As one of the cornerstones of diabetes prevention and treatment, regular physical activity not only improves glycemic control and increases insulin sensitivity, but also helps to reduce body weight, control blood lipids and blood pressure, and reduce the risk of macrovascular and microvascular complications. Diabetic patients often have a variety of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular complications, so it is especially important to ensure the safety of exercise. Patients with diabetes should be professionally evaluated by a physician before starting to exercise. Patients who are able to do so should also decide whether they need to undergo a pre-exercise cardiac exercise stress test based on their blood glucose control, physical fitness, medication and complication screening status to avoid inappropriate exercise induced cardiovascular disease acute events. In principle, it is recommended that exercise prescriptions for diabetic patients should be “individualized” based on moderate intensity, aerobic training, at least 3 times per week, and no less than 20 min each time. At the same time, the intensity of exercise and the body’s response to exercise should be closely monitored, and the adjustment of the exercise treatment plan should follow the principles of less to more, light to heavy, sparse to heavy, periodic, and equipped with moderate recovery. Exercise prescription includes exercise intensity, exercise program, exercise timing, exercise duration and exercise frequency. The implementation of exercise prescription for diabetic patients should be based on each individual’s health level and usual exercise habits. Aerobic exercise of 20-60 min is recommended, with moderate and low-intensity rhythmic exercise, such as walking, jogging, cycling, swimming, and moderate-intensity aerobic gymnastics in which the whole body muscles are involved in the activity: such as medical gymnastics, fitness exercises, xylophone, taijiquan, etc. You can also choose appropriate recreational ball activities, such as gateball, bowling, badminton, etc. Among them, walking is currently the most commonly used in China and abroad and should be the first choice. Aerobic endurance training and strength training are good choices for exercise modalities for diabetic patients. A well-established strength exercise program can mobilize more muscle groups to participate in exercise, and it is recommended that the best exercise program for type 2 diabetic patients is a combination of aerobic endurance training and intermittent strength training, especially for those with poor glycemic control. The intensity of exercise should be tailored to the patient’s goals. The intensity of exercise for patients with type 2 diabetes is moderate, and a reasonable intensity for aerobic exercise should be 50% to 85% of their maximum oxygen uptake, with patients in poor health starting at 40% to 50% of their maximum oxygen uptake. The intensity of exercise is directly related to the exercise effect of type 2 diabetes and obese diabetic patients, and should be treated differently. Exercise with lower exercise intensity, energy metabolism to use fat-based; exercise with medium exercise intensity, there is a significant reduction in blood sugar and urine glucose. Obese diabetic patients exercise at a lower exercise intensity is better to facilitate the utilization and consumption of body fat, which is equivalent to 40%-50% of the maximum oxygen uptake or (220-age) × (50%-60%) maximum heart rate. The duration of exercise for diabetic patients is determined as follows: the initial phase can be slightly shorter, 5-10 min/time, and later gradually extended with the gradual adaptation of the body to exercise, depending on the physical condition of the patient. Each exercise should be preceded by 5-10 min of preparatory activities and followed by at least 5 min of relaxation activities. Since the duration and intensity of exercise affect the amount of exercise, the duration of exercise should be shortened when the intensity of exercise is high, and extended when the intensity is low. For patients who are young, light and have good physical strength, the former can be used with greater intensity and short duration, while older and obese people are more appropriate to use exercise with less intensity and longer duration. A reasonable frequency of exercise is 3 to 4 times a week. Exercise should be consistent, if the interval between exercises exceeds 3 to 4 d, insulin sensitivity will be reduced, and the effect of exercise and the accumulation of effects will be reduced. If the amount of exercise each time is large, the interval can be 1 or 2 d, but not more than 3 d. If the amount of exercise each time is small and the patient’s body allows, it is ideal to insist on exercising once a day.