When is it better for people who are obese or diabetic to exercise? New research says, it's night! This is good news for dieters, after all, many people only have free time on weeknights to do all kinds of exercise and exercise. A study published in Diabetes Care in February 2024 noted that adults with obesity or people with diabetes were most effective at exercising at night and had the lowest rates of cardiovascular disease. ①
As we all know, obesity may cause metabolic chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and microvascular disease, and also seriously affect physical health. The report notes that moderate to vigorous physical activity, especially aerobic exercise, not only improves the risk of cardiovascular-related disease, but evening exercise also improves glucose tolerance and insulin resistance caused by circadian rhythm changes. For adults with obesity and diabetes, the balance of blood sugar in the body plays a pivotal role in the body's physical health. The results of this study suggest that evening exercise may reduce cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in patients with obesity and diabetes. Exercising in the afternoon or evening is more effective in relieving the rise in blood sugar and the decrease in insulin sensitivity in the liver caused by meals, resulting in lower fasting blood sugar levels in the morning.
Which sports
Is it more beneficial for weight loss and blood sugar reduction?
Now that there is the best time to exercise, the question arises again: Which exercises are more beneficial and effective for weight loss and blood sugar lowering? Du Wei, deputy chief physician of the Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism of Shanghai Eighth People's Hospital, said in an article published on the hospital's official account that exercise is the best medicine for weight loss. However, for people who are overweight, exercise is one thing they need to try carefully. Because overweight people themselves are overweight, their activities are restricted, and a little carelessness in exercise can cause injuries. (2) So, what exercises are suitable for them to lose weight, and what exercises should they avoid?
Health Times photo by Mao Yuanyuan
1. Exercise suitable for obese and overweight people
1. Swimming
Swimming for 1 hour can burn 400-700 kcal, because the body is only subjected to 10% of the weight pressure due to the buoyancy of the water.
Chen Wei, chief physician of the Department of Clinical Nutrition of Peking Union Medical College Hospital, said in an article published on his personal public account that the energy consumed during swimming is much greater than that of land sports such as running, so the weight loss effect is more obvious. At the same time, the thermal conductivity of water is 24 times greater than that of air, and the water temperature is generally lower than the air temperature, which is also conducive to heat dissipation and energy consumption.
It is recommended to do it 3-5 times a week for 30-40 minutes each time to lose weight. ③
2. Walking
At first, walk 2-3 times a week, and gradually increase to 4-5 times a week for about 30 minutes each time as the body adapts, depending on the physical condition.
3. Seated exercises
For example, Pilates, seated dumbbell exercises, etc.
4. Resistance movement
Gradual resistance exercise is still good for weight loss, but you can gradually increase the amount and time of exercise when your body adapts, you can add it to three times a week.
When overweight people first start exercising, it is recommended to exercise for a total of 30 minutes a day (no less than 10 minutes for a single exercise), and 150 minutes per week. After the body adapts, gradually increase to 300 minutes of exercise per week, that is, a total of 60 minutes of exercise per day, 5 days a week.
2. 5 kinds of exercise to avoid for obese and overweight people
1. Jump rope
Overweight people are not very suitable for jumping rope to lose weight, because when they jump, their weight can easily put too much pressure on the leg joints, leading to sports injuries.
You can use your body mass index (weight in kilograms divided by your height in meters) to determine whether you are suitable for jumping rope. If the body mass index is over 30, it is best not to choose skipping rope exercises, and you can use other gentler weight loss methods.
2. Run
Running, especially brisk running, can easily cause damage to the knee joint, especially for the general population, and even more so for people who are overweight. When running fast, the knee joints and ankles will be subjected to too much pressure when they land, and the slightest mistake can cause injury. Overweight people are advised not to run.
3. Complex Yoga
Yoga moves include a lot of stretching exercises that move joints, stretch muscles, and improve flexibility. Overweight people can try some basic yoga moves, such as meditation pose, tree pose, etc., to lose weight, but those yoga moves that require too much joint flexibility should not be tried yet.
Simple stretching, to be the same as others, fat people will move their joints more than the average person, which is easy to cause joint injuries.
4. Turn to Hula
Is it possible for overweight people to reduce their waistline by turning a hula hoop? Yes, but it is not very suitable. Turning the hula hoop has certain requirements for the flexibility of the waist. Overweight people have too large waist circumference, and it will be relatively difficult to turn the waist, and the rotation is not large, for them, the effect is not obvious.
5. High-intensity interval training
High-intensity interval training is a method of exercise that performs an all-out, fast, explosive workout in a short period of time. However, it is best to have strong cardiopulmonary function before exercising, and pay attention to rest, otherwise it may hurt the body.
Overweight people should exercise to lose weight gradually, starting with low-intensity exercise. High-intensity interval training movements are continuously repetitive, and the exercise intensity is large, which is not easy for overweight people to adhere to.
This article is synthesized from:
①Sabag, A., Ahmadi, M. N., Francois, M. E., Postnova, S., Cistulli, P. A., Fontana, L., & Stamatakis, E. (2024). Timing of Moderate to Vigorous Physical Activity, Mortality, Cardiovascular Disease, and Microvascular Disease in Adults With Obesity. Diabetes care, dc232448. Advance online publication.
(2)2024-04-12Shanghai Eighth People's Hospital Which exercise is suitable for you to lose weight?"
(3)2023-06-06Medical weight loss expert Chen Wei"Do you know what the most suitable weight loss exercise is? Swim and Fitness, find out!"
(Health Times)