If you notice any of the signs listed below, stop exercising and follow your diabetes management plan. Also, keep an eye on any cuts, scrapes, or blisters, and talk to your doctor if they're really red, swollen, or oozing pus — these could be signs of infection.

By being prepared and knowing how to follow your diabetes management plan, you'll be able to prevent diabetes problems during exercise. After all, professional athletes follow a training and nutrition program to keep them playing their best — just think of your diabetes management plan as your own personal roadmap to exercise success.

KidsHealth For Teens Sports, Exercise, and Diabetes. en español: Deporte, ejercicio y diabetes. Medically reviewed by: Steven Dowshen, MD. Listen Play Stop Volume mp3 Settings Close Player. Larger text size Large text size Regular text size. How Exercise Helps People With Diabetes Exercise offers many benefits.

It: strengthens bones and muscles reduces your risk of heart disease and some types of cancer improves coordination, balance, strength, and endurance can increase your energy level helps insulin work better in the body, which helps blood sugar levels stay in a healthy range burns calories, which helps you reach and stay at a healthy weight teaches you about teamwork, competition, and courage helps boost self-esteem and confidence relieves tension and stress, relaxes you, and boosts your mood, too can even help you clear your mind and focus your attention better All exercise is great — whether it's walking the dog or playing team sports.

What Happens During Exercise? Getting Ready to Exercise All teens — not just those with diabetes — need to get a physical before they play a sport. P Exercise Tips for People With Diabetes These tips can help you avoid diabetes problems during exercise: Test yourself.

Your doctor will tell you when to test your glucose levels — often you'll need to check them before, during, and after exercise. Take the right dose of insulin. Your doctor might recommend adjusting your insulin dosage for exercise or sports. If you inject insulin, you might not want to inject a part of your body used for your sport before exercise like injecting your leg before soccer.

This could cause the insulin to be absorbed too quickly. If you wear an insulin pump, be sure that it won't be in the way for exercise and that it won't get disconnected. Talk to your doctor about what you should do when you want to go without the pump. Eat right. Your diabetes health care team will also help you adjust your meal plan so you have enough energy for exercise.

For example, you might need to eat extra snacks before, during, or after working out. Be sure to maintain the proper diet for your diabetes — don't try strategies like loading up on extra carbs before running or cutting back on food or water to get down to a certain weight for wrestling.

These activities can be dangerous for people with diabetes. Bring snacks and water. Whether you're playing football at the school or swimming in your backyard, keep snacks and water nearby.

Pack it up. If you'll be exercising away from home, pack your testing supplies, medications, medical alert bracelet, emergency contact information, and a copy of your diabetes management plan.

Keep these items in a special bag that you don't have to pack and repack every time you go out. Tell your coaches. Be sure that your coaches know about your diabetes. Managing blood sugar levels can be helpful in lowering your risk of diabetes.

And, it's vital to manage your blood sugar if you are already living with diabetes, as it can help reduce your odds for various health complications associated with diabetes like vision loss, heart attacks, stroke and kidney disease.

Maintaining blood sugar levels throughout the day can also help boost energy levels, she added. To keep your blood sugar in check throughout the day, it's essential to eat a healthy diet with plenty of fruit and vegetables, maintain a healthy weight, and partake in regular physical activity, according to the CDC.

Other tips include:. If you already have diabetes, tracking your blood glucose is especially essential to your health. That is why it is important to track those numbers, so you are able to stay within a healthy range. The longer you are out of a range, the more damage that could cause to other areas of your body, such as the heart, kidneys and eyes.

You can use two different methods to track your blood sugar levels: a blood glucose meter or a continuous glucose monitor CGM.

The blood glucose meter works by checking your glucose through a small drop of blood that you can get by pricking your finger. And, a CGM is a device that stays attached to your body and provides real-time glucose readings and tracks glucose patterns over time.

Use limited data to select advertising. Create profiles for personalised advertising. Use profiles to select personalised advertising. Create profiles to personalise content. Use profiles to select personalised content. Measure advertising performance.

Measure content performance. Understand audiences through statistics or combinations of data from different sources. Develop and improve services. Use limited data to select content. List of Partners vendors. By Emily Halnon. Fact checked by Marley Hall.

Marley Hall is a writer and fact-checker specializing in medical and health information. She uses her experience in medical research to ensure content is accurate across multiple Dotdash Meredith brands. health's fact checking process.

Trending Videos. Fast Facts Light exercise after you eat a meal—like a short walk, between two and five minutes—can help lower blood sugar, a new study found. Frequent spikes in blood sugar after you eat a meal can cause the body to produce more insulin, which over time may increase your risk of developing prediabetes or type 2 diabetes.

See "Patient education: Quitting smoking Beyond the Basics ". People with diabetes who quit smoking can decrease these risks. Most people who smoke find it difficult to quit; assistance is available from a number of sources. Health care providers have access to self-help materials and can help select a quit date, provide contact information for local support groups, and prescribe nicotine replacement treatment or other medicines if needed.

Changing the type and amount of food eaten can help people with diabetes to lose weight, improve blood sugar levels, and lower blood cholesterol levels and blood pressure. A separate topic discusses the role of diet including meal planning, carbohydrate counting, and alcohol intake in more detail.

See "Patient education: Type 2 diabetes and diet Beyond the Basics ". The day-to-day management of blood sugar levels can be complicated. Planning and performing these activities take time. Make sure to talk to your health care provider about how to prioritize these activities and fit them into your daily life.

Setting a routine — Successful management of diabetes should not take the enjoyment out of life. At first, it can be difficult to establish a routine that incorporates all aspects of diabetes care, although many people find that the routine becomes second nature over time.

Written schedules may help some patients to remember the details of a routine until they are committed to memory. Some people may find that making too many changes at once is overwhelming and prefer to gradually incorporate various aspects of diabetes care into their life.

Aside from day-to-day routine, it is also important to carefully manage situations that can complicate blood sugar control, such as sick days and vacations. You and your health care team should reevaluate your management plan periodically to make sure it seems appropriate and reasonable to you and fits into your daily life.

Medication regimens — People with diabetes may need to take several medications throughout the day. Medications to lower elevated blood pressure and cholesterol levels, as well as low-dose aspirin may be used to manage and prevent complications.

Your health care provider should talk with you about the benefits and risks of your medications, and you should jointly decide which ones are right for you. Any medication is most effective when it is taken exactly as prescribed.

If the medication schedule is complex, a pill organizer or written outline may be helpful for remembering to take specific medications at specific times.

Medical costs — Medications and diabetes supplies can be expensive, particularly if insulin is required. Many people with diabetes ration their insulin because of the cost. It is a good idea to share any concerns about medication-related and other costs with your health care provider so they can help find ways to reduce these costs.

A few strategies to reduce costs include switching to a similar medication that is covered by insurance; taking advantage of a specific low-cost program, coupon, or discount card; or applying for financial assistance. Making changes in diet and exercise are an important step in diabetes management.

However, routine medical care is also important for long-term health in people with diabetes, particularly for preventing, detecting, and slowing the progression of complications. A health care provider can recommend a regular schedule for visits and screening and monitoring tests based upon the duration of diabetes, any diabetes-related complications, and other medical problems.

People with diabetes also should receive routine vaccinations to help prevent common infections. See "Patient education: Vaccines for adults Beyond the Basics ". Your health care team can also recommend screenings to detect health problems that do not cause symptoms in the early stages.

These screenings include eye examinations, foot examinations, blood and urine tests, dental examinations, and electrocardiograms, if needed. See "Patient education: Cervical cancer screening Beyond the Basics " and "Patient education: Breast cancer screening Beyond the Basics " and "Patient education: Bone density testing Beyond the Basics ".

See "Patient education: Prostate cancer screening Beyond the Basics " and "Patient education: Bone density testing Beyond the Basics ".

See "Patient education: Screening for colorectal cancer Beyond the Basics ". People with diabetes have to perform many daily tasks to manage their blood sugar and optimize their health. In addition to these daily demands, diabetes often gives rise to concerns including medical costs and long-term health.

These obligations and concerns often cause feelings of frustration, burnout, and stress. If these feelings become overwhelming and make the daily management of diabetes difficult or impossible, they are described as "diabetes distress.

Many people with diabetes experience diabetes distress. It is important to tell your health care provider if you feel overwhelmed by diabetes and its management for any more than a week or two at a time.

Your provider can help find strategies to reduce your stressors and ease your concerns. They may also suggest that you speak with a health care provider who specializes in helping people with diabetes distress.

Sharing your feelings with family, friends, or other people in your support network can help reduce diabetes distress. Your health care provider is the best source of information for questions and concerns related to your medical problem.

This article will be updated as needed on our website www. Related topics for patients, as well as selected articles written for health care professionals, are also available. Some of the most relevant are listed below. Patient level information — UpToDate offers two types of patient education materials.

The Basics — The Basics patient education pieces answer the four or five key questions a patient might have about a given condition.

These articles are best for patients who want a general overview and who prefer short, easy-to-read materials. Patient education: Type 2 diabetes The Basics Patient education: Treatment for type 2 diabetes The Basics Patient education: Diabetes and diet The Basics Patient education: Lowering your risk of prediabetes and type 2 diabetes The Basics.

Beyond the Basics — Beyond the Basics patient education pieces are longer, more sophisticated, and more detailed. These articles are best for patients who want in-depth information and are comfortable with some medical jargon. Patient education: Foot care for people with diabetes Beyond the Basics Patient education: Glucose monitoring in diabetes Beyond the Basics Patient education: Diabetic neuropathy Beyond the Basics Patient education: Quitting smoking Beyond the Basics Patient education: Peripheral artery disease and claudication Beyond the Basics Patient education: Type 2 diabetes and diet Beyond the Basics Patient education: Cervical cancer screening Beyond the Basics Patient education: Breast cancer screening Beyond the Basics Patient education: Bone density testing Beyond the Basics Patient education: Prostate cancer screening Beyond the Basics Patient education: Screening for colorectal cancer Beyond the Basics.

Professional level information — Professional level articles are designed to keep doctors and other health professionals up-to-date on the latest medical findings. These articles are thorough, long, and complex, and they contain multiple references to the research on which they are based.

Professional level articles are best for people who are comfortable with a lot of medical terminology and who want to read the same materials their doctors are reading. Exercise guidance in adults with diabetes mellitus Nutritional considerations in type 1 diabetes mellitus Medical nutrition therapy for type 2 diabetes mellitus Overview of general medical care in nonpregnant adults with diabetes mellitus.

Contributor disclosures are reviewed for conflicts of interest by the editorial group. When found, these are addressed by vetting through a multi-level review process, and through requirements for references to be provided to support the content.

Appropriately referenced content is required of all authors and must conform to UpToDate standards of evidence. Conflict of interest policy.

Why UpToDate? Product Editorial Subscription Options Subscribe Sign in. View Topic Loading Font Size Small Normal Large. Patient education: Exercise and medical care for people with type 2 diabetes Beyond the Basics.

Formulary drug information for this topic. No drug references linked in this topic. Find in topic Formulary Print Share. Official reprint from UpToDate ® www. com © UpToDate, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Author: Kasia J Lipska, MD, MHS Section Editor: David M Nathan, MD Deputy Editor: Katya Rubinow, MD.

All topics are updated as new evidence becomes available and our peer review process is complete. Literature review current through: Jan This topic last updated: Jan 20, TYPE 2 DIABETES OVERVIEW Diabetes mellitus is a chronic condition, but people with diabetes can lead a full life while keeping their diabetes under control.

EXERCISE AND TYPE 2 DIABETES Getting regular physical activity is very important for good health. If you want to continue your workout, you will usually need to take a break to treat your low blood glucose.

Keep in mind that low blood glucose can occur during or long after physical activity. It is more likely to occur if you:. If hypoglycemia interferes with your exercise routine, talk to your health care provider about the best treatment plan for you. Your provider may suggest eating a small snack before you exercise or they may make an adjustment to your medication s.

For people engaging in long duration exercise, a combination of these two regimen changes may be necessary to prevent hypoglycemia during and after exercise. Breadcrumb Home You Can Manage and Thrive with Diabetes Fitness Blood Glucose and Exercise.

There are a few ways that exercise lowers blood glucose also known as blood sugar : Insulin sensitivity is increased, so your muscle cells are better able to use any available insulin to take up glucose during and after activity. When your muscles contract during activity, your cells are able to take up glucose and use it for energy whether insulin is available or not.

Understanding Your Blood Glucose and Exercise The effect physical activity has on your blood glucose will vary depending on how long you are active and many other factors. Hypoglycemia and Physical Activity People taking insulin or insulin secretagogues oral diabetes pills that cause your pancreas to make more insulin are at risk for hypoglycemia if insulin dose or carbohydrate intake is not adjusted with exercise.

If you experience hypoglycemia during or after exercise, treat it immediately: Follow the rule: 1. Check your blood glucose.