Today’s stress-ridden and unhealthy lifestyle makes it very easy to end up with hypertension.
This horrible disease is called the silent killer, leading to heart disease, stroke, diabetes, blindness, kidney failure and damage to the blood vessels.
Hypertension is called the silent killer because only severe hypertension creates any symptoms at all, which are: severe headaches, confusion, fatigue, vision problems, chest pain, difficulty breathing, unstable heartbeat and even blood in the urine.
The great part about hypertension is that it is not genetic and is instead very possible to avoid. All that is needed is healthier lifestyle choices and a vigorous exercise routine.
First thing’s first
Quit the smoking habit. Lose weight. Eliminate unnecessary salt from your diet. Quit drinking. Lower your stress. Though genetics and kidney failure can play a role in hypertension, many of these other factors can exacerbate hypertension in those prone to suffering from it and can also cause hypertension among those who are not genetically prone to the disease.
But once you quit your smoking habit, drinking habit, and salt addiction, you can stop worrying about hypertension, right? Wrong. Many people develop hypertension simply from obesity and a lack of exercise. A good anti-hypertension exercise routine is in order.
Now what?
The best way to fight hypertension is to get regular exercise. Aerobic exercise improves blood flow, relieves stress, and is essential when shedding the weight. The best part is that walking, stretching, jogging and light weight training is all you need in order to lower your blood pressure.
By exercising, you will strengthen your heart, which will lead to easier circulation. Since your heart does not have to pump so vigorously, less strain is put on your arteries. This lowers your blood pressure.
Are there any alternatives?
Alternatives to exercise and better life decisions include: ACE inhibitors, angiotensin receptor blockers and diuretics. Many of these drugs have very harmful side effects like dizziness, headache, drowsiness, weakness, rash, diarrhea, kidney failure, liver failure, decrease in white blood cells, swelling and dehydration.
As for exercises, the only harmful side effects are exhaustion if done excessively. Also, the health benefits of daily exercise go far beyond lower blood pressure.
What are the best exercises to fight hypertension?
The best way to fight hypertension is to use any form of exercise that gets your heart pumping. This primarily includes aerobic exercises, which must be maintained over a period of time and strengthen the heart.
At the very minimum, those with hypertension should try brisk walking. But as health improves, if an individual wants to really lower his or her chances of getting high blood pressure again, the best exercises are swimming, bicycling, rowing.
Avoid hard exercises like strength training workouts until your blood pressure has finally been lowered since these exercises can actually raise blood pressure. Stick to aerobic exercise and in most cases (absent of a serious health problem like kidney failure) you can guarantee that your blood pressure will be lower.
