Resistance Versus Aerobic Exercise

Abstract

OBJECTIVEIn type 1 diabetes, small studies have found that resistance exercise (weight lifting) reduces HbA1c. In the current study, we examined the acute impacts of resistance exercise on glycemia during exercise and in the subsequent 24 h compared with aerobic exercise and no exercise.RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODSTwelve physically active individuals with type 1 diabetes (HbA1c 7.1 ± 1.0%) performed 45 min of resistance exercise (three sets of seven exercises at eight repetitions maximum), 45 min of aerobic exercise (running at 60% of Vo2max), or no exercise on separate days. Plasma glucose was measured during and for 60 min after exercise. Interstitial glucose was measured by continuous glucose monitoring 24 h before, during, and 24 h after exercise.RESULTSTreatment-by-time interactions (P < 0.001) were found for changes in plasma glucose during and after exercise. Plasma glucose decreased from 8.4 ± 2.7 to 6.8 ± 2.3 mmol/L (P = 0.008) during resistance exercise and from 9.2 ± 3.4 to 5.8 ± 2.0 mmol/L (P = 0.001) during aerobic exercise. No significant changes were seen during the no-exercise control session. During recovery, glucose levels did not change significantly after resistance exercise but increased by 2.2 ± 0.6 mmol/L (P = 0.023) after aerobic exercise. Mean interstitial glucose from 4.5 to 6.0 h postexercise was significantly lower after resistance exercise versus aerobic exercise.CONCLUSIONSResistance exercise causes less initial decline in blood glucose during the activity but is associated with more prolonged reductions in postexercise glycemia than aerobic exercise. This might account for HbA1c reductions found in studies of resistance exercise but not aerobic exercise in type 1 diabetes.

Quantifying the Acute Changes in Glucose with Exercise in Type 1 Diabetes: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

“…Of the remaining 17 articles, we decided not to include another eight studies in our meta-analysis due to three reasons that were identified post hoc, namely: (1) in five studies [20][21][22][23][24], patients were supplied with rescue dextrose or carbohydrates, which meant that glucose profiles were artificially altered by these emergency interventions; (2) two studies [25,26] consisted of a single 10 s sprint at the beginning/end of a session and could not therefore be strictly considered to be either CONT or IHE; and (3) one study [27] did not provide any data about inter-subject variability (mean population profiles only were given). During the process of peer review for this report, journal reviewers identified one extra study that fulfilled our inclusion criteria: Yardley et al [28].…”

Physical Activity Capture Technology With Potential for Incorporation Into Closed-Loop Control for Type 1 Diabetes

“…In addition, glucose lowering is rapid with aerobic exercise. 16,17 However, only 4 studies have studied the impact of both aerobic and anaerobic training in the same patients with T1D. [18][19][20][21] Reports from these studies to date have not provided estimates of rate of change in plasma or interstitial fluid glucose in the same individual with aerobic and resistance activity under otherwise comparable dietary and insulin managements conditions.…”

A Low–Glycemic Index Meal and Bedtime Snack Prevents Postprandial Hyperglycemia and Associated Rises in Inflammatory Markers, Providing Protection From Early but Not Late Nocturnal Hypoglycemia Following Evening Exercise in Type 1 Diabetes

“…Strategies to combat exercise-induced hypoglycemia, such as manipulating exercise intensity (4), insulin dose, diet (5-7), or the order in which various exercise types are undertaken (8), have predominantly been tested for morning exercise (5)(6)(7). However, many individuals prefer to exercise in the evening because of study and work commitments or for social reasons.…”