High Blood Pressure- More intense sessions?

[Dangerscouse]

Thank you all for your advice. It is greatly appreciated. Sadly my BP issues have been pretty lousy this past month meaning two trips to A&E which was bloody awful. I am about to start much stronger meds tomorrow. It would appear that chronic anxiety/alarm over a long period can add substantially to these issues. A medic recommended a mild beta blocker in conjunction to help control it which i shall also start taking. It is quite sobering to realise that you're not that bloke in his 30's anymore who didnt really give a monkeys about his health but are slap bang in middle age and all that entails. I shall be stepping up the rowing now to get more of a sweat on and doing some kettlebells as well. Commitement and diligence is the only way forward now

Sorry to hear this, and good luck with the fightback

[iain]

Thank you all for your advice. It is greatly appreciated. Sadly my BP issues have been pretty lousy this past month meaning two trips to A&E which was bloody awful. I am about to start much stronger meds tomorrow. It would appear that chronic anxiety/alarm over a long period can add substantially to these issues. A medic recommended a mild beta blocker in conjunction to help control it which i shall also start taking. It is quite sobering to realise that you're not that bloke in his 30's anymore who didnt really give a monkeys about his health but are slap bang in middle age and all that entails. I shall be stepping up the rowing now to get more of a sweat on and doing some kettlebells as well. Commitement and diligence is the only way forward now

Obviously only share what you are comfortable with, but if the A&E visits were required and not panic attacks, you should be seeking medical help rather than forum comments. I note from your initial post that you were hoping to lose weight, how is that going? HIgher intensity exercise is not risk free but for most can reduce risk in the medium term, but that is a generalisation that might not apply to you. Many of us are aware of overly cautious medical professionals and as a bunch ergers have generally decided that the risks are worth the rewards. BUt this depends on the facts for the individual and we know little about you. I am not a medical professional, but AIUI High BP is primarily an issue due to increased risks of coronary and strokes. Both are relatively common and risking them should not be done lightly. I strongly recommend that you seek qualified advice from someone who ideally has a positive view of sport and is not paralysed by potential liability concerns.

I wish you all the best and hope you find an approach that balances properly assessed risks with a longer term plan to improve your health.

[Tsnor]

About 3 months ago your doctor prescribed aerobic conditioning.

The lead time to see gains for aerobic gains is typically many months, sometime you get a breakthrough after a year or more of training. (This is really different than anaerobic strength gains like sprinting or weight lifting where you can see huge results in 6 weeks.) Growing aerobic base takes time.

Not a doctor, but strongly recommend continuing or increasing duration of your low effort rowing and your walking. If you use a heart rate monitor strap you will eventually start to see lower split times at the same heartrate and perceived effort level. Note your measurements will get wonky around changes in medication. Once you see aerobic improvement the improvement stays for a while unlike anaerobic gain which go away quickly if you stop working out. Aerobic conditioning also keeps getting better over time as you continue to work out vs anaerobic where plateaus are common.

This all in addition to diet, weight control, etc.

Good Luck.

[H2O]

Interestingly Potassium Nitrate (KNO3) is converted in the mouth by bacteria to Nitrites which then lower blood pressure when swallowed.
Do it only in small quantities since KNO3 is also carcinogenic but is an approved food additive in small quantities.
To obtain the desired effect you have to swish it (in water solution) around in your mouth for some time to let the bacteria do their work.

Potassium Nitrate has the advantage of being an inexpensive chemical. Similar effects are reported from a combination of L-Arginine (fast short term effect) + L-Citrulline (slower longer term effect). The most expensive, but still affordable, solution is beet root powder.

I am using L-Arginine/L-Citrulline or beet root powder whenever I am doing a time trial especially 2K to reduce the risk of a heart attack.
Links:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4008816/
"It is recognized that nitrate may also be beneficial for cardiovascular health in the general population due to reductions in blood pressure "

Inorganic nitrates and blood pressure:
https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/full/10 ... 110.153536