You don’t have to cover 26 miles on foot in order to be called an athlete. You aren’t required to crest a mountain or navigate a winding road on two wheels before you’re considered physically fit. And just because your doctor told you to get more exercise doesn’t mean you need to plug away at the gym for hours and hours on end.

Sure, your best friend may run 6 miles a day, but you might get what you need from a brisk walk around the neighborhood. In fact, research shows that almost any physical activity is good activity when it comes to your health. Being active protects against cardiovascular disease and stroke, helps the lungs and heart work at peak performance, fights high cholesterol and high blood pressure, lessens arthritis pain, prevents falls in older adults, relieves stress, combats osteoporosis, and encourages weight loss. Exercising may also help you get a better night’s sleep, revive a lagging libido, keep you healthier after a heart attack, and even improve your mood. For people with diabetes, exercise is even more of a boon, since it can lower blood glucose levels and improve insulin sensitivity.

If you’ve just been diagnosed and wonder how you’ll get in shape—or if you’ve had diabetes for a long time but still want to be more active—there’s no time like the present. “Don’t use diabetes as an excuse not to exercise. Use it as an excuse to exercise,” says Sheri R. Colberg, PhD, an exercise physiologist and professor of exercise science at Old Dominion University and author of Diabetic Athlete’s Handbook. To help you launch a successful fitness plan, we grilled the experts on the basics of exercising with diabetes.