REM: Please be careful. Working out (or jogging, etc.) can suddenly and significantly raise your blood pressure, especially if you're a person who tends to have "volatile" (very bouncy) blood pressure, as I do.
Weight can be a factor also. When I was overweight, I was already taking a blood pressure med. Things seemed fine. At the doc's office my BP was always normal. Then I began walking a lot, and sometimes I was huffing and puffing. So I performed an experiment. I rode the bus to see my internist. His office was only two blocks from the bus stop. The minute I got into the office, after walking only those two blocks, I asked a nurse to take my blood pressure. It was about 200 systolic. Oh-oh! A red flag went up, sirens sounded, and I was instructed to stop damaging my brain immediately. Someone popped an emergency fast-acting med into my mouth. My doc then immediately DOUBLED the dosage of my daily blood pressure med.
I was given the lecture. I had bad numbers. If someone said "Boo!" to me while I still produced bad numbers, I could have a stroke. And pain will also raise one's blood pressure. In the absence of adequate pain meds, my BP will be at least 160. So, non-narcotic pain relievers, taken before the pain gets too bad, are also part of preventing stroke.
Now that we see the problem, what to DO about it?
I bought a blood pressure monitor, to be used immediately after jogging or working out. I kept a daily log of my BPs, plus the med dosages I was taking at the time. Those records painted a picture of how my body responds to meds. They also gave a very clear picture of my typical "numbers," my everyday in real life blood pressure readings. I wuz profiled!
Understand this. BP readings, taken at rest in a doctor's office, tell virtually NOTHING about how that BP behaves in real life, when one is not at rest, when one is stressed, and when one is exercising.
So, give your doctor a clue! Every 3 months or so, give your doctor a photocopy of a SEVEN-DAY log of your most recent BP readings, including dates and med dosages. Be sure it gets into your chart. Take 3 daily readings: (1) Wakeup reading
(2) After-exercise reading. (3) Bedtime reading.
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Picture this scene. You are lying cold and dead on a slab. You did not survive your one and only stroke. Who could know you had volatile blood pressure? Your doctor had prescribed the appropriate medication. And all of your BP readings in his office were normal. <font color="/">
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NOT SO FAST! Your home BP records were in that chart. Your doctor knew all about your volatile blood pressure and changed your meds accordingly. You didn't have a stroke, and you didn't die. Instead, using your BP monitor and your BP logs, you saved your own life! Watta no-brainer.
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Here's another way to guard against stroke. Blood pressure is usually HIGHEST first thing in the morning! So, when you take a sustained-release BP pill, take it at bedtime. It's designed to be taken then, in order to give you peak coverage when it's needed, in the early AM.
Wow! Did my blood pressure ever shoot up after exercise!!! No way could I manage on only that double dose of meds. So I called my doc, who prescribed a NEW med also, at a low dose, to supplement the double dosage of the first med. To be taken in the AM and not at night with the other BP med. And I was given a new rule. If my immediately-after-exercise BP didn't go any higher than 160, the meds were working just fine, and it was safe for me to continue the same exercise regimen on a regular basis. The monitor does not lie.
In the doc's office, at rest, I would be at 110 systolic, which is pretty low. At 105, even lower, I would be asked, "Do you ever feel exhausted or dizzy or faint?" Nope. I felt fine.
In between doctor visits, as long as my after-exercise BP wasn't over 160, I didn't need to phone the doc to ask for a BP med adjustment.
If I stopped exercising for weeks or months, I also stopped the 2nd BP med during that time off (to prevent hypotension). Then I would restart both later. This was not perfect, in terms of when the 2nd BP med would "kick in." I found I had to restart the 2nd BP med about 7 days before I restarted the exercise. The formula for this will vary, depending on the time your particular medication requires to reach a good blood level.
Lastly, this is my reminder list for managing my hypertension.
1. Lose weight.
2. Own a good battery-operated blood pressure monitor.
3. Use salt substitute.
4. Go low fat.
5. Go zero dairy.
6. Buy SILK brand "Very Vanilla" soy milk because it has no
cholesterol and still gives you great vitamin D and calcium.
Yumm! Yes, it's at your supermarket and also comes in
chocolate, with "Nog" flavor available in the winter holidays
as well.
7. If you like creamer in your coffee, buy your supermarket's
generic brand zero-fat dry creamer! Yes, I said zero-fat. All
large supermarket chains carry the zero-fat type as well as
the regular. No sludge in your arteries from that stuff.
8.
And put that buttery popcorn down!
DISCLAIMER: The above are merely my own opinions and experiences. They may not apply to you. Please check with your own physician(s) before designing or starting any health plan.
Adieu