Stay at Home Fitness

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Stay At Home Fitness
By Chris Sparling

Though you are sure to find people with diabetes working out in a gym or health club, many instead prefer the greater sense of safety they feel while working out in the comfort of their own homes. Here, they are they are better equipped to deal with hypoglycemic episodes or unexpected blood sugar spikes.

However, there are some downsides to working out at home. One could easily point to the lack of fitness equipment, but as you’ll see later in this article, that is actually an easy hurdle to overcome. The bigger barriers to contend with are boredom and distraction. You get bored with a routine or you become distracted by clothes that need washing, errands that need to be done, or the lure of your favorite television show. Fortunately, there are ways around both of these issues. And best of all, none of the solutions require you to jettison your new TV. That’s because this at-home exercise program will center on cardiovascular health, basic muscle toning, and -- here comes the fun part – watching that TV!!

Tuning In To Your Workout

To complete this workout, you will need to focus on the ABCs. And, the NBCs and CBSs, too. Your workout will be based on the primetime schedule of shows that appear on the top television networks. You'll workout three times this week, which also means that you'll be watching three separate TV shows. But, unlike most times you watch the tube, you'll be burning calories while working out. Of course, before engaging in an exercise program of any kind, you should always consult with your physician and endocrinologist first. Once you have, I'll meet you in the next paragraph.

Hello again. Thanks for rejoining us for our regularly scheduled program. This workout is based on audio or visual cues that will prompt you to perform a particular exercise. It can be applied to just about any television show, requiring only that you designate audio or visual cues before the program starts. Once you hear or see that cue, that’s when you get moving!! So, not only is this a great way to burn some calories and help regulate blood sugar, but it also serves as the perfect means of catching up son some of your favorite shows. So much for boredom and distraction!!

• Home Makeover Shows (ex. Extreme Makeover, Trading Spaces): Perform 10-15 squats (with or without dumbbells) every time someone says the word “clean.” Bonus: to really amp-up your workout, use the same cue during commercials.
• Medical Dramas (ex. Grey’s Anatomy, E.R., House, M.D): Every time you hear one of the characters say a medical term, start walking in place. Continue walking until the next commercial break.
• Crime Dramas (ex. C.S.I., Law & Order, Criminal Minds): Perform 5-10 push-ups every time someone says the word “victim.” If you find traditional push-ups to be too difficult, you can perform modified push-ups from your knees.
• Sitcoms (ex. Three and a Half Men, The Office, My Name is Earl): Do 5-10 standing rows every time a new character enters the scene.
• dLifeTV: Every time you see a blood glucose testing meter appear on screen, perform 5-10 lunges, with or without dumbbells. Bonus: to kick things up a notch, perform 5-10 dumbbell curls every time someone says the word “diabetes.”

Reviewed by Francine Kaufman, MD. 4/08