Category Archives: Exercise tips

Diabetes

Exercise for Type 2 Diabetes

Regular exercise can be great for keeping strong, keeping fit and improving our mental health. But what about helping out with the ability to manage blood glucose levels for diabetes? Guess what……. It helps out with this too! Exercise is just like medicine when it comes to optimising our blood glucose levels into a target range.

How can exercise help with Type 2 Diabetes?

When we exercise, our muscle cells open up a door that allows for glucose in our blood to enter into the cell to be utilised for energy. This leads to a reduction in blood glucose levels that can last for up to two or three days. If we are consistent with our exercise, this will prolong the time and our ability to have blood glucose levels in an optimal target range. Furthermore, if we exercise and increase our muscle mass, this will also lead to an improvement in our ability to utilise blood glucose as we have more muscle cells to take up the glucose!

General exercise recommendations:

Aerobic
1. If you are new to exercise, begin with 10 – 20 minutes of light aerobic activity such as walking, cycling or swimming on most days of the week. 

2. Over time most adults with diabetes should aim to engage in 150 minutes or more of moderate-to-vigorous intensity activity weekly. This can be spread over at least 3 days per week, aiming to have no more than 2 consecutive days without activity. 

3. Shorter durations (minimum 75 min/week) of vigorous-intensity or interval training may be sufficient for younger and more physically fit individuals. 

Resistance training

1. Adults with diabetes should engage in 2–3 sessions/week of resistance exercise on non-consecutive days.

2. Aim for 1 – 2 sets of 8 – 10 repetitions initially when beginning a new resistance exercise program, and gradually build up to 2 – 4 sets of 8 – 10 repetitions. Choose between 8 – 10 exercises.

3. Exercises that utilise big muscle groups are recommended to make sure we utilise more muscle to soak up that blood glucose! Big muscle groups include leg press, chest press and lat pull down. 

It is recommended to speak with your general practitioner or Exercise Physiologist before commencing any exercise program.

Adrian Draper – Accredited Exercise Physiologist 

 

Colberg, S. R., Sigal, R. J., Yardley, J. E., Riddell, M. C., Dunstan, D. W., Dempsey, P. C., Horton, E. S., Castorino, K., & Tate, D. F. (2016). Physical Activity/Exercise and Diabetes: A Position Statement of the American Diabetes Association. Diabetes Care, 39(11), 2065–2079. 

Hordern, M. D., Dunstan, D. W., Prins, J. B., Baker, M. K., Singh, M. A. F., & Coombes, J. S. (2012). Exercise prescription for patients with type 2 diabetes and pre-diabetes: A position statement from Exercise and Sport Science Australia. Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport, 15(1), 25.

Exercise tips

Bad posture… what is that?

Bad posture… what is that?

With more people working from home during COVID, there has been a lot of theories on how long periods of poor posture can affect the body. Here is what we know:

Move through posture/positions.

Evidence and research have found that posture does not directly relate to causing injury/pain. Rather the accumulative load of one position, has been found to cause issues due to continuous larger loads through trunk muscles. Poor endurance often leads to fatigue, relying on other structures like ligaments and joints.

What would we suggest? Move positions! Get up out of your chair; stand up; kneel, walk around, dance (literally anything).

Mobilise. 

1a) Tx openers

1b) Thread the needle

 

 

 

 

1c) Tx extension
Hip flexor tightness.

When you are sitting at a desk, your hips and knees are bent, this can lead to a tightening of your hip flexors and hamstrings. Using a computer or writing at a desk can result in rounded shoulders and tight chest muscles.

Strengthen.

The current guidelines for strengthening are 2-3 times per week with 2-4 sets of 8-12 reps of each major muscle group. Focus on compound movements, moving through a full range of motion, but start at your own level and get help from a professional if you’re new to strength training.

Bone health

The right exercise for bone health

I’m sure your mum told you to drink your milk to make your bones big and strong, but did she ever tell you to exercise?

From the moment we are born and as we grow old, our bones go through changes just like the rest of our body. They start off soft then begin to harden and strengthen until our mid-late twenties when they are at their peak strength. After this time the density of our bones start to decline and they become weaker.

If our bone mineral density decreases too far below what is expected for our age and sex, this is called Osteopenia. Osteopenia is the stage before Osteoporosis in which bones are considered clinically brittle, with an increased risk of fractures if we were to fall.

While nutrition is important to build and maintain bone health, exercise is also a major player to increase the peak strength of our bones and slow the rate of decline as we age.

The right exercise for bone health


Resistance training 

Any exercise where your body exerts force against a load. This might be something like a dumbbell, exercise machine, or your body weight is considered resistance training. By exerting force against weight two things happen: firstly, your muscles pull on your bones to get them to move. Secondly, the weight of the object you are moving against applies compressive forces to your bones. These are both forms of “stress” to your bones that they respond and adapt to by laying down more mass and therefore becoming stronger.


Recommendations
  1. Start with 1-2 non consecutive days per week, progressing to 2-3 days per week
  2. Begin with 1 set of 8-12 reps, increasing to 2 sets after approx. 2 weeks, no more than 8-10 exercises per session.

Aerobic training
  1. 4-5 days per week
  2. Moderate intensity
  3. Begin with 10 or 20 minutes (depending on cardiovascular fitness); gradually process to a minimum of 30mins (with a maximum of 45-60min).
  4. Type: walking, or individual preference appropriate aerobic activity