Personal Stories: David

My Physical Activity Routine/Program

Since November 2007, I have been walking just over a two-mile course in my neighborhood where I live, which takes me about 45 minutes. I also do a strength-training routine in the basement of our house, for that, I do 3 reps of different exercises of squats and shoulder presses that work all the major muscle groups.

How I Do It: My Routine
Sun	Mon	Tues	Wed	Thurs	Fri	Sat	Quick Check
walk 45 min		walk 45 min		walk 45 min		walk 45 min	Meets aerobic guidelines
	strength training		strength training		strength training		Meets muscle strenthening guidelines

Why I Started

I went to my doctor for a physical, and nothing was good. My cholesterol was high, my triglycerides were high, my glucose level was high, and that’s when I found out that I have Type 2 diabetes. I learned that walking helps control diabetes, so I got serious about it and started walking regularly.

Benefits

All of the numbers reported in my blood work have come down significantly—to the point where my doctor was even (jokingly) questioning the reliability of the results because they were so good. I have been able to control my diabetes with diet and physical activity rather than insulin. I’ve lost about 65 pounds and feel better and have more energy.

Biggest Motivation

Fear of losing a foot. Or going blind. Diabetes can lead to a lot of internal damage if it’s not controlled. It would be very easy to spiral into a downward trend if I stopped being physically active. When I think about not being physically active, the fear of what could happen if I don’t continue my physical activity routine motivates me to do it.

Biggest Thrill

Seeing my hard work pay off, specifically, seeing my blood work results drop so much. You have all these people telling you for years to eat right and exercise. The benefits of doing this are no longer a myth or an ‘old wives’ tale’ to me.

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