Diabetes can put a damper on how you are able to complete your job tasks as well as your resilience and performance on a day to day basis, particularly for the industrial athlete. Not only that, but it is a stepping stone to more serious diseases. In fact…we dare you to think of a serious threat to your health that diabetes is not a risk factor for!

The industrial athlete should be savvy about this disease as it will affect job tasks and duties typically done in a manual labor position. Common symptoms of diabetes are extreme fatigue, blurry vision, difficulty healing, and tingling, pain or numbness in the hands and feet. Now think of ANY job in the industrial setting. These are all fairly inconvenient symptoms when working on your feet all day, using your hands for tasks, and staying productive, among other things. We can’t leave our personal health and wellness at home-it comes to work with us too!

We have good news though. 

#1) Diabetes can be prevented altogether. (And you know how much we LOVE prevention)  

#2) Diabetes can be managed. (Guess what, prevention STILL applies here because managing diabetes, even after diagnosed, is important to prevent the chronic, long term effects of diabetes!)

Let’s just go over the basics. Keep things simple and get started on the right path with nutrition and fitness.

Nutrition:

• Stick to:
  • Fruits and vegetables
  • Lean meats and plant-based sources of protein
  • Less added sugar
  • Less processed foods
• Be sure your eating patterns include lots of non-starchy vegetables (i.e. broccoli, carrots, and cauliflower), minimizing added sugars and refined grains, and choosing whole, minimally processed foods.
• Consider replacing foods high in saturated fat (such as butter and fatty beef) with foods rich in unsaturated fats (such as olive oil, nuts, avocados, and fish).
• Try the Diabetes Plate Method: ½ your plate is non starchy vegetables; ¼ your plate is carbohydrate foods, and ¼ your plate is protein foods. Add 4 glasses of water or a 0-calorie drink.
  • The carbohydrates or carbs you eat play an important role in managing diabetes. The goal is to choose carbs that are nutrient-dense, meaning rich in fiber, vitamins, and minerals and low in added sugars, sodium, and unhealthy fats.

Fitness:

• Regular physical activity is an important part of managing diabetes or dealing with prediabetes
  • When you are active, it helps your body use sugar for energy more effectively. And, you just feel better!
• Light walking is a great place to start
• Focus on lifestyle changes vs short term solutions to physical activity.

*For any major lifestyle changes, be sure to consult with your physician and start with a manageable change. Slow but steady wins the race!