Aerobic Exercise and Resistance Training Benefit Glycemic Control

Aerobic exercise and resistance training can improve glycemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes. Researchers recently assessed the combination of these two types of physical activity in a randomized trial: 251 inactive adults with type 2 diabetes were assigned to aerobic exercise (45-minute sessions), resistance training (7 different exercises on weight machines), both types of activity, or neither. Exercise-group patients performed their assigned activities three times weekly.

After 6 months, hemoglobin A_1c values had decreased 0.4 to 0.5 percentage points more among aerobic-exercise or resistance-training patients than among controls. Compared with patients engaging in just one type of exercise, those combining the two types had add…