Stable blood pressure during exercise can be the signal of both positive and negative consequence. Blood pressure is normally measured with two numbers. There is a diastolic and systolic blood pressure value. The systolic value is an indicator of the maximum amount of pressure the heart and blood vessels feel per beat of the heart and is an indicator of how hard your heart is working during exercise. The systolic value is usually the measurement that is tracked during exercise to determine what is going on with the heart. Diastolic pressure, which is the minimum pressure in the circulatory system, is also important; however, it usually varies little from rest and any changes in diastolic blood pressure during exercise should be monitored closely as it is usually a sign to terminate exercise.
Exercise Challenge
The difficulty of the exercise influences blood pressure a great deal. There is a generally linear relationship between exercise difficulty and systolic blood pressure. As the exercise gets more difficult, the higher your blood pressure gets. This holds true up until a certain point. During highly intense cardiovascular exercise, a stabilization of blood pressure indicates your heart is pumping at its maximal level. The other time your blood pressure will stabilize is when you reach "steady state" during exercise. This simply means your heart has adjusted the amount of blood it can pump to meet the demands of the exercise you are performing.
Heart Condition
A failure of systolic blood pressure to increase with increased exercise intensity prior to reaching maximal is an abnormal heart response according to the American College of Sports Medicine. This type of abnormality is known to occur in individuals with cardiovascular disease, heart disease, cardiomyopathy and an irregular heart beat. Consultation with a doctor is strongly advised if your blood pressure is producing a stable response to increased workload.
Benefits
There are many practical applications to knowing what your blood pressure is during exercise. It is a diagnostic tool for doctors and other allied health professional to aid in the discovery of abnormal heart conditions. For athletes, it can signal the reach of steady state or maximal workout intensity. Athletes can use this information to set pacing and track improvements in cardiovascular ability from workout to workout.
Considerations
While blood pressure is a diagnostic tool, it is only one piece of the picture and not all individuals who exhibit irregular blood pressure patterns during exercise have a heart condition. Diastolic blood pressure is likely to remain stable or decrease with exercise; however, individuals with heart conditions may experience a rise in diastolic blood pressure. Exercise should be terminated if systolic blood pressure surpasses 250 mm Hg or diastolic blood pressure passes 115 mg Hg.
References
- University of New Mexico; Exercise and Resting BP; Len Kravitz
- American Heart Association; Physical Activity and Blood Pressure; April 2011
- "Exercise Physiology: Nutrition, Energy, and Human Performance"; William McArdle, Frank Katch, Victor Katch; 2009
- "ACSM's Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription"; American College of Sports Medicine; 2010
