Study Shows Evening Exercises Can Lower Blood Sugar and Insulin Levels

Regular, gentle exercises in the evening found to meaningfully impact the health of participants in a new study. (Alexander Nilsen)

A New Zealand study has found that regular, light exercises at night can be particularly effective for improving health by breaking the prolonged period of sitting time that tends to happen in the evening when people have their largest meals and consume the bulk of their online streaming services.

The researchers found that interrupting periods of sitting with short activity breaks lowered plasma glucose by 31.5 percent and reduced insulin by 27 percent.

Lead author Jennifer Gale from the University of Otago said that long periods of sitting are known to be associated with an increased risk of several diseases, such as diabetes and heart disease.

“We know that breaking up sedentary time during the day can reduce levels of glucose, insulin, and fat in the blood, however, many of us spend the longest time sitting without interruption in the evening,” Gale said.

The longest time people sit without interruption is in the evening. (Patat/Shutterstock)

“The average time spent watching Netflix, as an example, is estimated to be over three hours per day, per subscriber.”

Furthermore, while people frequently have their largest meal in the evening, the hormone that helps clear sugar from the blood—insulin—is also lower at that time of day.

“When these daily lower insulin levels coincide with our longest period of sedentary behavior, these combined factors can promote a high-risk environment for the development of disease,” Gale said.

Three minutes of strength training every 30 minutes was found to lower blood sugar and insulin levels in healthy adults, regardless of body weight. (Jonathan Borba/Unsplash)

The study involved 30 participants aged between 19 and 39, interrupting four hours of sitting time in the evening with three minutes of light resistance exercises every half an hour.

The results show that light body weight exercises improve the flushing of sugar from the blood, which has the potential to enhance glycemic control.

Light Exercises Improve Immunity

Meditation and gentle exercises have been found to improve immunity and gene regulation and can easily be incorporated into one’s evening routine.

A peer-reviewed study published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine compared gene expressions of six ancient Qigong practitioners to six healthy individuals who had never practised any meditation.

The researchers from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and the Baylor College of Medicine used DNA microarray technology to determine the participants’ gene regulation and immune function.

They concluded that Falun Gong (also known as Falun Dafa) practitioners had enhanced immunity and rapid resolution of inflammation.

Falun Dafa exercises include gentle stretching, slow movement, and postures that are held for extended periods of time while the eyes are closed. They consist of exercises that are as short as ten minutes.

The spiritual practice, which includes moral teachings based on the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance, along with five meditative exercises, enjoyed significant popularity for its health and moral benefits in China in the 1990s, eventually attracting an estimated 70 million to 100 million practitioners by the end of the decade.

Gale and her team’s study was published in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise in March.

They recommended online streaming services integrate regular prompts into their applications to encourage people to intercept periods of sitting with short activity breaks.

“Our findings highlight how almost everyone could benefit from breaking up their sitting time in the evening,” Gale said.