8 Exercises to Help Lower Your Blood Pressure Naturally

Almost half of all Americans have high blood pressure, which is one of the main causes of death in the United States. Fortunately, Exercise is an effective and low cost to naturally reduce blood pressure. In addition, it’s not just your heart. Regular exercise also strengthens mood, helps manage weight, improves sleep and promotes longevity.

If you have high blood pressure, here Eight simple exercises that can help you reduce your blood pressure.

The walking is soft, with low impact and excellent for beginners or senior exercise. It improves blood circulation, helps maintain healthy weight and reduces stress hormones that can increase blood pressure.

To start a walking diet, Jeffrey Lander, MD, FACC, certified cardiologist and sports cardiology co -director at Rwjbarnabas Health, suggests walking at a rate that increases your heart rate but allows a conversation. Aim for 30 minutes a day, five to six days a week.

This is your rhythm. “Walk fast enough for you to speak, but you can’t sing,” said Karen Owoc, Acsm-Ferde, physiologist for the clinical exercise certified by the American College of Sports Medicine, says Health. “If you cannot speak, or if you can only say one word, you do the exercise too vigorously. If you sing, then you probably do not do an intense exercise. As you become more conditioned, you can walk faster with less breath.”

Bike is another Low impact exercise that strengthens your heart and improves traffic While being easy on the joints, said Lander. This makes it ideal for moderately active people. Cycling also increases oxygen administration and reduces vascular resistance.

Lander suggests using a stationary or outdoor bike and keeping a regular rhythm. From there, you can gradually increase your time and intensity. He recommends Go bike for 30 minutes, three to five times a week.

Swimming works your whole body while minimizing joint stress. This makes it an excellent option for the elderly or those who have joint problems, said Lander. “Water pressure itself can help improve circulation.”

Lander suggests starting with slow towers or water aerobic, using a flotation device if necessary. This will help you develop endurance over time so that you can try more difficult swimming options in the water. He suggests Swim for 30 minutes, three to four times a week.

Yoga combines soft, stretching and breathing exercises that lower stress, a main cause of high blood pressure. This form of exercise is suitable for all levels of fitness, in particular beginners.

Follow the class or video of a beginner, focusing on slow stretching and deep breathing. “Popular poses such as the childhood and cat cow are particularly useful,” said Lander.

He recommends doing yoga for 20 to 30 minutes, three to four times a week. In a meta-analysis, yoga had a significant impact on systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Some people, who have practiced long -term yoga, have noticed improvements in their lipid (or cholesterol) profile.

Resistance to light resistance helps develop muscles, improve metabolism and reduce arterial stiffness over time, according to Lander. It’s good for active adults and can be adapted to beginners. Use light dumbbells, resistance bands or your body weight and perform 8 to 12 repetitions for each of the main muscle groups.

Perform exercises such as squats, biceps loops and wall pumps and focus on controlled and slow movements and an appropriate shape. Lander suggests implementing resistance training Two to three non -consecutive days per week. Having a day of rest between your strength training sessions gives your muscles a chance to recover.

Using a step or robust platform, go up and go down at a constant pace. This strengthens your legs while increasing your heart rate and leads your heart to pump more effectively, said Owoc.

Owoc suggests Starting with three minutes of continuous steps and using the “discussion test” to monitor your level of effort. “If you can’t speak at any time, slow down or include a rest period. When you can talk again, go back.”

If your balance is not so stable, Owoc suggests holding a balustrade or placing a hand on the wall for a little more support or starting with a lower step or a walk in place. For active exercises, it suggests accelerating and intensifying more quickly.

Intervals in your home are a great way to raise your heart rate and do an aerobic exercise, especially when time is not conducive to walking. Owoc suggests alternating a faster minute of effort – such as walking – with two more slow recovery. Repeat this interval five to six times.

“Only 15 minutes of intervals a few times per week make your heart stronger and more resilient,” said Owoc. “The intervals also increase the load on the muscles without letting your heart rise beyond a safe rhythm.”

You can apply intervals to any activity, such as your walk, your walking, your walk in place or your bicycle. For beginners or seniors, Owoc recommends reducing the faster period to 20 seconds, especially if you have trouble talking.

Respiratory exercise 4-7-8 can help stimulate the vagus nerve, which triggers the release of acetylcholine (a neurotransmitter), also known as the “natural tranquilizer” of the body, according to Owoc.

“Stimulation of the vagus nerve helps lower blood pressure and reduce chronic systemic inflammation,” said Owoc. This breathing exercise can be seated, standing or lying. You can keep your eyes open or closed, so that you can do 4-7-8 breathe at any time or anywhere, as while you are stuck in traffic or in a high anxiety meeting.

This exercise is ideal for people with reduced mobility. Here’s how to do it, according to Owoc:

1. Exhale completely through the mouth.
2. Inspire by the nose to an account of four.
3. Remember your breath for a seven account.
4. Then exhale completely through the mouth with lips pinched at an eight account.
5. Make the 4-7-8 at least twice a day.
6. Repeat this model for a total of four cycles for the first month. After practicing the 4-7-8 breathing exercise for a month, you can repeat the cycle up to eight times.

Besides the exercise, you should get Seven to eight hours of quality sleep, eating a healthy and healthy diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains and lean proteins, and limit the salt and processed foods help reduce blood pressure, According to Lander.

In fact, many cardiac health experts recommend the Dash diet to reduce blood pressure. A meta-analysis revealed that the suite of DASH lowered the systolic blood pressure from around 6 to 7 mmHg and diastolic from 3 to 4 mmHg on average.

Managing stress with relaxation techniques such as deep breathing or meditation can also lower blood pressure, He said. Spending time in nature or outside can also help lower blood pressure.

Exercise is an excellent way to naturally reduce blood pressure. Whether you are walking, you are training in force and swimming, or you attend a yoga class, take steps in your home and you practice the breathing technique 4-7-8, there are effective ways to reduce your blood pressure.

Just make sure to discuss your exercise plans with a health care provider first. They can assess your level of physical form and heart health and provide recommendations on what is certain for you.