While there are a lot of people who have diabetes, rarely does a patient suffer from it directly. The difficulties of diabetes arise not from the disease itself but from the complications that come with it like nerve pain. One of the most common complications of diabetes is the development of nerve pain or diabetic neuropathy.

Diabetic neuropathy or nerve pain usually manifests itself as pain in the arms, legs, hands, and feet. While nerve pain can make you want to just lie down and take it easy, experts actually advise staying active and doing some exercise to alleviate nerve pain and slow down nerve damage. Below are some tips on staying active and exercising when you have nerve pain caused by diabetes:

1.Get your doctor's approval.

Having diabetes puts you at higher risk of diseases like heart and circulation problems. Before starting any physical program, consult with your doctor for a general check up. This way, he or she can determine what type of activity will be suitable for you and give you a heads up on your current physical and health status. You can also ask your doctor to teach you how to check and monitor your blood sugar levels which are important if you want to start exercising and keep diabetes and nerve pain under control.

2.Go for fun, low-impact activities.

Sometimes, pain is not the reason people do not want to exercise. What stops them is the fear of pain or worsening their condition. Starting with fun, low-impact exercise and the knowledge that you are doing something safe can encourage you to get moving. Some low-impact exercises that you can do include swimming, yoga, and cycling. You can even up the fun factor by doing these exercises with a group of friends. You can swim leisurely laps with a buddy, practice new yoga poses with a friend, or just go cycling outdoors for a change of scenery. Just remember to go at your own pace and increase it only when you feel comfortable enough doing so.

3.Work 30-minute magic daily.

The key to staying active is choosing an activity that you can commit to doing daily or regularly. If you are not used to exercising, you are less likely to engage in it at a regular basis. For this reason, you may be glad to know that there are other activities that count as physical activity like household chores, walking, or climbing the stairs. It does not have to be a straight 30 minutes of these activities. You can spend a third of it by stretching in the morning, parking farther from the grocery and walking five minutes from and to your car in the afternoon, and another 10 minutes vacuuming and straightening the house just before settling to dinner.

4.Remind yourself that sweating is not your goal.

A lot of people have the misconception that unless you sweat, you are not exercising. Keep in mind that sweating is not the goal in exercising ? if it is, why don't people just head to the sauna and steam? Being fit and healthy is the goal; and in your case, alleviating nerve pain and slowing down neuropathy as well. Try working out to those exercise-dance DVDs, do some stretching, and a few Pilates moves. Go for whatever rocks your boat regardless or whether you sweat it out or not.

5.Make exercising a social event.

Do not relegate exercising as a chore that you need to do everyday. You will most likely leave it undone like your dishes or laundry. Instead, make exercising a social event of your day. Enlist friends to go on a hike and have a picnic at a national park. You can take your family to the local Y for an afternoon of low-cost, fun, and healthy family bonding time. Joining walking classes, health clubs, and other fitness groups is also a great way to get healthy and meet new people.

6.Keep your eyes and mind open to trying new stuff.

If you find yourself getting bored in your walking class or when swimming laps has lost its appeal, a new activity to try. Taking up a new activity like learning a new sport can give the excitement back to exercise. Kayaking, badminton, ballroom dancing, and tai chi are some of the new rages in physical fitness.