More than 100 million Americans have diabetes.
That’s a lot of diabetes.
If I had a dollar for every . . .
You get the idea.
We could use less diabetes in the world, IMHO, and I am on a personal mission to help people heal themselves ASAP.
So let’s break it down.
Your pancreas releases insulin into your bloodstream where it circulates and helps sugar (AKA glucose) get into the cells where it is so desperately needed.
“Glucose is vital to your health because it’s an important source of energy for the cells that make up your muscles and tissues. It’s also your brain’s main source of fuel.”
So ideally that yummy glucose gets out of the bloodstream and into the cells so your body has the energy to live your awesome life.
In both prediabetes and Type 2 diabetes, the cells become resistant to insulin, the pancreas can’t make enough insulin to get the cells to respond, and sugar builds up in the bloodstream– while the cells basically starve to death. Hence the fatigue, irritability, blurred vision, slow-healing sores, and frequent infections that go along with diabetes. Extreme hunger is also a thing because basically every cell in your body is screaming for that glucose and signaling you to eat, eat, eat.
Yikes! What a mess.
The medical community has solved this problem by giving us extra insulin, so much insulin that the cells won’t be able to resist. And so that’s what happens.
But isn’t there a better way?
I’m glad you asked. Because there is:
High-intensity strength training.
How?
Glycogenolysis.
Glycogenolysis is the process of breaking down glycogen to use as energy.
Your muscle cells store an insane amount of glycogen for emergencies. This glycogen supply is the largest in the body and is incredibly important for survival. If we are in danger, our muscle cells will use this supply of glycogen as energy for fight or flight.
During your high-intensity slow workout, your muscle cells use this emergency store of glycogen as you bring your body to “muscular failure.” Because the muscle cells are depleted of glycogen through this process, the cells are now empty and receptive to insulin!
Hallelujah!
This process restores insulin sensitivity to the muscle cells, which is HUGE. And the body begins to store glucose from the bloodstream into the empty muscle cells.
At the same time, hormone sensitive lipase is activated, which does for fatty acids what insulin does for glucose. Because both the glucose and fatty acids in the bloodstream are positively affected through high-intensity exercise, you get WAY more bang for your buck than trying to heal your body through diet alone. This process is called the Amplification Cascade, and it is HUGE news for those of you who have been diagnosed prediabetic or Type 2 diabetic.
It’s a game changer.
I can’t tell you the number of diabetic clients we have worked with whose doctors have had to reduce the amount of insulin they are taking to account for this process.
It’s UNBELIEVABLE.
Most people never exercise to this intensity (fight or flight!), which means they never empty the muscle cells of glucose, which means the glucose in the bloodstream must be stored as fat.
If you or someone you love is prediabetic or is suffering with Type 2 diabetes, pick up a copy of Body by Science by Dr. Doug McGuff.
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