High Blood Pressure?

Bigger Stronger Leaner Over 35 Lifter
1

I am posting in this section because many of you may be more concerned than the teen section.

I have been having some high blood pressure lately, 140/90 seems to be about the settling point but its been 150/100 at times.

Ive talked to a few doctors and even tried a couple medications however they made me feel like crap and i stopped taking them. Blood work is golden, everything is normal in range.

I am 22 and its starting to worry me. I have always been in good shape, but I can’t seem to get it down even with lifestyle changes. I was 6’2, 235 lbs and lean. I never took any anabolics or anything but I knew that body weight could be a contributing factor. I slimmed down to 220ish lbs, i don’t want to lose any more, it didnt seem to change it.

I don’t get affected much by stress and whatnot so I don’t think thats the issue.

Ive been trying to do more cardio, no effect. I tried eating cleaner for a few months (even tho diet was pretty good to begin with) and the low sodium diet, no luck.

What else can I try? Id like to stay away from medications too.

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Family history of HTN in early age? Meaning was your dad or mom on meds early in age? Are they on it now? Sometimes you cannot beat genetics, have you had a cardiac workup? Ruling out heart irregularities etc? You said your blood work is golden so I assume they checked your thyroid? What is your resting Heart rate? How much caffiene do you consume in a day? Pills, soda, coffee, tea etc? What supplements are you taking?

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I was prehypertensive for some time (like 2-3 years) and recently (like just before last Christmas) crept into the stage 1 hypertension region. Doctor says I need to lose weight. Problem there is that I have kids, a job that involves travel, and other demands on me and my time. I don’t have hours to spend in the gym every day. About an hour a day, 4-5 days a week is what I can manage. I reckon if I just want to lose fat, I can do more cardio; but I don’t have time to add, which means I need to cut back on lifting and will lose muscle. If I want to lose weight at any cost, the conclusion is the same. But I don’t want that.

I’m playing with the idea of lifting three days a week, with intense cardio two days a week and maybe a third day on the weekend. Goal is to maintain and even increase my strength and muscle mass, while losing fat and greatly enhancing heart health. I know, sounds like everyone’s goal, right? But this is where phenomic and his experiences come in. Sounds like he’s tried all the usual suspects for high blood pressure relief, except for actually losing muscle mass. DJHT asks valid questions about genetics, other cardiac factors, diet and such. Still I can’t help but wonder, must the heart work harder to push blood through developed muscle vs fat? Is phenomic’s only remaining natural remedy to let go of his size and strength?

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High blood pressure is a serious issue. Please ensure you address it. It has serious long and short term consequences.

One thing though, did they use the right size cuff. The small cuffs always read really high on me. Also my BP is usually higher in Dr. office. I have a wrist cuff and take it at home at waking… Definitely worth it.

I had high blood pressure for years (hzt, lysinopril, propananol) mostly worked but felt like crap and other negative issues. Please reconsider the meds, until you get the issue resolved. You have kids. I agree that meds may not be necessary after you find out the root cause and deal with that. Then the’ll take you of the med’s as your BP is too low (not all that dangerous, except I would feel too woozy to drive and such).

My biggest factor was sleep, not weight, nor caffeine, just sleep.
Oh, that and up to 2 days after squat and deadlift days would show increased BP…
Hydration is also key…

Newer data in on benefits of resistance training and cardio/vascular mortality, (and the markers like blood lipids and blood pressure). Intensity is key. You’re allocating enough time. Time between sets and exercizes as well as rep/weight scheme is important. There’s a lot of articles here that can help… Circuits, or FB workouts (if suitable to you and your goals)…

Fish oil (seemingly large doses 10-20 grams) decreases blood pressure and improves lipid profile and aids in recovery.

Niacin 1g or more a day. (the flushing kind (harder to find), the non-flushing is poison to the kidneys, should be banned) will also improve BP and lipid profile. More effective then lipitor if you can stand the flushing feeling. see a dr first, can and does interact with other blood lipid interventions…

Obviously, aspirin an day… helps by thinning blood.

Plenty of water, potassium/calcium is important if I remember correctly…

there’s a lot more… Google can be your friend…

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[quote]nanning wrote:
Sounds like he’s tried all the usual suspects for high blood pressure relief, except for actually losing muscle mass. DJHT asks valid questions about genetics, other cardiac factors, diet and such. Still I can’t help but wonder, must the heart work harder to push blood through developed muscle vs fat? Is phenomic’s only remaining natural remedy to let go of his size and strength?[/quote]

While the logic may make sense to non-medical people it doesnt work the way you think in regards to the heart “pump” pushing through one or the other. The more muscle mass you have the body actually has better collateral circulation. BUT what the heart is pushing through is the actual “flexibility” of the arteries. The stiffer and smaller in diameter the artery is the higher the pressure, the more elastic and larger the diameter of the artery means a lower pressure and less work on the heart.

Now I will not bust your balls but I will have to say when it comes to losing weight 90% of it is diet. I have a ton of kids, manage a division for a company, try to keep the wife happy and always strive to keep weight down. Just look through my thread to understand where I am coming from.

We didnt get to where we are today by not sacrificing or be afraid of hard work. You want to lose weight than just do it. Dont plan, dont put off, your body is telling you and now your Dr is telling you. Good luck.