How Strength Training Can Help Lower Blood Sugar

by Kat Pachas BSN RN

Prediabetes is becoming more common worldwide. Around one in three adults has it. This means their blood sugar levels are higher than normal, but not high enough to be called diabetes. Doctors often advise people with prediabetes to change their diet, eat less sugar, or lose weight. While these steps matter, they are only part of the solution.

Strength training is a great way to help control blood sugar, but many people do not think about it. Building muscle through strength exercises helps your body handle blood sugar more effectively. This can help prevent prediabetes from becoming type 2 diabetes.

Studies with almost 2,000 people who have prediabetes found that any kind of exercise helps control blood sugar better than doing nothing. However, the best results came from low- to moderate-intensity strength training.​

What is prediabetes?

Prediabetes is diagnosed when blood sugar levels are above normal but not yet in the diabetes range. One common test used is the A1c test. This test measures your average blood sugar levels for the past 2 to 3 months. A result between 5.7% and 6.4% is considered prediabetes.

Prediabetes is a sign that the body is having trouble using insulin well. Insulin is a hormone that helps move sugar from the blood into cells for energy.

This condition does not always lead to diabetes. For some people, blood sugar levels stay stable or even return to normal. But for others, they may slowly get worse over time.

Why muscle matters for blood sugar

A lot of people think blood sugar problems start with eating too much sugar. While diet is important, it is only part of the story.

What happens in your body after you eat matters just as much. Your body has to move sugar from your blood into your cells for energy, and most of this happens in your muscles. Muscles are key for controlling blood sugar.

After you eat, sugar enters your blood, and insulin helps move it into your muscle cells. Muscles use and store glucose (blood sugar), so they are the main place in your body where glucose is managed. They take in glucose from your blood for energy or store it for later use.

If you have more muscle and use it often through movement and strength exercises, your body can keep blood sugar steady more easily. But if you lose muscle mass from inactivity, your body does not take up glucose as well. Over time, this can lead to higher blood sugar and a greater risk of prediabetes.

Having more muscle helps your body use and clear more glucose, while having less muscle makes it harder to control blood sugar.

When people lose muscle, especially as they age or become less active, they can become more insulin resistant. This can cause blood sugar to rise over time.

What is strength training?

Strength training means doing exercises that make your muscles work against resistance. You do not have to go to a gym to do it.

Examples include:

• Lifting light weights

• Using resistance bands

• Bodyweight exercises like squats or wall push-ups

• Sitting-to-standing from a chair

  
  

Strength training is different from walking or jogging, which are aerobic exercises. Both types are good for you, but they help your body in different ways. Strength training is one of the best ways to help your body maintain steady blood sugar levels. It is a good idea to make it part of your fitness routine.

If you do not go to a gym with weight machines, you can still build muscle at home using hand-held weights, resistance bands, or your own body weight.

The American Diabetes Association recommends that people with type 2 diabetes start a strength-training program to help improve blood sugar control.

How strength training helps blood sugar

Research has found that strength training can:

• Lower blood sugar levels

• Improve insulin sensitivity

• Reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes

  
  

Strength training helps you build more muscle over time. More muscle gives your body more places to store and use sugar. It also helps your muscles take in sugar after you eat, which can lower blood sugar spikes. These benefits can happen even if you do not lose weight.

Strength training works well for older adults and beginners alike, making it a flexible option for many people.

How to start safely

You do not need to do intense strength training for it to work.

A simple starting approach:

• Begin with short sessions (5–10 minutes)

• Use light weights or bodyweight movements

• Focus on large muscle groups such as legs, arms, and back

• Rest between sessions to allow recovery

  
  

Try to make steady progress instead of pushing yourself to exhaustion. Exercises should feel challenging but should not hurt.

Combining strength training with other habits

Strength training works best when combined with other healthy habits such as:

• Balanced nutrition

• Regular walking or light activity

• Good sleep

  
  

You do not need a strict diet or a hard exercise plan. Small, steady steps are often more helpful than short bursts of intense effort.

Key message

Prediabetes is not just about how much sugar you eat. It is also about how well your body uses that sugar. Muscle is central to this process.

Strength training helps your muscles work better, supports insulin sensitivity, and helps keep blood sugar steady. For many people, strength training is an easy and effective way to lower the risk of type 2 diabetes.

Muscle health is important for controlling blood sugar, but it is often overlooked in the treatment of prediabetes. Strength training can support your long-term health by lowering blood sugar if you have prediabetes. Even small amounts done regularly can make a real difference to your health over time.

REFERENCES:

1. Echouffo-Tcheugui, J. B., Perreault, L., Ji, L., & Dagogo-Jack, S. (2023). Diagnosis and Management of Prediabetes: A Review. JAMA, 329(14), 1206–1216. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2023.4063

2. Zhang, H., Guo, Y., Hua, G., Guo, C., Gong, S., Li, M., & Yang, Y. (2024). Exercise training modalities in prediabetes: a systematic review and network meta-analysis. Frontiers in endocrinology, 15, 1308959. https://doi.org/10.3389/fendo.2024.1308959

3. Mayo Clinic Staff. (2025, April 11). Prediabetes: Diagnosis and treatment. Mayo Clinic. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/prediabetes/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20355284

4. WebMD Editorial Contributors. (2024, March 18). Strength training and diabetes. WebMD. https://www.webmd.com/diabetes/strength-training-diabetes

5. Shiroma, E. J., Cook, N. R., Manson, J. E., Moorthy, M. V., Buring, J. E., Rimm, E. B., & Lee, I. M. (2017). Strength Training and the Risk of Type 2 Diabetes and Cardiovascular Disease. Medicine and science in sports and exercise, 49(1), 40–46. https://doi.org/10.1249/MSS.0000000000001063

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