An estimated 68 million adults in the United States have high blood pressure; that is one in every three Americans. As your weight loss surgeon helps you to focus on increasing your health and well-being through weight loss, chances are hypertension is one concern that you have already talked about. Obese people are at a greater risk for developing high blood pressure, a disease that kills seven million people globally every year.
May 17th is designated World Hypertension Day in an effort to raise awareness for the condition that can lead to deadly yet preventable strokes, heart attacks and kidney disease. The steps that you take to lose weight simultaneously help lower your blood pressure.
Exercise Makes the Heart Grow Stronger
Due to the increased risk of heart disease that it prompts, hypertension is dubbed by many a silent killer. A lot of people are not aware when they have high blood pressure and may go years before the issue is addressed. Whether you have high blood pressure or not, there are actions you can take to reduce your risk of heart disease.
It was once believed that if you had a family predisposition to hypertension then there was not much you could do to prevent it. This is no longer the case. Even those who are at a high risk can prevent hypertension by exercising every day. One recent study found that adults who had a genetic predisposition to hypertension but exercised regularly were 34% less likely to develop high blood pressure than someone who lived a sedentary lifestyle. Much like how losing a small percentage of your body weight will produce health benefits, being more active as you are losing weight will help to cut your risk for hypertension.
Exercising regularly strengthens the heart, which makes it able to put in less effort to pump a greater amount of blood. Working out every once in a while isn’t going to give you this health benefit, however. In order to help your blood pressure you need to exercise as often as you can manage it, ideally for at least 30 minutes every day.
You can get the benefit of cardio activity to strengthen your heart without purchasing any fancy equipment. Here are a few exercise ideas to help manage your blood pressure:
- Clean the house: This will help you to de-stress too, which is also important for managing your blood pressure. Household chores like mopping the floor, mowing the lawn or vacuuming can all get your heart rate up.
- Walk the dog: You don’t need to commit to a marathon to get the benefits of a walking workout. Walking your dog after work every day can help you unwind, burn calories and help your heart.
- Play sports: Instead of going to your different corners after dinner, get the family together and play a light game of basketball or tennis. If you don’t have a hoop near your house, then throw a football around in the backyard.
You already know that losing weight is more about your health than it is about looking good. Now you know that exercising as you are losing weight has its own health benefits, aside from enhancing your weight loss efforts. Talk to your weight loss surgeon for more advice on how you can increase your fitness level after bariatric surgery.