High blood pressure, also known as hypertension, is one of those medical problems that usually has no early signs or symptoms. A person can have hypertension for many years and not know it. But during this time, a slow, insidious process of organ damage is occurring. Heart attack, stroke blindness, kidney failure...all of these problems can occur with untreated hypertension (see side bar). The more elevated above 140/90 one’s blood pressure is, the greater the risk of complications. There are many home blood pressure monitoring setups on the market today, so there is no reason why one cannot have their blood pressure checked on a regular basis.
OK, so you’re in your clinician’s office and she says your blood pressure is 169/96. Well, you feel great, you eat right, exercise three times-a-week, so what’s the problem? Actually, hypertension is a major health problem which can significantly decrease your life span, make your life miserable (think dialysis), and cause numerous health problems as you age. Always remember that high blood pressure is painless...until you have your stroke or heart attack.
So now you’re told your blood pressure is high. What’s next? The clinician will have you come back for a blood pressure check several more times to verify that your blood pressure is high (no one treats a patient for high blood pressure based on one blood pressure reading, unless the blood pressure is extraordinarily high). So you’ve have your blood pressure checked several times over the ensuing weeks, an the clinician confirms that you that you’ve got hypertension. Now what? And most importantly, how is this going to affect your workout?
The first step in managing high blood pressure (and yes, it’s managed...there is no cure for most cases of hypertension) is lifestyle modifications. The fact that you’re reading this article in a bodybuilding magazine implies that your risk factors are a lot lower than the general population, but it’s a good idea to know them so you can pass this information on to your loved ones. Lifestyle modifications are things you can do to lower your blood pressure without the use of medications. Exercise is one. Brisk walking, aerobic exercise, weightlifting and the most important, LOSING WEIGHT if one’s is overweight. Another is to limit your salt intake. Salt retains water, and this fluid overload can increase the pressure along the walls of your circulatory system.
You’ve done all the recommended life style changes, you return for your 90-day checkup, and the clinician tells you that your blood pressure is still up. Now we’re talking medications. Medications used to lower blood pressure are termed “antihypertensives”.
There are many classes of antihypertensives, and each class has it’s own “side effect profile”; that is, each class not only lowers your blood pressure, but each has different side effects. Make sure you tell your medical provider that you’re a weight lifter or bodybuilder; some of these medications may have a direct or indirect effect on your workout. Be sure you emphasize how important your workouts are to you; you don’t want to be given an antihypertensive that can, for example, make you feel sluggish all the time
It’s important to remember that, even in a person without hypertension, your blood pressure will temporarily skyrocket when lifting, especially if you’re going heavy. If you’re unknowingly hypertensive, and you try to max-out your bench press, this surge in your blood pressure can go way beyond the safety limit.
So can you lift weights with high blood pressure? You bet, ASSUMING you’re aware that you have high blood pressure, your health care provider knows you’re a lifter, and you’re under proper medical management. Some blood pressure medications take several week to a month-or-so to kick in, so your clinician may ask you to hold off on going heavy for awhile.
One other thing...you’ll never know you have high blood pressure unless you make an appointment with your health care provider. And you’re probably due for a physical exam anyway.
Complications of high blood pressure
Erectile dysfunction
Blindness
Heart attack
Stroke
Kidney failure
Headache
Enlarged heart
Blocked arteries
Death
