An indication of pre-diabetes is being overweight or obese. If you have been putting on excessive weight lately, especially around the waist, you are heading into the danger zone of pre-diabetes.
Consequences of being overweight
If you are carrying too much weight in all the wrong places there will be consequences – many of which can be avoided and even reversed with a good diet and a workout program to prevent pre-diabetes.
Excessive weight will put more stress on your heart and more pressure on your breathing capacity.
It will cause you to need more frequent rest periods because of fatigue.
It could cause embarrassment which puts stress on you mentally.
There is more pressure on your body, in general, especially your lower extremities, which can cause certain types injuries – falling, plantar fasciitis, joint problems to name a few.
A new study has determined that excess weight gain and being obese could increase the risk of developing cancer.
Steps to prevent weight gain and lose weight with exercise
Exercise comes in three simple steps – flexibility, cardiovascular movements and resistance training. Some will include ‘rest and recovery’ as part of an exercise program and rightly so. This comes after exerting effort in the first three steps.
For flexibility to be effective it should be done regularly. I stretch everyday as part of a healthy routine. And because I exercise often this is even more important.
I use to do my cardio routine after doing weight training but for the past few years I do them before weights because it gets my body good and warmed-up. I do HIIT (high intensity interval training) to get a good sweat on. For those who don’t want to sweat as much . . . tone down the intensity.
There are several ways to include resistance in a regular workout program. You can use resistance bands, body weight, free weights, cable systems or machines. Or you can do like ‘Rocky’ and make your own.
Prevent pre-diabetes with this exercise
The following exercise routine is one I recommend as a full-body workout you can do every other day. I call it the ‘FAT BURNER’. It has help me keep my A1c in the normal range. I do an extended version but you can cut it to twenty minutes to a half hour to complete.
Do three minutes of stretching – starting from your head down to your feet.
Next do a hiit session using your favorite cardio equipment – jump rope, treadmill, cross-trainer, high hops or plyos. You only need ten minutes of this . . . a shorter version than I normally do.
For your resistance you will select one exercise that focuses on all the major muscle group and do that exercise to exhaustion. Do multi-joint movements. For example, do one set of bench-press using moderate weight and rep out as many as you can.
Next do a set of squats to exhaustion. Follow this with a back and arm workout and finish with one burnout shoulder press exercise. By the time you are finish you will be sweaty and exhausted but feeling pumped all over.
Remember to feed your muscles during the recovery period (after you finish exercising) with a good protein supplemental drink. This is when muscles grow and get stronger.
Do this routine twice per week and you will well on your way to preventing pre-diabetes.