Dealing with High Blood Pressure

High blood pressure can be due to lots of different reasons, including being overweight and too inactive but also it just being high due to genetics. If you're overweight and you don't really move a lot then you can try tackling your blood pressure this way. Hey, being not obese and being more active is good anyway.

Genetics matter. Think about your family history, especially among people in your direct line of ancestry who may have had high blood pressure even when not overweight or inactive. With some family history like that, odds increase that medication may be part of the long-term solution, I suspect.

Personally, I had high blood pressure, but was overweight, just over the line into class 1 obese (mid-180s pounds, mid-80s kilograms) at 5'5". I didn't have a lot of family history of high blood pressure among healthy-weight parents, grandparents, etc.

For me, just losing weight dropped my blood pressure into the normal range, and it's stayed in that range ever since (as I've stayed at a healthy weight). It actually started reaching the normal range after I lost only about half the total I needed to lose to get to a healthy weight.

As a couple caveats, I was already pretty active, and already eating a fairly nutritious set of foods (just too much of them, and too many treat foods in addition). I don't know whether I would've had to add exercise or improve nutrition to get good BP control if those things hadn't already been true.

I can't give much advice about genetically high BP, because I don't have experience. All I can do is tell you mine. Like you, I don't like taking non-recreational drugs if I can avoid them, so I'm happy with these results. I hope you can achieve similar outcomes.

Best wishes!

I have a relative who began taking a bunch of different medications after a heart attack several years ago. He quit drinking, lost some weight, became more active, and no longer needs any of the medications except one - the one for high blood pressure.

I don't like taking medicine unnecessarily. But sometimes it *is* actually necessary. It might be a strategy you use for now until it's no longer needed. Did your doctor give you advice on behavior changes and how long you need to stick with them to see noticeable results? It's going to be a matter of months and years, most likely, not days or weeks. You might be able to reduce dosage after a while even if you can't stop entirely.

Well, the doctors of myfitnesspal have spoken. Geez, you guys.

Dasham41, I think you know all the things to do and you're trying them. I know meds suck and I hope you are able to get off them at some point. Good for you for trying to be healthier, eat better and get exercise. That will serve you well.

Dasham41 wrote: »

Is anyone else dealing with this? Any good tips, tricks, etc. to get it down naturally? I've been trying for a month now. Literally cutting out salt, drinking more water, more fruits and veggies, definitely planning my meals out and trying to get a decent amount of exercise in (it's been crazy weather here in Cali) but it has remained high or barely coming down and my doctor has now put me on Lisinopril. I'm on day 4 of taking it and really don't want to remain on it. I need HELP!

Hi, fellow High BP here, 4 weeks isn't long enough to see a real drop, 4 days of the bp meds deffo isn't, look to 8 weeks for lifestyle changes and the medication to see a reduction, I was like you, no way am I taking them long term, I was prescribed them at the mid pandemic era and it was a low dose, when docs did a review 2 years later it was higher than it had been at the start, you don't say your level and people may say the docs are quick to prescribe but if you were at crisis lvl considering high BP is the world's biggest killer id Trust your doc rather than the advice here, smoking, salt, genetics, alcohol all play their part as does inertia and obesity however not everyone overweight with a sedentary lifestyle will
have high BP, give it time, there's no magic wand, my highest btw was 182/109, mine regularly now is 100/72, wish u the best

I have mildly high BP. My doc doesn't want to make me take meds for it. He told me to buy an automated cuff and measure my BP in the morning before I get out of bed.

As @AnnPT77, @cwolfman13, @kshama2001, @JaysFan82 (wow, dude, excellent work!), and others report: controlling your weight, getting regular exercise, limiting alcohol, limiting salt, getting good sleep, has all worked brilliantly for me.

When I'm successful at the above, my BP goes into the normal range. When I'm not, it reads high. It's a nice little reminder that clean living pays off!

@ninerbuff has a very good point about stress. The best thing (for me) are low-stress social activities with family or friends. We all got out of the habit during COVID, but, hey, bring back game night. Have a dinner party (remembering the thing about alcohol and salt. There's no advantage if your fun relies on booze and salty snacks. Sadly! ) Whatever makes you forget about work and laugh a little-- that's the thing!

About exercise: I believe-- without that much evidence-- that aerobic exercise is the key. So long as you're "otherwise healthy," getting that HR up really helps. Weightlifting seems to help as well (I've read a paper...), but I suspect it's most effective if you do some huffing and puffing. That seems to loosen up the old blood vessels!

Wishing you great success!

Dasham41 wrote: »

trying to get a decent amount of exercise in (it's been crazy weather here in Cali)

What does this actually mean?

It will probably take a couple months of lifestyle modification to see change. Good luck