how do i lower my blood pressure

[Muse]

Got it working. Installed Myworkouts app.

 

[Muse]

Got it working. Installed Myworkouts app.

Did my first spins with the HRM and app. Guess I should be dead. I exceeded my maximum heart rate by 11 bpm, and sustained maximum heart rate for around 20 minutes. I'm just getting into it, too!

This was cycling to and from gym, 5 miles each way. I also got on Precor machine (elliptical stair stepper) in the gym just to see if the gym machine really did suck (6-7 minutes) and the two agreed pretty much.

 

[StinkyPinky]

My BP was a whopping 170/105 today at the docs. Needless to say they have put on BP meds. I aint even fat or out of shape either. They also think I have anxiety so I am on prozac for that. Dunno if that can impact BP. Fun times. Hopefully I don't blow my top before I can get it under control.

I've been struggling with my BP for years so this sucks. I got it under control the last couple of years and foolishly went off my medicine, I guess that makes me an idiot.

 

[CalebRockeT]

3 - Daily, twice a day have 2 spoons of honey
4 - Make and drink a mixture of two spoons of onion juice.

wat

 

[JEDIYoda]

wat

Those are unverifiable wives tales...

 

[Instantwow]

I find it is hard to change everything at once. If you can make changes things one at a time, that helps ensure the changes are ones you can live with and continue. It’s hard work, but so worth it!

 

[brianmanahan]

well, fast-walking 3 miles every day for 3 months seemed to help

i'm now down to 120/80 consistently

maybe if i can lose a little more weight and get down to 110/70 they'll let me quit the BP med

i tried running but man, the headaches... so painful. like a nail in my temple.

 

[JEDIYoda]

well, fast-walking 3 miles every day seemed to help

i'm now down to 120/80 consistently

maybe if i can lose a little more weight and get down to 110/70 they'll let me quit the BP med

The problem is most people who are not all that active cannot fast walk or even walk great distances! Or if they have diabetic neuropathy in their feet, it is very difficult!
I have bad neuropathy in my feet, yet I walk everyday! Doesn!t matter how far! Exercise will lower your blood pressure as well as your blood sugars!
Right now with Covid I am averaging 1.5 miles a day!
But I need to walk everyday!! Taking even one day of rest does not work for me!!

 

[Muse]

well, fast-walking 3 miles every day for 3 months seemed to help

i'm now down to 120/80 consistently

maybe if i can lose a little more weight and get down to 110/70 they'll let me quit the BP med

i tried running but man, the headaches... so painful. like a nail in my temple.

I'm shopping for an exercise bike. Probably a folding one. There's lots of different ones at Amazon. Not an easy choice. I figure one probably that has at least two positions (upright and recumbent), has alternate hand positions, i.e. one in front, the other on either side of the seat. Also a cushioned back support behind the seat.

I think one of these would be easier on your headaches, no jarring strikes.

 

[ch33zw1z]

I'm shopping for an exercise bike. Probably a folding one. There's lots of different ones at Amazon. Not an easy choice. I figure one probably that has at least two positions (upright and recumbent), has alternate hand positions, i.e. one in front, the other on either side of the seat. Also a cushioned back support behind the seat.

I think one of these would be easier on your headaches, no jarring strikes.

Biking is much better on the body than running. I found inline skating in recent past, and he that's a good workout that's easier on the joints than running as well. Biking is better overall, easier to get the workout, not too hard on the joints, and easier to get the right form down that the others.

 

[Muse]

Biking is much better on the body than running. I found inline skating in recent past, and he that's a good workout that's easier on the joints than running as well. Biking is better overall, easier to get the workout, not too hard on the joints, and easier to get the right form down that the others.

My last aerobic workout was my quad roller skates, up and down a gentle hill pretty recently repaved (crucial!), around 1/2 mile long 3 times, took me about 15 minutes. I'm real good on skates, been doing it regularly over 30 years. I may do that again today. I wear gloves in case I fall (rare), used to wear wrist guards until I realized I didn't need them. Took a long time before I was real confident, but I'm pretty good now. In the city, you don't know what you'll encounter, so have to be on your guard always or you could take a nasty fall. The other day I didn't wear a helmet, but may today, it's easy. I was doing that going to the gym (skating 1/2 way) because my physical therapist really ragged on me for not wearing a helmet on my bike... so I do now.

Mostly I'm SIP now, so the exercise bike makes a lot of sense. I don't want to just ride in the city on my bike, that sucks with no destination, and I have no destinations now in this town... not while the pandemic is happening.

BTW, skating, particularly on reasonably smooth surfaces, is big fun!

 

[ch33zw1z]

My last aerobic workout was my quad roller skates, up and down a gentle hill pretty recently repaved (crucial!), around 1/2 mile long 3 times, took me about 15 minutes. I'm real good on skates, been doing it regularly over 30 years. I may do that again today. I wear gloves in case I fall (rare), used to wear wrist guards until I realized I didn't need them. Took a long time before I was real confident, but I'm pretty good now. In the city, you don't know what you'll encounter, so have to be on your guard always or you could take a nasty fall. The other day I didn't wear a helmet, but may today, it's easy. I was doing that going to the gym (skating 1/2 way) because my physical therapist really ragged on me for not wearing a helmet on my bike... so I do now.

Mostly I'm SIP now, so the exercise bike makes a lot of sense. I don't want to just ride in the city on my bike, that sucks with no destination, and I have no destinations now in this town... not while the pandemic is happening.

Skating specifically has inadvertently revealed strength issues in some parts of my legs (major muscle imbalance due to foot shape, very high arches). for the beginners reading this thread, if you're not sure about skating, try balance exercises first. I ended up in customer orthotics for my shoes, and got a pair for my skates as well. what a difference.

 

[Muse]

Biking is much better on the body than running.

Yeah, I used to be a runner, serious miles for many years. I was 7 miles/day, 5-7 days/week back in the middle 1980's when my left foot got so sore I had to stop. I took up swimming and quickly became the YMCA's most dedicated swimmer, 2 miles/day, 7 days/week, 365. I was the terror of the pool. Then my shoulder gave out and had to stop swimming. Had surgery eventually on that bad foot and then that bad shoulder! Now I don't swim or run... bike, skate, on bike trainer now and when I get my exercise bike, that will be number one aerobic for me. Oh, and I bought a jump rope a couple weeks ago, gotta start using that!

 

[ch33zw1z]

Yeah, I used to be a runner, serious miles for many years. I was 7 miles/day, 5-7 days/week back in the middle 1980's when my left foot got so sore I had to stop. I took up swimming and quickly became the YMCA's most dedicated swimmer, 2 miles/day, 7 days/week, 365. I was the terror of the pool. Then my shoulder gave out and had to stop swimming. Had surgery eventually on that bad foot and then that bad shoulder! Now I don't swim or run... bike, skate, on bike trainer now and when I get my exercise bike, that will be number one aerobic for me. Oh, and I bought a jump rope a couple weeks ago, gotta start using that!

Ain't it great getting older

 

[Muse]

Skating specifically has inadvertently revealed strength issues in some parts of my legs (major muscle imbalance due to foot shape, very high arches). for the beginners reading this thread, if you're not sure about skating, try balance exercises first. I ended up in customer orthotics for my shoes, and got a pair for my skates as well. what a difference.

I've worn custom orthotics in my shoes since my foot surgery (Morton's neuromas, 2 of time in the same foot) nearly 20 years ago. I don't have them in my skates, though. Don't seem to need them. My skates are high quality basketball shoes that I personally bolted to quality skate trucks. Roller skate maintenance is very simple, just 100x simpler than bicycles.

Ain't it great getting older

If you do it right, it can be.

 

[ch33zw1z]

I've worn custom orthotics in my shoes since my foot surgery (Morton's neuromas, 2 of time in the same foot) nearly 20 years ago. I don't have them in my skates, though. Don't seem to need them. My skates are high quality basketball shoes that I personally bolted to quality skate trucks. Roller skate maintenance is very simple, just 100x simpler than bicycles.

If you do it right, it can be.

I can see not needing them in quads, since balance is less of an issue (but still very important). Inline skates challenge the left/right balance of the legs much more.

Cool, modding your own skates. Again, inlines may be a bit tougher to do that with.

 

[brianmanahan]

Skating specifically has inadvertently revealed strength issues in some parts of my legs (major muscle imbalance due to foot shape, very high arches). for the beginners reading this thread, if you're not sure about skating, try balance exercises first. I ended up in customer orthotics for my shoes, and got a pair for my skates as well. what a difference.

i wonder if that's why my problem was when i was a kid. i used to go skating for a couple hours once a month and it would chew up my feet every time. blisters galore.

tried buying skates for myself once but then i outgrew them in no time and couldn't afford to try another pair.

 

[ch33zw1z]

i wonder if that's why my problem was when i was a kid. i used to go skating for a couple hours once a month and it would chew up my feet every time. blisters galore.

tried buying skates for myself once but then i outgrew them in no time and couldn't afford to try another pair.

It could be, our bodies are very mechanical and it all works together. If all you got was blisters, that's not all bad. easier to mitigate than other problems. Maybe the skates were too narrow, or not long enough, or just a material that rubbed too hard on your cotton socks, etc...

Newer inline skates often have form fitting liners that will mold to your foot shape over time. Hockey skates are baked in the oven and you put them on right away to mold them, not the cheap entry level ones tho

There are tons of different skates out there. It may be some work up front to find a pair that works for you. Measuring your feet length and width can help decide. I prefer to use cm / mm. In fact, I wish all shoes used cm / mm measurements now because it takes a lot of the guess work out. There's like 5 different measuring methods for feet, effin ridiculous.

Here's some websites:
www.inlinewarehouse.com
www.proskatersplace.com
www.rcsports.com

My TL;DR XP (short and sweet version):
My first pair was Bladerunner, $80 on amazon or at the store. They were ok, I didn't use orthotics cuz I didn't know better. They last a year until the velcro started to get weird. Now my niece has then to practice on.

As I got more into it, I wanted to upgrade and go outside with bigger wheels. I purchase Powerslide Next Blackouts with 110mm wheels (instead of standard 80mm). Those boots did NOT agree with my feet. but since I used them and the wheels had obvious wear on them, I really couldn't return them with a good conscious.

Last winter, Powerslide released the Zoom 100 boots, basically a new boot with 100mm wheels. But the frames were interchangeable (PS uses a proprietary Trinity mount for many of their boots). So I took the 110mm wheels and frames and put them on the Zoom boots just in case they didn't work out (if they didn't, I would put the original UNUSED frames and wheels back on and return). But it turns out they did work out.

The difference was I'm basically in between sizes in the PS Next boot, but the PS Zoom boots I'm right on the money for the 7.5-8 US sizing. AKA I'm 260mm on my left foot, 263mm on the right.

During this time, I had been having some knee problems and foot problems unrelated to skating. Long story short, my foot shape created a big muscle imbalance in my legs and was creating problems that will take time and effort to mitigate, NOT get rid of. I'm stuck with certain problems for life, just gotta work on muscle strength to reduce joint strain. I ended up with really strong and tight IT bands and hips, and really weak inner legs.

The guy that made the orthotics for me (referred to him by orthopedic surgeon's) was very knowledgeable. When I mentioned biking / skating, he said the regular orthotics would be find for biking, but skating takes a fixed foot orthotic, so I dropped off those Zoom boots and had him make me a pair, cuz YOLO right? They make a very big difference in my balance.

In the end, without skating, my problems probably would not have come to light until later, and it could have been much worse.

Skating WITH the orthotics really revealed the muscle imbalance tho. My first time out, 20 minutes into it I had both inner quads shaking because they were so underdeveloped for so long.

 

[ch33zw1z]

You can bring down the blood pressure level to a desirable state by following simple lifestyle-changing hacks. Take your diet seriously. It matters a lot. It would be best if you reduced the consumption of an oily and fatty meal. Go more for a vegan diet. Reduce sodium intake. My mother had good results after following this diet pattern. I hope you find it useful.

Yes, eating less processed foods is a great start. While a diet change to something vegan could seem very daunting at first, it's important to remember that it's a goal and it can take many incremental steps to get there.

My journey to gluten free took sometime, but it paid off. I took it further and now my diet is mostly whole foods. Brown rice, black beans, nuts like almond (and just introduced walnuts), fruits and vegetables, avocados, grapeseed oil, baby spinach, jalapenos, stuff like that.

A diet like this will end up requiring you to add salt. There's plenty of potassium already, but very little natural salt. The good part is you can keep track of exactly how much.

I did use an app by nutrionix for a while to try and make sure I wasn't missing core metrics. It's what revealed the sodium missing when I stopped eating processed foods. It also revealed I was eating too little calories, as the weight just fell off. Unprocessed foods tend to be much less calorie sense it seems.

I've toyed with the idea of plant based diet. I may try it one day at a time, I would have to give up yogurt and poultry.

The changes at the beginning at the hardest, after a while it's your lifestyle

 

[Muse]

My journey to gluten free took sometime, but it paid off. I took it further and now my diet is mostly whole foods. Brown rice, black beans, nuts like almond (and just introduced walnuts), fruits and vegetables, avocados, grapeseed oil, baby spinach, jalapenos, stuff like that.

Your diet there looks amazingly like mine. However, I've been eating pintos. I have some black beans on hand, red too but rarely touch them. Lots of nuts, constant fruits and veges, avocados, olive oil, just got some jalapenos to make tomato hot sauce with my home grown tomatoes, which have just fully ripened the last week or two and will continue to come in for a while.

The salt, I'm uncertain of how much sodium is needed. I met a girl who said she adds none, but I add a little. The thing is you can cut back on salt gradually and never miss it! I probably eat less than 1/4 the salt than the average American, if that. If I have more, it tastes too salty. I had my first meal not made by myself 10 days ago (BD), it was take-out Indian, and it tasted way salty! Maybe I should have asked them to hold down the salt... I don't know if most restaurants have methodologies that allow them to do that in a customer-based way (i.e. they may use prepared sauces, not be able to tweak them).

However, at least with some foods, if I neglect some salt I miss it. Maybe I wouldn't if I cut it out gradually, however I figure there's no real reason to at the level of my consumption and maybe, as you suggest, it isn't healthy.

I eat very little of what would be termed processed foods.

Yes, it becomes a life style. Exercise is an important factor, is my assumption.

 

[ch33zw1z]

Your diet there looks amazingly like mine. However, I've been eating pintos. I have some black beans on hand, red too but rarely touch them. Lots of nuts, constant fruits and veges, avocados, olive oil, just got some jalapenos to make tomato hot sauce with my home grown tomatoes, which have just fully ripened the last week or two and will continue to come in for a while.

The salt, I'm uncertain of how much sodium is needed. I met a girl who said she adds none, but I add a little. The thing is you can cut back on salt gradually and never miss it! I probably eat less than 1/4 the salt than the average American, if that. If I have more, it tastes too salty. I had my first meal not made by myself 10 days ago (BD), it was take-out Indian, and it tasted way salty! Maybe I should have asked them to hold down the salt... I don't know if most restaurants have methodologies that allow them to do that in a customer-based way (i.e. they may use prepared sauces, not be able to tweak them).

However, at least with some foods, if I neglect some salt I miss it. Maybe I wouldn't if I cut it out gradually, however I figure there's no real reason to at the level of my consumption and maybe, as you suggest, it isn't healthy.

I eat very little of what would be termed processed foods.

Yes, it becomes a life style. Exercise is an important factor, is my assumption.

I use Redmond's salt, it's unrefined and my body doesn't react negatively. One serving twice a day, about 1100 mg. Yes, I measure my foods, and have a scale I use to make sure I'm getting enough food / not too much of one thing or another

1500mg is considered low sodium in a standard U.S. diet.

If I add up natural salt, I get about 1200 per day. If I "treat" myself to processed foods like potato chips, I may not even add it in. When I looked into it more, 500mg per day is minimum for body functions.

Exercise is important, any amount of it is good. Whether it's gardening, hiking, whatever, just keep the body moving. When I stop and sit for too long, my body let's me know lol

 

[mikeymikec]

Even beginning to run has lowered my BP, not that it's ever been commented on by medical professionals despite >yearly checking.

 

[Muse]

I figured (some years ago) that I'm under 1500mg salt. I don't keep track, I just use rather little salt and figure, eh, that's nothing compared to what most use. My mom always salted her food copiously. Maybe not so much her cooking for us, TBH I don't remember, that was so long ago. But she'd complain at the table... "not enough salt" and reach for the shaker. We were amused. She eventually had HBP, like my dad and it seems most elders. But I've never had that and may never. I'm on no meds, never have been for a chronic condition.

I don't think I can eat potato chips anymore, just TOO much salt. I look at ingredients. If something has as many mg salt as calories that's a red flag. I have eaten Late July Organic multigrain chips (Costco, bought on sale) for years. I haven't shopped Costco since March so have broken the habit of eating ~1.8oz daily of those chips. They are: 65mg sodium/130 calories, so pretty decent! To me, they taste quite salty, but tolerable. I do love them. I crisp them, freshening thereby in my toaster oven, then cool a couple minutes before consumption... but haven't eaten any in 3 weeks or so (still have 4 bags, though!).

 

[Muse]

Even beginning to run has lowered my BP, not that it's ever been commented on by medical professionals despite >yearly checking.

Yesterday, I skated 3-4 miles (quads) up and down a gentle hill on smooth asphalt, essentially 4 laps, taking ~23 minutes, wearing my heart rate monitor. I reached 142bpm max, was above 135bpm for around 14 minutes. I plan to expand, go 5, 6, maybe up to 10 laps eventually, don't know. Good aerobic. I have my bike trainer, am shopping an exercise bike, figure to post a thread here because I'm having trouble deciding what to get. Will go in my workout room, which I've been provisioning in the shelter in place.

 

[ch33zw1z]

I figured (some years ago) that I'm under 1500mg salt. I don't keep track, I just use rather little salt and figure, eh, that's nothing compared to what most use. My mom always salted her food copiously. Maybe not so much her cooking for us, TBH I don't remember, that was so long ago. But she'd complain at the table... "not enough salt" and reach for the shaker. We were amused. She eventually had HBP, like my dad and it seems most elders. But I've never had that and may never. I'm on no meds, never have been for a chronic condition.

I don't think I can eat potato chips anymore, just TOO much salt. I look at ingredients. If something has as many mg salt as calories that's a red flag. I have eaten Late July Organic multigrain chips (Costco, bought on sale) for years. I haven't shopped Costco since March so have broken the habit of eating ~1.8oz daily of those chips. They are: 65mg sodium/130 calories, so pretty decent! To me, they taste quite salty, but tolerable. I do love them. I crisp them, freshening thereby in my toaster oven, then cool a couple minutes before consumption... but haven't eaten any in 3 weeks or so (still have 4 bags, though!).

I really like Late July tortilla chips, certified gluten free and easy on the sodium by the numbers. You're right tho, when you get used to low sodium, even mildly salted foods taste really salty. My other go to in Cape Cod 40% reduced fat, about the same numbers as the LJ's. CC aren't certified GF but dont seem to bother me for the most part.

I eat these things sparingly, but will admit it's been more frequent during the pandemic.

The average American diet is just loaded with sodium. It's totally believable too. Even going full GF didn't mean my diet was healthy, those GF prepared foods are loaded with sodium as well. Gotta trick those taste buds lol

Eating Too Much Salt? Ways to Cut Back...Gradually

Reducing your salt intake is one way to improve your health. Here are four steps to help you cut back gradually.

www.fda.gov