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Diabetes means that your blood glucose (also called blood sugar) is too high. Your body uses glucose for energy. But having too much glucose in your blood can hurt you. When you take care of your diabetes, you’ll feel better. You’ll reduce your risk for problems with your kidneys, eyes, nerves, feet and legs, and teeth. You’ll also lower your risk for a heart attack or a stroke.People with diabetes are encouraged to exercise regularly for better blood sugar control and to reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases. The reason for this is that muscles which are working use more glucose than those that are resting.Muscle movement leads to greater sugar uptake by muscle cells and lower blood sugar levels. Additional benefits of exercise include a healthier heart, better weight control and stress management. There are some exercise precautions which people with diabetes must take, however, when done safely, exercise is a valuable aid to optimal health.Exercise, along with good nutrition, helps decrease body fat, which helps normalize glucose metabolism. Also, exercise helps ower coronary risk factors like high blood pressure and high cholesterol.Cardiovascular training should be the foundation of the exercise program. Aim for at least 20 minutes of sustained activity three to five days per week. If one suffers from loss of sensitivity in the feet, avoid exercises such as prolonged walking, jogging or step exercises. Better choices for cardiovascular exercise would be swimming, bicycling, rowing, chair exercises and other non-weight bearing activities. Fluid intake is important during exercise, and especially so with cardiovascular activity and the diabetic exerciser. Consider a high-glucose sports drink like Gatorade or fruit juices over water, which can help keep blood sugar from going too low. Drink fluid before, during and after exercise.Aerobic exerciseSince many Type 2 diabetics are sedentary and overweight, low-impact exercise such as walking or stationary cycling is recommended, along with enough exercise to promote weight management. Their goal should be to exercise five times per week, up to 40 – 60 minutes per session at a moderate intensity. This level of exercise can be reached gradually, starting as low as 10 – 20 minutes a few times a week for a person who has never exercised. Remember to increase only one factor at a time (days per week, length of session, or intensity).Flexibility exercises -Flexibility exercises, also called stretching, helps keep joints flexible and reduces the chances of injury during other activities. Gentle stretching for 5 to 10 minutes helps the body to warm up, as well as get ready for aerobic activities.Remember: Exercise is powerful therapy — so powerful that you shouldn’t try it without a little professional guidance. (After all, you’d never start taking extra-strong diabetes pills without your doctor’s okay.) Your doctor can help you fit exercise into your overall health plan. You may need to adjust your medications, carry snacks or drinks, or tweak your diet to help prevent hypoglycemia (low blood sugar). This can happen to people with Type 2 diabetes, but it’s much more common for people with Type 1. If you have this type of diabetes, you’ll have to work especially closely with your doctor to find the right balance of exercise, diet, and medications.

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The first age-related changes may appear as you are reaching your mid forties. However, with a healthy way of life, you may prevent or postponed many age-related diseases. Adequate exercise and a sensible diet play a key role. If you need to have any reason to start an exercise, it would be having a healthier life and enhancing years of quality lifestyle so you can enjoy life to the fullest.

Finding the motivation to begin a lifelong exercise program such as Tai Chi may be a challenge for you, but you have already shown your determination to take positive steps for yourself by reading this article. As a Tai Chi and fitness coach, I can provide you with the guidance and coaching tools you need to begin a safe and effective Tai Chi program and to keep your program working for you over time. The motivation to exercise, however, must come from within you.

During my university life, endless assignment and lap reports plus research always make me feel so fatigue and mentally drained that my activity levels inevitable fall off. However, due to my regular Tai Chi practices way back before my university life, I was determined to allocate time to continue my Tai Chi practice routine even during my exam period. The main satisfaction and motivation which keep me going come from the fact that I understand what Ta Chi exercise can benefit my physical and also know I will feel really good and refreshed after my Tai Chi workout which also helps to as a form of de-stress from my studies.

Once you begin learning Tai Chi, whether Tai Chi is completely new for you or whether you have already been practicing Tai Chi and want to add a new element to your Tai Chi program, your motivation to stick with it may be challenged from time to time. In the following section, I’ll describe some common barriers you might come across in staying with your Tai Chi exercise routine and also some strategies for overcoming them.

Occasional lapses in your Tai Chi exercise program are often inevitable and not unexpected. Skipping some Tai Chi practices should not discourage you to the event that you want to give up completely. During a lapse, your main objective should be to optimize the time that you are away from Tai Chi practice and get back into your regular routine as soon as possible.

ADDRESSING BARRIERS TO TAI CHI EXERCISE

It is perfectly normally that each of us does encounters barriers to maintaining a regular exercise program at one time or another. Some of us face many barriers and commitments, and that makes the challenge to begin and stick with exercise even tougher. Nonetheless, with a strong determination and a clear goal setting, you can overcome these barriers. Some of the most common reasons people give for not being able to participate in exercise or for discontinuing exercise are

Indeed, barriers can be tough to overcome but it is not impossible. It’s always the question of mind over body. Regardless of what the barrier is, the motivation to address and overcome it needs to come from within you. This type of motivation is known as intrinsic motivation (Richard H. Cox, 2002, Deci E. L. & Ryan R. M, 1985) and it comes from your internal commitment to your health and overall well-being. I will share some of the solutions which can help you overcome these barriers and to avoid lapses in your Tai Chi exercise program (Kerri Winters-Stone, 2005).

Lack of time (work, family commitment)

It has always been one of the top barriers for anyone to stop or even begin any exercise program. Who say you cannot mix your Tai Chi practice into your work schedule and even your family time? I’m not suggesting for you to skip work or go off early without finishing your work just to make time for your Tai Chi practice. In fact, you can be practicing Tai Chi every minute of your time, even as when I’m writing this article.

Tai Chi is not just about the graceful and smooth movements that make it so enchanting, it is in fact a way of everyday life which includes the emphasize on the correct postural alignment on how we should stand, sit, squat, walk or even sleep. The basis of Tai Chi comes from the focus on the correct postural alignment, where the neck and spine are neutral with the body standing tall and erect and the pelvic tilts to engage the core muscles.

Once you understand this principle of Tai Chi postural alignment, you can basically practice it no matter where you are or what you are doing. Coupled with the proper breathing technique, it can even improved your concentration and focus and make you feel much more confident and mentally alert.

You can also break your Tai Chi practices into shorter but more frequent bouts. On average, a Tai Chi routine lasts between 5 to 6 minutes and that’s all you need to spare out of your lunch or tea break. Alternatively, you may even choose to practice it in the early morning just before you go to work, which will definitely make you feel more refreshed as compared to a cup of coffee.

Lack of support from family or friends

The beauty of Tai Chi is that you can choose to practice it alone, in a small group or even in large group together. The lack of support from family or friends comes mainly from the amount of time you spent exercising on your own that you tend to spend lesser time with them. To solve this issue, simply share with them the benefits which you experience with Tai Chi and invite them to join you. In this way, the family time together is not compromised and even more meaningful.

Personally, my parents together with my niece and nephews all joined me in Tai Chi practice and it has been a great family gets together. While they might not join you right away, at least let them understand more about the benefits of Tai Chi and what they can achieve out of it. It took me 2 years just to get my mum to start learning Tai Chi and now, she’s basically practicing Tai Chi basically everyday. Even when she’s doing her cooking, she would do it using the Tai Chi stance and posture. How motivating!

Unexpected or frequent travel

If you are frequently travelling due to work commitment, Tai Chi is definitely your choice of exercise workout as you can practice Tai Chi anywhere in the world! Just visit any park, garden in any country where there are Chinese and you will see people practicing Tai Chi in the morning. You will be surprised that you may even make new Tai Chi friends while travelling abroad where you will reap the additional social benefits out of exercising.

Inclement Weather

You don’t have to depend on the weather to do your Tai Chi practice. While the park or garden would be an ideal location for Tai Chi practices, especially in the early morning or evening when the air is fresh, you can always choose to do it in any open area.

Whether rain or shine, there is no limitation to the training location since you don’t need any equipment. Hence, you can do your Tai Chi practice almost anywhere where you can choose to do your Tai Chi workout either indoor with air-conditioned or even under the void deck with shelter.

Lack of enjoyment or motivation

Something you will find practicing the same Tai Chi routine getting too boring. Having some changes or adding new element such as using the favorite music you like when doing your Tai Chi helps to keep you motivated and enjoyable.

Also, you can learn new Tai Chi routines in a group so that you have more options and can alternate the different Tai Chi routines in different days of your workout. There are many different styles of Tai Chi quan with their unique characteristic which you will definitely find one of them suitable for you.

One of the main reasons why people like to exercise in a group is because they enjoy interacting with other people. Try promoting interaction during your Tai Chi practices and you will find yourself reaping the benefits of social benefits of exercise. Remember that for any group cohesion, people who adhered to a program had higher levels of group cohesiveness. It may be extremely important to the whole exercise experience in terms of making a difference in your health and fitness regime (Kennedy and Yoke, 2004).

KEEPING IT FUN

This article has been focused on finding ways to stay motivated to Tai Chi exercise. As I mentioned at the beginning, this can be a great challenge. As with anything you do on a regular basis, it’s easier to stick to a routine if you enjoy what you are doing.

You have so many different styles of Tai Chi to select from that one of them is bound to capture your interest. You may have to try out different types of Tai Chi routines, different settings, different equipment, and so forth until you find something which you enjoy and feel motivated.

You won’t always like an activity at first, so make sure that you give any new Tai Chi exercise a long enough trial run. At the same time, don’t force yourself to stick with something you don’t like. You will only be setting yourself up to get turned off by exercise in the long run. Inevitably, there will be days where it will be hard to exercise, and you may have to drag yourself to the park. As long as it doesn’t happen too often, you can usually trudge through them. With constant motivation and a clear goal setting in mind, you will be on your journey to achieving a lifelong fitness with Tai Chi.

REFERENCES

DECI E. L. & RYAN R. M (1985) Intrinsic motivation and self-determination in human behavior, New York, Plenum.

KENNEDY, C. A. & YOKE, M. M. (2004) Methods of Group Exercise Instruction.

KERRI WINTERS-STONE, P. (2005) Action Plan For Osteoporosis – Your guide to stronger, healthier bones, USA, Human Kinetics. RICHARD H. COX (2002) Sport Psychology : Concepts and Applications, New York, McGraw Hill.

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When is the best time to do exercise?To improve the sleep quality it is recommended to do exercise during mid to late afternoon. Experiment yourself to find the best time that work best for you. It might take several weeks of trial and error to determine the best time of day for you to get your exercise. If you’re a morning person, you may want to wake up a little earlier every day and go to the gym or jog around the neighborhood. That will start your day to an energetic start.If you find you can’t exercise in the morning, maybe you could hit the gym on your lunch break or immediately after work. Some people find that evening exercise winds them up, while others find it helps them sleep.Avoid exercise in the late evening or just before going to bed. Exercise is actually stimulating the body, raising its temperature. It can take quite a while for your muscles and circulation system to calm down again after a vigorous workout. That’s the opposite of what you want near bedtime, because a cooler body temperature is associated with sleep. What kind of exercise works best?Regular exercise works best for most people, but the exact type and amount varies from individual. Try to work with a personal trainer or exercise instructor to design a program that works best for you, especially if you are new to exercise. Endurance exercise such as walking, swimming or cycling, performed for 30 to 60 minutes, three to five days a week is commonly prescribed for improving sleep quality in healthy adults. (Make sure to consult your doctor that you are healthy enough to conduct such exercise).The exercise should involve vigorous use of legs which should help with your sleep. The fatigue produced by [using leg muscles] acts as a tranquilizer. Aerobic exercises such as jogging, swimming, riding a bicycle, jumping rope, dancing, riding a stationary bicycle, using a treadmill, and walking are the best to combat sleeplessness in which it increases the oxygen that reaches the blood. A mild workout for fifteen to twenty minutes a day, four days a week, will be enough to feel the benefits. Stretch before and after doing anything vigorous. Let cool-down after exercising, before you do any stretching.With regular exercise your sleep quality is improved and the transition between the cycles and phases of sleep becomes smoother and more regular. Try to increase your physical daily activity during the day may also help you deal with the stress and worry in your life. The goal here is to give your body enough stimulation during the day so that you are not restless at night. But DO NOT overdoing it, as ironically, too much exercise can interfere with sleep. Start at a reasonable level activity you enjoy, and increase exercise volume gradually to avoid injury and sleep problems.

Studies indicate that there is a direct correlation between how much we exercise and how we feel both emotionally and physically by changes in our brain chemistry that occur from regular exercise.Mild, non-aerobic exercise may help you unwind at the end of the day and maybe beneficial to handle insomnia problem. Take a leisurely walk or gentle dancing to pleasant music can help you lift your mood and relax the body. The ollowing activities are relaxing and have other healing properties:- Yoga has a stimulatory effect on your nervous system, in particular to the brain. Yoga uses breathing techniques and yoga postures increase blood circulation of the brain, promoting regular and restful sleeping patterns. Regular practice of yoga will relax you as well as relieve stress and tension in your body.- Tai Chi is a form of breathing and movement that was developed by ancient Chinese monks. The movements involved are precise and slow, which is ideal if you have joint pain or are unable to participate in high impact aerobic exercises. Studies have shown that Tai Chi might help people with insomnia by promoting relaxation.If you find that you have no time to exercise on a regular basis try to add extra moments of activity into your daily schedule. Take the stairs instead of the elevator whenever possible.Try parking your car around the corner and walking that extra block to your office. There are many small simple ways that you can add activity into your life. Your goal is to have a healthy, well balanced life.

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Just put on your exercising gear and make your wish come true. For overall health any form of physical activity or exercise is very important. Exercising has manifold benefits both physical as well as mental. Half an hour of exercising everyday can give you the vigour and energy to carry on your daily routine without any hitch. Any form of exercising whether its aerobic exercise, strength training or yoga can give you the same benefits regardless of age, sex, and level of physical ability.

Regular Exercise makes your mood fresh and makes you feel better as well as look better. One of the most important benefits of exercise is that it boosts your confidence and improves the level of self-esteem.

Exercise is very important for heart health. During exercise your body delivers oxygen and nutrients to tissues which improves cardiovascular system of body. Benefits of exercise are increased if you are doing it regularly. Regular exercises improve the circulation of blood through your heart and blood vessels. A healthy heart will provide you more energy for your day to day activities.

If you have chronic problems like arthritis, diabetes and heart disease then resort to exercises. Regular exercise regime can assist you to manage and enjoy a healthy lifestyle even with these health problems. Regular exercise improves high-density lipoprotein (HDL), or fine amount of cholesterol along with reducing low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or bad cholesterol. Also physical activity helps in osteoporosis, type 2 diabetes and reducing overall risk of cancer.

Weight is the biggest health risk for people these days. For people who want to reduce weight and burn some calories. Walking, jogging, dancing, yoga or just any form of physical exercise can benefit you in your struggle to weight loss. Try to inculcate physical activity in your daily routine. Controlling weight won’t be a huge struggling if you are exercising. Of course you need to pay attention on your diet also.

Also exercise assist you to improving your sleep pattern, building immunity and developing positive approach towards life. Exercise doesn’t have to be boring routine. It can be fun and if you don’t like going to gym then there is no need to. Do what you like to do. Biking, running, walking and even dancing can provide you the benefits of exercising. So now stop searching for reasons to stay in bed and get going. For more information, Please visit us at http://www.soundbodytrainer.com

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