Anybody dealt with it themselves? All my life I’ve had perfectly normal blood pressure readings; today, the nurse showed me 154/98 (I’m guessing by the nurse’s expression that this is too high) … I’m 23. Have a family history of hypertension, stroke, diabetes.
Does anyone know if high intensity exercise can elevate bp levels artificially (even a few days after your last session)? Freaking out here since those numbers have jumped a crap load. Is high intensity exercise even tolerated for people with high bp? The nurse seemed way too busy to answer my questions; I have an appointment with the doc but its a few weeks off, so any help appreciated. Thanks!
I had the same problem due to kidney issues-the only thing i changed was started taking 2 fish oil caps every meal, 2 Scoops of Biotest Superfood once and day and Met-rx super greens twice and day (along with eating clean) and it dropped mine considerably
154/98 is rather high, you should probably be around 125/80, give or take five or so.
I’m not sure if it can elevate bp, but I’ve been seeing higher levels in myself lately, too. Not sure what it’s from, as I live healthy, am active, eat healthy, etc… just like one should to achieve normal bp. But still mine isn’t near that high of level.
Any chance you were excited at the time? Including nervous for whatever reason. You bp might’ve just been elevated while she took it, but I wouldn’t discount high bp, it’s just that those numbers seem exceedingly high for being at rest.
Maybe follow Alpha’s recommendation, or wait and see what the doc has to say.
[quote]Alpha wrote:
I had the same problem due to kidney issues-the only thing i changed was started taking 2 fish oil caps every meal, 2 Scoops of Biotest superfood once and day and Met-rx super greens twice and day (along with eating clean) and it dropped mine considerably[/quote]
Hi Alpha,
Thanks for the info. Hope all is good in the long term. I guess I’ll really have to pay attention to things, but what I worry most about is having to cut down on intensity/volume of my resistance training. Most of what I’ve read in the last hour seems to suggest that it may not be the cleverest idea, though I might have read it wrong.
I’ve managed to go from 58.5kg to 67.7, but I am still wafer thin. I absolutely NEED to put on the muscle - I hope this high blood pressure doesn’t put a dent into the dream.
[quote]Hugo82 wrote:
154/98 is rather high, you should probably be around 125/80, give or take five or so.
I’m not sure if it can elevate bp, but I’ve been seeing higher levels in myself lately, too. Not sure what it’s from, as I live healthy, am active, eat healthy, etc… just like one should to achieve normal bp. But still mine isn’t near that high of level.
Any chance you were excited at the time? Including nervous for whatever reason. You bp might’ve just been elevated while she took it, but I wouldn’t discount high bp, it’s just that those numbers seem exceedingly high for being at rest.
Maybe follow Alpha’s recommendation, or wait and see what the doc has to say.[/quote]
True. I’m majorly stressed at this point in life; its basically make-or-break with a career which I might not even get to start, in which case I’m looking at debt repayments of around £50k which I had to borrow to fund the course.
I wasn’t agitated or excited when she took the bp, which is why it really shocked me. The last time (about a year ago) I had my bp, I was told that it was very good. I guess the combination of parents with hypertension and diabetes isn’t exactly going to help. Argh!
You could have just been nervous… BP can jump 20ml of mercury due to anxiousness, in saying that though she should have taken it again a few mins later to see if it was still high. A lot of ppl et ‘white coat fever’ when in a hospital and geting BP done. Did you have any caffeine in you? It hardens the aortic walls and increases BP too. As does exercise but its usually dissipated by 24hours post…
High intensity exercise is definitely not encouraged for someone with elevated BP, but if your desperate to do gym in the meantime minimise big lifts, work on low reps and low weight and really concentrate on correct breathing during reps… Your strained breathing during big lifts could cause big problems.
Dont freak too much until uve been assessed a few times… it takes more then 1 reading to determine if you are hypertensive or not.
[quote]Magicpunch wrote:
Alpha wrote:
I had the same problem due to kidney issues-the only thing i changed was started taking 2 fish oil caps every meal, 2 Scoops of Biotest superfood once and day and Met-rx super greens twice and day (along with eating clean) and it dropped mine considerably
Hi Alpha,
Thanks for the info. Hope all is good in the long term. I guess I’ll really have to pay attention to things, but what I worry most about is having to cut down on intensity/volume of my resistance training. Most of what I’ve read in the last hour seems to suggest that it may not be the cleverest idea, though I might have read it wrong.
I’ve managed to go from 58.5kg to 67.7, but I am still wafer thin. I absolutely NEED to put on the muscle - I hope this high blood pressure doesn’t put a dent into the dream.[/quote]
I can tell you that I never slowed down my training-if anything i intensified mine. I wouldn’t be any less intense if I were you but I am not a doc.
BP is kind of sketchy anyway-so many things can throw it off…Body position, lack of sleep, stress, food, etc…so you may have just had a bad reading that day?
I the superfood-greens-fish oil only took me a month for mine to drop 25 pts.
[quote]mckdean wrote:
You could have just been nervous… BP can jump 20ml of mercury due to anxiousness, in saying that though she should have taken it again a few mins later to see if it was still high. A lot of ppl et ‘white coat fever’ when in a hospital and geting BP done. Did you have any caffeine in you? It hardens the aortic walls and increases BP too. As does exercise but its usually dissipated by 24hours post…
High intensity exercise is definitely not encouraged for someone with elevated BP, but if your desperate to do gym in the meantime minimise big lifts, work on low reps and low weight and really concentrate on correct breathing during reps… Your strained breathing during big lifts could cause big problems.
Dont freak too much until uve been assessed a few times… it takes more then 1 reading to determine if you are hypertensive or not.
Try and chill [/quote]
Yeah, she took the reading three times. The first time was high, so when I saw the reading I did a double take and became worried; she promptly followed it with two more readings immediately - so I guess it wasn’t going to improve from there. No coffee or anything.
But you’re right. I’ll chill for now and talk to the doctor at length. Its just hard to stop since this is the first time in my life I’ve managed to make gains. Ironically enough, I shouted at my mum for refusing medication offered to her due to her hypertension and here I am having to think about the same thing.
Alpha, thanks also for the response. I’ll consider using supplementation and definitely change my diet, and see what the doc says.
[quote]Magicpunch wrote:
Anybody dealt with it themselves? All my life I’ve had perfectly normal blood pressure readings; today, the nurse showed me 154/98 (I’m guessing by the nurse’s expression that this is too high) … I’m 23. Have a family history of hypertension, stroke, diabetes.
Does anyone know if high intensity exercise can elevate bp levels artificially (even a few days after your last session)? Freaking out here since those numbers have jumped a crap load. Is high intensity exercise even tolerated for people with high bp? The nurse seemed way too busy to answer my questions; I have an appointment with the doc but its a few weeks off, so any help appreciated. Thanks![/quote]
I’ve been dealing with High blood pressure for four years now, thanks to family history. There are too many factors of why your bp is up, don’t jump the gun on the reasons why. Go and start having test done to find the real reason behind it. Your really too young to be having a problem now, it could be nothing at all.
High intensity exercise will elevate anyones bp, then it should return to normal within an hour or so after your done. It should never last days after your last session no matter how intense.
Even if you have to go on meds for bp(like I am), you should not stop chasing your goals of being jacked. I’ll tell you in the last four years If put on more lean muscle than ever. First things first get smart about hbp and your body(you dont even have to leave T-Nation) and start working smarter than ever. Then give the finger to genetics and get jacked. Good Luck
[quote]freak4zapper wrote:
Magicpunch wrote:
Anybody dealt with it themselves? All my life I’ve had perfectly normal blood pressure readings; today, the nurse showed me 154/98 (I’m guessing by the nurse’s expression that this is too high) … I’m 23. Have a family history of hypertension, stroke, diabetes.
Does anyone know if high intensity exercise can elevate bp levels artificially (even a few days after your last session)? Freaking out here since those numbers have jumped a crap load. Is high intensity exercise even tolerated for people with high bp? The nurse seemed way too busy to answer my questions; I have an appointment with the doc but its a few weeks off, so any help appreciated. Thanks!
I’ve been dealing with High blood pressure for four years now, thanks to family history. There are too many factors of why your bp is up, don’t jump the gun on the reasons why. Go and start having test done to find the real reason behind it. Your really too young to be having a problem now, it could be nothing at all.
High intensity exercise will elevate anyones bp, then it should return to normal within an hour or so after your done. It should never last days after your last session no matter how intense.
Even if you have to go on meds for bp(like I am), you should not stop chasing your goals of being jacked. I’ll tell you in the last four years If put on more lean muscle than ever. First things first get smart about hbp and your body(you dont even have to leave T-Nation) and start working smarter than ever. Then give the finger to genetics and get jacked. Good Luck[/quote]
“Then give the finger to the genetics and get jacked.” I like it!!! Very helpful post, and welcome to T-Nation.
Age 66 Type II + high BP. First, what Alpha suggested is very good. Also add in Krill Oil(Poliquin says it is fish oil on steroids) and it is well worth the dollars. Further subscribe to Dr Whitaker.com
Health & Healing news letter. Any one who had not had it, cannot appreciate just how dangerous high blood pressure can be. Make sure you include a multi vitamin/mineral with COPPER! It is very important to vein strength and avoiding serious trouble/stroke.
Also go to the Dr. Cooper site from Dallas Texas. Slowly building up your aerobic capacity is more important that muscle size.
154/98 is ridiculous for someone that’s 23. Some of it is hereditary but not that much. Drop some body fat, like down to around 10-12%, and get some good sleep at night and those #s will come way down.
Philip, thank you very much for those suggestions, they’ve been very helpful - as you say, high blood pressure seems not to be taken seriously by people, to their detriment. My father had diabetes and high blood pressure and it got the better of him in the end but I think it wasn’t dealt with properly. I’ll keep an eye on this.
Challer, my body fat is around 12%; I typically played sports 3-4 times a week fairly seriously and only last year my blood pressure readings were absolutely, perfectly normal (and have been for the past 23 years). This is why the numbers blew my mind completely.
Try taking Coleus Forskohlii with each meal (250mg). Be sure to take it with a nice sized meal though, because it will irritate your stomach a bit if you don’t. It works.
Well, they’ve got be booked for an ECG; today’s readings came out 158/95, 140/80 and 147/81 …
Hmmm? Doc suggested that they’ll check me again in a couple of weeks and decide on whether or not to go with medication. I hope there aren’t any serious drawbacks to the medication affecting my exercise/gains.
Thanks for all your help anyway, T-Nation once again wins.
What is your sodium intake like? Check the labels of the food that you eat it may be higher than you think. Also what are your potassium, magnesium and calcium levels like? If they are low it may be helpful to supplement them.
Also stress and anxiety can raise your BP. Maybe some relaxation techniques would be helpful.
[quote]challer1 wrote:
154/98 is ridiculous for someone that’s 23. Some of it is hereditary but not that much. Drop some body fat, like down to around 10-12%, and get some good sleep at night and those #s will come way down.[/quote]
WTF? How can you jump to that conclusion, do you know him? examined him? are you medicaly qualified?