High blood pressure can be a scary thing because it increases your risk for suffering from heart disease. The good news is that you can be proactive at controlling and reducing your blood pressure. Starting a regular exercise program may be the key for your cardiac health. Be safe, though -- always consult your doctor before starting any new exercise program.
Exercise Intensity
You can gauge your level of intensity by how it feels or by your heart rate. The rating of perceived exertion, or RPE scale, is a determination of the intensity of exercise based on how you believe it feels. The RPE scale extends from one to 10 -- the harder the intensity feels to you, the higher your rating would be. A rating from two to four is light, from five to six is moderate to somewhat hard, and a seven or higher becomes increasingly harder. The RPE is a useful scale because professionals can correlate your score with your heart rate. However, if you prefer having a figure to monitor, you can work out according to your heart rate. Light intensity exercise will be a heart rate that is about 40 to 60 percent of your maximum, moderate is 60 to 75 percent and high intensity is 76 percent or greater. To determine your maximum heart rate, subtract your age from 220, then multiply by the decimal form of your chosen intensity to get your target heart rate. If you have hypertension, certain medications may affect your heart rate. These medications reduce your heart rate no matter how hard you are working.
Superior Blood Pressure Reducer
Low-intensity exercise can reduce your blood pressure more than high-intensity exercise. A review published in "Coronary Artery Disease" in 2000 evaluated randomized control studies and found that mild to moderate intensity exercise is the most effective form of physical activity to reduce hypertension. Not only can mild exercise help control blood pressure, it can also help reduce your risk of having a coronary event and also reduce the response of your blood pressure during exercise. This means improving your health and the safety of your exercise program.
Important Factors
The key to an exercise program aimed at reducing or controlling your blood pressure is regularity. It's true that after a single session of exercise, your blood pressure is reduced. However, if you want to obtain a long-term reduction in blood pressure that may even help you reduce or eliminate blood pressure medications, you must exercise often and regularly.
Exercise Prescription
The American College of Sports Medicine recommends exercising three to seven days per week. The primary mode of exercise should be aerobic exercise that involves movement of large muscle groups. This could be walking, jogging, biking or swimming. Your exercise session should last from 30 to 60 minutes, but if you've just started exercising, you must slowly build up to this. Try to exercise between 40 to 70 percent of your maximum effort, also taking into consideration your fitness level. Keep your exercise program going regularly for optimal control of your blood pressure.
References
- MayoClinic.com: Exercise Intensity: Why It Matters, How It's Measured; March 5, 2011
- "Exercise Testing and Prescription"; David C. Nieman; 2007
- "Coronary Artery Disease"; Exercise and Hypertension; Peter F. Kokkinos, et al.; 2000
- "ACSM's Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription"; Mitchell H. Whaley, Ph.D., Peter H. Brubaker, Ph.D., Robert M. Otto, Ph.D., eds.; 2006
- Sport Fit.com: Glossary: RPE
