High blood pressure is a common, yet potentially deadly condition. When left untreated, it can lead to heart disease and other serious health problems.
While medications are typically the best course of treatment, did you know exercise can also help to lower your blood pressure? Running in particular can have fantastic health benefits, including reducing blood pressure over time.
Here, you’ll discover everything you need to know about running to reduce your blood pressure.
Can running lower your blood pressure?
Running regularly can greatly help to reduce blood pressure. Like any form of cardio exercise, it helps to pump more oxygen into the body, while also strengthening the heart. As you increase the amount of oxygen in the body, it reduces stiffness within the blood vessels, allowing the blood to flow more freely through them.
It is worth noting here that you need to run regularly if you want to use it to help reduce blood pressure. It will take around one to three months to start seeing a change in your blood pressure when you start exercising.
Is it safe to exercise when you have high blood pressure?
Generally speaking, it is safe to exercise when you have high blood pressure. However, you should always speak to your physician prior to starting any form of exercise. This is because when you do start exercising, it increases your blood pressure before it reduces it.
For those who have extremely high blood pressure, it could pose a risk of a stroke or heart disease. Therefore, your doctor may want to reduce your blood pressure through medication before you begin adding exercise into your routine.
What other types of exercise are good for lowering blood pressure?
While running is one of the best forms of exercise for reducing blood pressure, there are other forms of exercise you can focus on too. These include:
- Walking
- Swimming
- Cycling
- Dancing
Anything that gets the heart rate going will be effective at helping you to control high blood pressure. The question is, are there any types of exercises you shouldn’t do when you have hypertension? The answer here is yes, some activities should be avoided until your blood pressure is under control. These include weightlifting, sprinting, squash, and scuba diving.
How much exercise should you do?
Ideally, you should aim to do around 30 minutes of exercise five times a week. This should be moderate exercise that makes you breathe harder and feel warmer. However, you shouldn’t be panting between breaths.
A good tip for those looking to exercise more to manage their high blood pressure, is to take it slow. Start out gradually, building up the length of time you spend exercising to help get your body used to it. If you try and do too much too soon, it could lead to a host of health issues.
If you are concerned about exercising with high blood pressure, book an appointment with Mr Konrad Grosser today. After assessing your cardio health, he will be able to advise you of how much exercise you should do and whether medication is needed before you get started.
