The Role of Exercise in Blood Sugar Control

To understand the crucial role that physical exercise has the potential to play in reversing insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes, we need to review just a couple of points about the physiology of insulin.

Insulin is intended to be absorbed into target organs such as the liver, muscles and fat cells through transport gateways called insulin receptors.  When that happens, the receiving cell puts glucose receptors, called GLUTs – for glucose transporters – onto the cell surface.  It is the GLUTs in turn which actually allow glucose into the cells.

When we exercise to the point of fatigue in the muscles, they begin to put specialized GLUTs onto the cell surface which do not need insulin entering the cell to activate them!   This is huge, because it helps lower blood sugar to safe levels, reduces the effect of blood sugar being absorbed by fat cells, which in turn can help lose weight, and, it give the muscles more real-time energy so you can keep exercising, and gaining all the other mental, emotional and physical benefits that come with exercise.

The most effective type of exercise to cause this to happen, is something that works your muscles to fatigue.  Gentle walking and other aerobic exercise usually isn’t enough to trigger this process.  You will need some time of resistance training where you systematically work your muscles until you get a little of that healthy “burn” that you can feel at the end of a good workout.  You should not be exercising to the point of pain.

I would like to be clear that exercise alone won’t reverse insulin resistance or type 2 diabetes.  It IS, however, a vital part of the whole formula for reversing insulin resistance which is the root cause of diabetes.

You absolutely need a balance between aerobic exercise such as walking, and if possible, runing, bicycling or swimming, as well as strength training, either with weight lifting or calisthenics such as pushups or squats.  Chair exercise videos are widely available on the popular video hosting platforms as well.

If you have questions about the best place to start your exercise program and how to fit it in with everything else you are doing, please contact me to schedule your initial consultation.

Dr. Cage