If you haven’t been physically active or have heart disease, high blood pressure, or other complications of diabetes, talk with your doctor about the precautions you should take before exercising. The American Diabetes Association has some tips for how to exercise safely and what to avoid if you have diabetes-related health conditions, such as heart disease, high blood pressure, neuropathy, and more.
Then consider working with a healthcare practitioner or certified fitness instructor who can help you design a strength workout that would be best for you, Kemmis says.
You might also want to look for classes that combine resistance training and aerobic exercise.
When you’re ready to get started, you may want to begin your strength-training routine by lifting small weights and doing exercises such as squats, biceps curls, and crunches. To avoid injury, start slowly and build up gradually from there, Kemmis says. As you build strength, you can increase the:
- Intensity
- Number of sets
- Frequency of your workouts
“Start the progression by increasing the weight or resistance, then the number of sets, and, finally, the days [of exercise] per week,” Kemmis suggests. Unless your doctor instructs you otherwise, your ultimate goal should be to train two or three times a week and complete three sets of eight to 12 repetitions of each exercise to the point of muscle fatigue.
A safety tip: If you’re unable to breathe evenly, back off on the intensity of your resistance training, Kemmis says.
“Remember, a well-rounded exercise program should include strength training and aerobic exercise,” she adds. “This will likely provide better benefits to blood glucose control than either exercise alone.”
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