everyone, whether or not they have diabetes, benefits from regular exercise. Well-known health benefits include weight loss, stronger bones, improved blood pressure control, lower rates of heart disease and cancer as well as increased energy levels.

Regular exercise has special advantages if you have diabetes. Exercise is a form of physical activity that is done at enough intensity to improve your fitness. Resistance training, brisk walking, cycling, and jogging are examples of exercise.

As exercise is more challenging than just accumulating physical activity through your day, it often needs some planning, a certain level of ability, and a little more effort.

Skip to Main Content. Updated: Oct. In this video, Yale Medicine experts discuss the benefits of exercise for those with diabetes.

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