Low-Impact Exercises for Seniors With Diabetes

Diabetes and kidney disease is incredibly prevalent but also incredibly dangerous in seniors, especially those who have been battling its symptoms for decades.

However, you or your loved one can thrive, and stay active in a safe way, which will help to protect your kidneys and ultimately protect you from heart disease, which happens to thousands of those suffering from kidney disease and/or diabetes given their lifestyle and/or loss of motivation given their health condition.

According to the Finnish Diabetic Nephropathy Study, mortality rates for those with chronic kidney disease and type 1 diabetes were greatly reduced from a higher level of physical activity, which is why we compiled a short-list of three low-impact, easy exercises to follow that will help you burn calories, lift your mood, strengthen your bones and muscles, and in doing so, decrease risk of heart disease.

Chair yoga

Yoga can help reduce stress and hypertension – something critical for diabetes patients who need to make sure they can keep their diabetes metrics at healthy, steady levels each day. Thankfully, there are countless videos on YouTube that can allow your loved one to work these chair stretches specifically for them into their daily routine. Another benefit is that it helps seniors keep their balance, adding an extra degree of safety to the movements.

Try out this video below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=je4NYlKAFRQ

Walking

It may sound simple, but the more you walk or try to walk each day than you normally do, the easier it will become to make this a part of your exercise regime. It has a low risk of injury, and of course, can be facilitated with a cane or walker, or if possible, nordic walking sticks. The trick to getting the most out of your walk as a senior is to increase your heart rate by walking a bit faster at times. This will help you get more steps in and get your heart pumping as you burn calories.

Tip: Get a FitBit or pedometer to track your steps!

Muscle strengthening

There is a common misconception that you cannot work out if you are on dialysis specifically. While any treatment such as dialysis can make a senior loved one feel tired, try your best to work in 15-20 minutes of exercise per day as this will actually help them gain more energy. Additionally, dialysis treatments can lead to muscle degeneration, which means it’s extremely important to keep the muscles nice and limber. Try the video below for a highly effective

Tip: You don’t need light weights at all to make – in fact, you can use a water bottle or stretchy fabric like in this video below!