- Messages
- 207
- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
HI, I've just signed up to this forum. T2, HbA1c 104 when diagnosed 3 and a half years ago My job is sedentary and I've always hated running or any sort of exercise that got me hot and sticky, and I've always been pretty lazy physically. The only exercise I can keep up on a regular basis is swimming - I've been swimming at least twice a week for half an hour for about 15 years now. I'm reasonably fit for my age (63) as I can do 20 lengths of front crawl in a 25 metre pool without a break. My sugar levels came down for a few years taking medication, but then in April last year I found they'd gone up again (HbA1c 62). I went to see a nutritionist who specialises in treating sportspeople with diabetes, and he advised cutting out carbs completely, restricting my fruit intake and increasing the amount of exercise I do. He also said that, while swimming would be good for my general fitness, it was important to build in exercise that involved less regular movements, as that would help recalibrate my sugar absorption mechanism over time - so he suggested running on rough ground, using a hula hoop or dancing. He also said that it was important to do at least five minutes of fairly high-energy exercise first thing in the morning, to wake my system up. I decided to dance - I had lots of fun putting together music that I liked, and made myself a playlist from which I play three songs at a time, three times a day. I always dance soon after waking, and then fit in the other two sessions when I can. That gives me about half an hour of exercise daily, and fits into my normal routine very easily - and it's fun, and seldom feels like a chore. This advice was absolutely brilliant, as I know what I'm like when it comes to trying to keep up any activity that I don't like and which doesn't fit easily into my lifestyle. After a year of daily dancing and regular swimming, plus following his advice about diet, my HbA1c dropped to 36 without any medication. So this is the regime that has worked for me, fingers crossed that it continues to do so.