Differences in the acute effects of aerobic and resistance exercise in subjects with type 2 diabetes: results from the RAED2 Randomized Trial

PLoS One. 2012;7(12):e49937. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0049937. Epub 2012 Dec 5.

Abstract

Objective: Both aerobic (AER) and resistance (RES) training, if maintained over a period of several months, reduce HbA1c levels in type 2 diabetes subjects. However, it is still unknown whether the short-term effects of these types of exercise on blood glucose are similar. Our objective was to assess whether there may be a difference in acute blood glucose changes after a single bout of AER or RES exercise.

Study design: Twenty-five patients participating in the RAED2 Study, a RCT comparing AER and RES training in diabetic subjects, were submitted to continuous glucose monitoring during a 60-min exercise session and over the following 47 h. These measurements were performed after 10.9+0.4 weeks of training. Glucose concentration areas under the curve (AUC) during exercise, the subsequent night, and the 24-h period following exercise, as well as the corresponding periods of the non-exercise day, were assessed. Moreover, the low (LBGI) and high (HBGI) blood glucose indices, which summarize the duration and extent of hypoglycaemia or hyperglycaemia, respectively, were measured.

Results: AER and RES training similarly reduced HbA1c. Forty-eight hour glucose AUC was similar in both groups. However, a comparison of glucose AUC during the 60-min exercise period and the corresponding period of the non-exercise day showed that glucose levels were lower during exercise in the AER but not in the RES group (time-by-group interaction p = 0.04). Similar differences were observed in the nocturnal periods (time-by-group interaction p = 0.02). Accordingly, nocturnal LBGI was higher in the exercise day than in the non-exercise day in the AER (p = 0.012) but not in the RES group (p = 0.62).

Conclusions: Although AER and RES training have similar long-term metabolic effects in diabetic subjects, the acute effects of single bouts of these exercise types differ, with a potential increase in late-onset hypoglycaemia risk after AER exercise.

Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01182948.

Publication types

  • Randomized Controlled Trial
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Blood Glucose / analysis
  • Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / physiopathology*
  • Exercise*
  • Humans
  • Weight Lifting*

Substances

  • Blood Glucose

Associated data

  • ClinicalTrials.gov/NCT01182948

Grants and funding

This study was supported in part by grants to P. Moghetti from the University of Verona and from the Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria Integrata Verona, Verona, Italy. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.