Walking is often one of the first things people turn to when they want to stay active and manage their blood sugar. But what if you are already walking regularly and your fasting sugar is still creeping upwards? According to Dr Gagandeep Singh, MBBS, Founder, Redial Clinic, New Delhi, and a specialist in metabolic medicine and diabetes reversal, there is another part of fitness that deserves more attention: muscle strength.
The doctor explains that skeletal muscle plays a major role in clearing glucose from the blood. As muscle mass gradually declines with age, particularly from the forties onwards, and with prolonged sitting, the body's ability to handle glucose can be affected. This is why adding a short strength-focused routine to your day could be worth considering alongside regular walking.
Why muscle matters when it comes to blood sugar
We often focus on food and cardio when talking about type 2 diabetes. But skeletal muscle is the body's largest sink for glucose, according to Dr Singh.
After a meal, glucose circulating in the blood needs to be taken up by tissues. Healthy, active muscles help pull glucose out of circulation. However, muscle mass naturally declines with age and can decline further when a person spends much of the day sitting.
Over time, this can contribute to problems with blood glucose regulation and the development of type 2 diabetes.
This is also why simply adding more and more walking may not be the only answer. Walking remains useful, but muscles need a different kind of challenge to maintain strength and function.
What does resistance training do?
Resistance training means making your muscles work against some form of load. That could involve lifting, pushing, holding or otherwise making a muscle work harder than it normally would.
Dr Singh explains that when muscles are trained in this way, they do more than become stronger. They can become more responsive to glucose and insulin, with the effect potentially lasting for a full day after a single session.
The source also points to pooled data from randomised trials involving people with type 2 diabetes, which found that resistance training on its own can meaningfully lower HbA1c, the measure commonly used to reflect average blood sugar over roughly three months.
You do not need a gym to get started
One of the biggest barriers to strength training is the assumption that it requires a gym, weights or a long workout. Dr Singh's suggested routine challenges that idea.
A few simple movements can be performed at home using your body weight or objects around the house.
Try chair stands
Stand up from a chair and slowly lower yourself back down. Repeat the movement several times, working until you feel your thighs working.
Push against a wall
Stand facing a wall and push against it as though you are trying to move it. This gives the upper body a simple resistance exercise that does not require equipment.
Hold a plank
A plank involves holding your body steady rather than repeatedly moving through a range of motion. Hold the position for as long as you can comfortably manage.
Carry something heavy
Pick up a heavy household object and carry it across the room. The idea is to make your muscles work against a load using something already available at home.
These exercises form part of the 10-minute routine suggested in the source and can be incorporated into the day without requiring a gym membership or a long workout session.
Is 10 minutes enough to prevent diabetes?
It is important not to interpret the 10-minute routine as a cure or a substitute for other aspects of diabetes prevention and management.
Dr Singh specifically stresses that ten minutes is not a cure and does not replace healthy eating or guidance from a doctor. Instead, he describes it as an accessible starting point that can help people give their muscles the regular stimulus they need.
For someone who already walks every morning, adding a short strength routine may therefore be a way to make their activity more balanced rather than replacing their walk altogether.
The muscle you build today matters later
Muscle loss can happen gradually, which means it may not be something people immediately notice. But maintaining muscle strength becomes increasingly important as we get older.
Dr Singh describes the muscle built in your fifties as “metabolic insurance” for the decades that follow. The idea is simple: instead of waiting until strength and muscle mass have significantly declined, make resistance work part of your routine while you are still able to build and maintain it.
The source also shares the example of Ramesh, a 54-year-old man who already walked for 40 minutes every morning and had stopped adding sugar to his tea, yet continued to see his fasting sugar rise. After adding ten minutes of strength work to his mornings, his fasting sugar began to fall within a few months.
That individual example should not be taken as a guarantee that the same result will happen for everyone. But it illustrates the doctor's broader point: physical activity does not have to mean only walking or cardio.
Keep the walk, add strength
For people trying to lower their risk of type 2 diabetes, the takeaway is not to abandon walking. Instead, Dr Singh's advice is to give your muscles some work as well.
A short routine involving chair stands, wall pushes, planks and loaded carries can be a practical place to start at home. The important thing is to begin at a level that is appropriate for your fitness and health status rather than pushing through pain or overexertion.
As Dr Singh puts it, “Your walk is good. Now give your muscles something to do as well.”
Also read:
This monsoon mistake can turn a tiny cut into a serious infection if you have diabetes
