Physical activities are very essential in keeping a person energetic and healthy. In the case of diabetic, exercise has an important role in regulating blood glucose; avoiding long-term complications of diabetes; maintaining body weight and in minimizing medication.

Exercises like jogging, swimming, fast walking and cycling are good for diabetics. These exercises help to keep cardiovascular system in good condition. These exercises should couple with stretching exercises as warming and cooling down exercises. A typical exercise session should consist of: 10 minutes of warming up exercise of stretching type; about 20-30 minutes of aerobic exercise and finally 5 minutes of cool down and stretching exercise.

Precautions before and during exercise

1. Fix the timing of exercise.
2. Avoid the peak insulin activity period for exercise.
3. Pay special attention to proper foot wear. Never do out door exercise bare feet.
4. Do not forget the warm-up and cool-down exercises.
5. Keep in mind the symptoms of hypoglycemia and how to prevent it.
6. Remember the warning signs of impending cardiac complications, such as discomfort or pain in the chest, abdomen, back, neck or arms. These are the signs of inadequate supply of blood and oxygen.
7. If there are any unusual symptoms during or after the exercise, discuss them with your doctor.
8. Measure, if possible, blood glucose before and immediately after the exercise and again an hour later. The exercise should bring down the blood glucose.

If one follow the above guidelines of exercise, good diet control with medication recommended by doctor, one can achieve a good blood sugar control, cardiovascular conditioning, strengthening the muscles and skeletal system. This also helps in avoiding altogether or minimizing the long-term complications of diabetes.