However, there’s one thing he won’t tell you about, because he isn’t doing it, and that’s strength training.
I’m sorry about that, because my husband’s prediabetes has totally changed my attitude about lifting weights. The truth is, I love it.
Probably just about anything you’ve read about treating prediabetes mentions the need to do some sort of strength training. Not only does it increase insulin sensitivity, but it helps to burn more calories for weight loss.
The reasons people don’t do it are also myriad. They don’t want to look bulky. You sweat a lot. It hurts. It’s boring. And, you probably should go to a gym, with all that entails, from cost to having to deal with younger and fitter people. And, that’s just for starters.
I wasn’t thinking at all about prediabetes when I started lifting almost 10 years ago. However, as I hit and then passed 50, I got tired of reading that people lose 1% of their muscle mass annually after that birthday. And, with a mother crippled by osteoporosis, I knew the best way to build and maintain bone density is weight-bearing exercise.
Still, I kept putting it off for a lot of the reasons listed above. Then, I stumbled upon a program put out by Tufts University and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) entitled “Growing Stronger: Strength Training for Older Adults.”
At the time, I liked the idea that it was designed for we older people, so I ordered a copy, bought myself a set of 5 lbs. weights, ankle weights, a yoga mat and a step, and started working out two mornings a week behind the closed door of my office.
And, I hated it. Mostly, I sweat a lot, and it was boring. I seldom hurt because it offers good instruction on warming up and cooling down, but I didn’t see that much was happening, either. I suspect some of it was any results were hidden by the pounds I kept putting on. I kept adding exercises to get more results, and moved up to 8 lbs. weights.
Then, prediabetes entered our lives, and with it a copy of Alan L. Rubin’s “Prediabetes for Dummies,” which has a brief weight routine included in its pages. I decided to try it one morning with my 8 lbs. weights just to see what it was like.
Major mistake: I hurt big time. However, while I was doing the movements, I could tell that my muscles were working. The next workout, I tried it again with the 5 lbs. weights, and I haven’t looked back.
Much earlier, when I was reading about the debate over more reps versus more weight, one piece of advice jumped out at me: It’s your exercise, make it what you want.
These days, I’m doing Dr. Rubin’s routine, some leg exercises and the warm-up and cool-down from “Growing Stronger,” some leg stretches from my doctor, a lower back stretch that my brother sugggested and a couple yoga moves. I recently started working with 12 lbs. weights.
I’m still exercising in my office. I’m not sweating as much. I don’t hurt. I feel challenged, and usually when I finish, my endorphins are running high. With my weight loss, I’ve found that old ladies can have abs and pretty good shoulders, too.
You probably still don’t want to lift weights, and it’s not necessarily going to cure what ails you if you have pre-diabetes. However, it’s one more step along the way to better health. Don’t take my word for it. Find yourself a program you think you’d like. Buy some weights.
And, if it doesn’t work for you, keep looking until you find one you do like. I’m glad I did.
If you’re like me, there are a lot of things that you’ve gone through life without studying. My knowledge of diabetes had come mostly from a couple peripheral acquaintances growing up who had type 1 diabetes (insulin shots, no candy), and an elderly cousin of my mother’s.
