Supervised exercise training counterbalances the adverse effects of insulin therapy in overweight/obese subjects with type 2 diabetes.

Objective: To examine the effect of supervised exercise on traditional and nontraditional cardiovascular risk factors in sedentary, overweight/obese insulin-treated subjects with type 2 diabetes from the Italian Diabetes Exercise Study (IDES).

Research Design And Methods: The study randomized 73 insulin-treated patients to twice weekly supervised aerobic and resistance training plus structured exercise counseling (EXE) or to counseling alone (CON) for 12 months. Clinical and laboratory parameters were assessed at baseline and at the end of the study.

Results: The volume of physical activity was significantly higher in the EXE versus the CON group. Values for hemoglobin A(1c), BMI, waist circumference, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, blood pressure, LDL cholesterol, and the coronary heart disease risk score were significantly reduced only in the EXE group. No major adverse events were observed.

Conclusions: In insulin-treated subjects with type 2 diabetes, supervised exercise is safe and effective in improving glycemic control and markers of adiposity and inflammation, thus counterbalancing the adverse effects of insulin on these parameters.