I’ve got high blood pressure. I’m sure it’s all the classics: overweight, not great diet, a little stress.
My readings at the doctor’s always tend to be high, and they do this little dance where they write it off to normal variation or morning exercise or the minor stress of being at the doctor. But it’s so consistently high she wanted to look into it more and have me take my blood pressure at home.
Miranda already had us using the QardioBase X, a WiFi weight scale. I like it. It was easy to set up and use and connects with Apple Health, so even if we end up not liking it someday, we can just switch to something else and not lose data.
So when I needed a home blood pressure monitor, Miranda got the QardioArm 2. I like it even more than the scale, as I was not looking forward to using one of those classic ones with the little black rubber bulb and pumping it up by hand and learning how all that works. Not that I hate learning, it just seemed like a chore that I’d do for a week or two and then let slide.
With this thing, you just slide it on and press a button on the iOS app I already had (because of the scale). Just takes a minute or so.
So I like the device.
The bad news is my blood pressure is still always high. So she gave me… (checks bottle)… Lisinopril. Which, mercifully, was just a few bucks with my health insurance. I’ve been on it a few weeks, and sadly it’s done nothing to bring it down, which I can now verify since I can check my own blood pressure.
Oh well. Just like every other problem, the solution is to just stop being fat.
Just follow a low-carb diet which includes lots of vegetables, meat, eggs, coconuts, mushrooms, and nuts. It will help reduce weight as well as the BP and the meds.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6695889/
Try drinking more water…my blood pressure goes down when I drink water…that should help! Also taking slow deep breaths on a regular basis: inhale through nose and exhale through mouth, never the other way around (helps brain cells too)
Try checking it before caffeine 30 minutes after waking up if you haven’t already done it that way. I had the same issue with doctors always saying mine seemed high (I am 27 and built like a twig), but I always had my appointments in the morning, and always drank caffeine within an hour prior to the appointment. They had me check it over a few weeks at home, and when I checked it before drinking caffeine, it was consistently normal. It’ll be lower while you sleep though, so it’s best to wait 30 minutes after waking up. Also alcohol makes a huge difference for me. If I regularly drink even just one drink per day, my blood pressure will be elevated for a few days after stopping drinking entirely. Also exercise plays a role. I really struggle to get enough exercise when sitting at a computer all day programming. Your blood pressure will be elevated during and after exercise, but regular exercise should help with your baseline blood pressure. Weight of course plays a role too, as you mentioned. Stress plays a big role for me. My stress response is always very high, especially after drinking caffeine. The addiction is real, but it’s nice to know that’s not my body’s normal state.
I’ve rambled, but I hope this helps you in some way, and if you do truly have high blood pressure, I hope you find a medicine that works for you and doesn’t burn a hole in your wallet. Best of luck!
Same. I’ve been on Lisinopril for a couple years now. I went for the full work up after a friend of mine passed before he was 50. My BP has gone down in that time so stay the course
and good luck!!
P.S. Apparently bananas can help with high blood pressure as well.
It’s never too late to make changes for the better when it comes to your health. :)
It’s recommended to do 30 continuous minutes of any ‘pulse-raising activity’. You can’t split it up into multipe parts. If you walk up for a pair of starirs for 2 minutes doesn’t count.
It doesn’t have to be hard or complicated. A power walk only requires a pair of decent shoes. And it makes a HUGE difference! At first. You’ll eventually get fit enought that you’ll have to step it up a bit if you wan’t to keep getting in better shape.
You can listen to audiobooks while you’re out, and feel extra good about being a bit more sofisticated every day. :)
I have high blood pressure too. I was diagnosed with HBP about 23 years ago originally as I was getting ready to leave Indianapolis for 3 months to go to Oregon. I changed my diet (mostly just cutting out sodium) and it went down. Then a year and half ago I was told I had dangerously HBP. They gave me Amlopodine and it has helped. The funny thing is, I am in decent shape for a 50-year-old. At the time I was running 15-20 miles a week. After I took this medicine, my legs started hurting when I ran. They gave me a new prescription with that was the same with something added to help with the soreness. It helped a little, but now I don’t run nearly as much. My BP is manageable. I was under lots of stress at the time, so that didn’t help.
I hope you get yours figured out.
Not that I expect you to remember, but I met you at a presentation you gave in Ohio at Sparkbox several years back. I think we sat together at lunch…
Several years ago I lost 60 pounds. I got depressed, my wife got cancer, I lost my job, etc, and I gained it all back. Then I had a heart attack.
I’ve never heard of that medicine but I know for sure it’s not the only one. Ask your doctor to try another one.
But yes, focus on diet and health. First, I’d recommend forgetting the word diet. The science is in and diets DO NOT WORK. You have to change your mindset. For me, I’m just a guy who eats healthy now. I’ve lost 63 lbs and going for 75 total. I’m going from 240 and now I’m close to 170, with 160 being the goal.
Weight loss starts and ends in the kitchen. It’s 100% what you put in your body. You can do keto to lose weight but most people make their heart problems worse by doing so. I do a high protein, low carb diet. I do not eat anything highly processed, no refined sugars, reduced meat, etc. If it’s not from the ground, trees or bushes, I don’t eat it. I only drink water. I’ve put on like 12 pounds of muscle too.
I had my heart attack 4 years ago. The first 2 years were me “trying” to get my shit together. It finally started clicking after a lot of trial and error so don’t give up. Different things work for different people.
Start off by making NO changes and just track everything you eat. You’ll learn quickly where the problems are that way. It was eye opening. Then, use that data to eliminate one bad thing after another until your only eating good stuff.
Exercise is great for overall fitness. Mix cardio and weights for best results.
I’m happy to answer questions. I just had my 4 year checkup and my doc said if he didn’t know I had a heart attack that he would say I was in “perfect” health, which he doesn’t get to say very often. @chrispian everywhere that matters.
Chris, I am the same way. I have been going to Orange Theory Fitness (https://www.orangetheory.com/). Orange Theory is a 1-hour, full-body heart rate zone and strength training workout that delivers a more personalized experience in a group setting. Designed to be effective and efficient, our workout classes boost your metabolism, burn fat and calories, build strength and confidence, and improve your overall fitness. And these are just some of the results you gain.
I joined last May 2023 and have been attending 2 – 3 times a week. It helps a lot. I’ve been doing a lot better.
You may have seen that BP is, to some degree, a scam, much like cholesterol levels. The ‘normal’ has been pushed down by pharma and associated docs to peddle more drugs for a problem which isn’t real. Lean into proper food, healthy fats, and remove anything your grandparents wouldn’t recognise. You want to avoid high-carb goods, starchy crap, and frankenfoods. If it spoils in a few days go for it, otherwise leave it on the shelf. And don’t sweat the readings. Best of luck!