Walk Your Way to Better Blood Sugar Control

Everyone with diabetes or prediabetes knows that control of blood sugar levels is important.  But did you know that just walking for 2 minutes after meals is helpful in lowering blood sugar?  Yes, just 2 minutes.  And walking has so many other health benefits.  A relative with prediabetes was at the doctor’s this week for a checkup.  The doctor was impressed with how well the relative was controlling her blood sugar.  The relative said she tries to stay active.  The doctor said too many of his patients with prediabetes aren’t active which raises their blood glucose levels. 

How does walking help lower blood sugar levels? 

After you eat a meal, your body digests the meal and turns the carbs you eat like starches, fruit, and desserts into sugar.  This sugar enters your blood raising blood sugar levels.  Exercising after one eats a meal or snack helps your body get that sugar into cells to be used for energy.  

Walking is good exercise as everyone knows.  But for those with high blood sugar, when is it best to walk?  Is it better to go for a 45 minute walk every morning, to walk before you eat a meal or walk soon after you eat a meal?  What does the research show?

Going for a 15-minute or a 20-minue walk after meals – A study in 2009 found that going for a 20-minute walk about 15 minutes after a meal lowered one’s blood sugar level in people with Type 2 diabetes.  Walking after one ate was much better for lowering blood sugar than walking before a meal or not walking at all. This is not surprising since your body burns up the sugar in your blood when you exercise, like going for a walk.  Basically, the sugar in your blood enters your muscle cells and your body uses that sugar to fuel your walk.  Other studies have found that going for a 15-minute walk after meals is better for blood sugar levels than walking for 45-minutes in the morning.   

How about a 2-to-5-minute walk?  No time for a 15-to-20-minute walk?  Are there any benefits to walking for only 2 to 5 minutes after a meal?  An article in the journal Sports Medicine did find that “A short walk, anywhere from two to five minutes, is enough to result in lower blood sugar levels after a meal”.  

What about standing?  Can simply standing more after a meal have any benefit on blood sugar levels?  Standing does help some in blood sugar control but not as much as walking after a meal. 

When to walk.  The biggest benefits seem to be walking right after you eat or up to 60 to 90 minutes after you eat.  Office job?  Take some time to go outside and walk around the block, take a quick stroll to use up some of that blood sugar.  If you cannot go for a walk outside, then walk around the office.  I used to walk the halls, then go up and down a few flights of stairs.   A relative worked in a school at a desk job.  She took periodic breaks to walk down the halls, up a flight of stairs to the second floor, down that hall and down another flight of stairs.  Rather than send a person in your office an email, walk to their office to talk to them.  Still short on time after a meal?  Then at least stand at your desk and take some phone calls standing up. 

Standing and walking.  Try both.  Break up sitting with standing and with walking breaks throughout the day.  Watching TV, walk and stand during commercials.  At your office desk?  Stand during phone calls or stand at your desk periodically throughout the day.  Also, take some short walking breaks throughout the day.  These activities will help you keep blood glucose levels under control.

We all know walking is good for us.  For those with prediabetes or Type 2 diabetes, taking a stroll after a meal is especially beneficial to controlling blood sugar levels.  “Walking, or even standing, for two to five minutes after a meal can have a significant impact on blood sugar, research proves.”   So instead of sitting at your desk, sitting in front of the TV, or laying on the couch after a meal, take some time to go for a walk.  For those who do not have prediabetes or Type 2 diabetes, walking and controlling blood sugar is also beneficial.  “Even among those who do not have diabetes, exposure to chronic levels of blood sugar can increase risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes down the road”, says Michelle Cardel, a RD and senior director of global clinical research and nutrition at WW (Weight Watchers).  For better health, build some walking after meals into your days this week. 

In conclusion, incorporating walking into your daily routine, especially after meals, can significantly help in controlling blood sugar levels.  Whether you have diabetes, prediabetes, or are simply looking to maintain a healthy lifestyle, taking a few minutes to walk after eating can make a big difference.  Not only does it help manage blood sugar, but is also contributes to overall physical health and well-being.  So, next time you finish a meal, consider taking a short walk instead of sitting down.  Your body will thank you for it! 

(Note:  for more helpful advice on prediabetes, see “Prediabetes?  What is it?  What lifestyle changes should you make? )

 

Sources:  study , Sports Medicine , find , sugar levels , says   Image sources:  blood sugar , Just 2 minutes of walking , Taking the stairs