Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms are a form of vascular disease characterized by bulging of the aorta, a major blood vessel in the abdomen. This is a serious condition which should be closely monitored by your physician; in some cases surgery is required to prevent rupture of the artery. High intensity strength training should be approached with extreme caution to avoid such serious complications.
Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms
The aorta is the main artery that originates from the heart. The abdominal branch runs away from the heart, down through the chest and into the abdomen. The abdominal aorta supplies blood to the lower part of your body, requiring it to conduct large volumes at high pressures. When a region of this vessel's wall is damaged, and the connective tissue loses its structural integrity, these high intravascular pressures may result in the formation of an aneurysm.
Symptoms and Complications
According to Mayo Clinic, abdominal aortic aneurysms, or AAA, often go undetected and remain asymptomatic because of their slow and insidious development. In fact, some aneurysms will remain small and never rupture. Others, however, will continue to expand over time. The faster the rate of expansion, the greater the probability that the aneurysm will rupture. Symptoms of an enlarging AAA include a pulsating sensation, tenderness, or pain in the abdomen. These symptoms require prompt medical attention. If left untreated, AAA may progress to the point of rupture. Other complications include aortic dissections, characterized by a tear in the wall of the aorta and subsequent internal bleeding.
Strength Training
According to the article "Gender differences in the cardiovascular response to exercise", strength training exercises lead to dramatic changes in blood pressure over a short period of time. This is because pressures within the blood vessels that supply your muscles are high during resistive exercise, thus increasing blood pressure throughout the circulation. If you have been diagnosed with an AAA, it is important to avoid these large swings in blood pressure. Maintaining health requires us to remain physically active; however, strength training exercises lead to unhealthy levels of exertion and changes in blood pressure. The probability of an aneurysm rupturing during such strenuous physical activity is high and should be avoided.
Applications
According to the National Institutes of Health, a sedentary lifestyle is one of the number one risk factors for developing an AAA. Therefore, it is important to stay physically active, however this condition requires careful consideration of what exercises to take part in. According to the article "Exercise as Hypertension Therapy", aerobic exercise is a healthy, natural therapy for high blood pressure. Published by the Cardiology and Hypertension Research Clinic in Washington DC, this study recommends starting with low intensity exercise at short durations. As you develop more endurance, the intensity and duration of the workout should be increased over a period of several weeks. Aerobic exercise can lower your systolic blood pressure an average of five to 10 mmHg; decreased blood pressure is an important step in preventing complications of your AAA.
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