blood pressure

[meatbldr]

Sometimes I have trouble with my BP being borderline high. And thats without running anything. But usually just the top number. its usually up in the 140's. I don't know if the BP normal range apply to bodybuilders. Does anyone else run high with the top number?

I thought about lowering bodyfat before starting a cycle to see if I can get BP as low as possible. Because on-cycle it runs high for sure. damn-it.

Anyone else have this problem?

[canadagold]

Originally posted by meatbldr
Sometimes I have trouble with my BP being borderline high. And thats without running anything. But usually just the top number. its usually up in the 140's. I don't know if the BP normal range apply to bodybuilders. Does anyone else run high with the top number?

I thought about lowering bodyfat before starting a cycle to see if I can get BP as low as possible. Because on-cycle it runs high for sure. damn-it.

Anyone else have this problem?

There are many factors that have a role to play in BP. . .gear (extra bodyweight and water retention) make it go up but many people already have high BP from job stress and other factors. . .a very good friend of mine has had to give up gear because his job is very high stress and he had to cut something out to get his BP down as his doc said he had to lose 30lb or else. . .

[Stonecold54]

what is the bottom number? I will alway choose health over size now. I don't believe bloat is good or necessary when gaining size so I won't use large amounts of bloating drugs anymore.

[shortz]

Gear causes water retention and cholesterol to increase. Blood pressure is never the actual problem, but a result of an under lying problem. Have your blood checked for cholesterol and whatever else the physician wants. Take care of the problem before going any further with gear.

One more thing, people who exercise regularly should have lower BP. During exercise, BP can rise, but it should go lower post training.

[therock]

What is your diastolic # and what is your bpm? Also mine is in the 140's aswell but my diastolic is like in the 75range. There are supplements you can take to lower it.

[therock]

You can take Hawthorn berry, buffered c, garlic, co-q10 and drink a shit load of water. You cleaning up your diet will also bring it down. Mine was at 170/94 and now is 140's/75's I got off gear about 2-3months ago and I just started taking the supps about 3wks ago and it went down pretty good. By the time I get back on I will probably be in the 120's/70's. You have to make sure you dont get a lot of stress, and try not to get mad at things that are small.

[meatbldr]

my bpm is usually below 70 resting. and the lower no. is usually in the 70's. I am trying like hell to get some fat off. At least to where i can see my abs. I hope that will make the top number go down some more before I start a cycle.

Does anyone how much arm size affects the reading? Does bigger arms read higher or lower?

[therock]

I dont think they effect it that much. If you have a 16-17inch arm flexed then it will fit fine in the scuff. If your arm has a hard time fitting in the scuff then the reading wont be accurate.

[bigkid]

meatbldr

you should really be careful with that BP, I work for 2 cardiologists and they have me on meds right now. My BP was 165/90 and i'm only 26 yo. Your diastolic # is "more" important because that is when your heart is "relaxing" or filling for the next contraction. Your arteries leading to the brain and other vital organs ie, kidneys, can be seriously affected if left untreated. Watch the sodium intake and try to get your self into the 120/75 range. The AMA just lowered the range to 115/70-75 ! If you have any questions let me know and i'd be glad to help

[bodybuilder6949]

bigkid is absolutely right......for awhile I was on moderetic which lowered my BP from 130/96 to about 122/76.....I am off that now and through proper diet, lower salt intake and exercise I havecontoled my BP.......

[Scrumhalf]

Certainly, diet is something you should look at and make sure you cut out salt, etc.

However, as others have indicated, stress is a key factor in high bp. You should seriously evalute your lifestyle for stress. I'll make some suggestions below - you may be doing many of these things already.

1. Try to mellow out and not take your work home with you.

2. Go to bed early and wake up early in the morning. Mornings are quiet and peaceful and a good way to lower your stress level before the day starts. I am generally up before 5am - that gives me about 2 hours before my kids wake up that I typically use for reading and playing music.

3. People on this board may laugh, but consider taking up yoga or meditation. These may seem "new-age" to people in the West but they have a long and rich history in the East and are very powerful techniques to improve your physical and mental well-being.

4. Drop kick the TV into touch and do reading instead. It is much calmer and will soothe your nerves and gradually lower your stress level. TV is too frenetic and will definitely have a more agitating influence.

[therock]

I wouldnt recommend meds to him bro. I think going to natural way will help. I dropped mine w/ the supps I mentioned above. I was at 170/94 and now I am at 148/78 and that was in 2months. I am still taking them and will continue until it gets lower. Also Bigkid are you on gear while on those meds? Just wondering the effects of the meds while on gear.

[bigkid]

Rock....no i'm not currently on gear. I was finishing a cycle of 600mg enanthate 150mg of fina and 50 mg of anadrol per week when i noticed that i wasn't feeling well. I did an echocardiogram on my self and found that i had LVH (Left Ventricular Hypertrophy) I knew it was the fina that was making the left ventricle enlarge so i stopped it immediately. It's been 8 months now and my LV is back to normal size with the help of meds and getting off the Fina

[therock]

I didnt want to make another thread on this so I am going to try here. Why wont my systolic go down? I have tried everything. My diastolic is optimal in the 70's and my systolic is in stage2 hypertension fluctuates from 150-160. I am confused cause I feel good and I used to be at 94 on diastolic but since I have taken natural herbs and it went back to normal but the damn systolic is what doesnt want to go down? Anyone know why this happens or has anything on this?

[JUICE]

Originally posted by stonecold54
I don't believe bloat is good or necessary when gaining size so I won't use large amounts of bloating drugs anymore.

i feel the same way too. When I used to bulk up, i would get a bit bloated and the xtra weight made me feel sick. I would constantly sweat like crazy, feel tired the while time, and felt heavy as hell, couldnt even run correctly without getting tired. I prefer being leaner than bulkier.

[therock]

Anyone?

[Stonecold54]

Originally posted by therock
I didnt want to make another thread on this so I am going to try here. Why wont my systolic go down? I have tried everything. My diastolic is optimal in the 70's and my systolic is in stage2 hypertension fluctuates from 150-160. I am confused cause I feel good and I used to be at 94 on diastolic but since I have taken natural herbs and it went back to normal but the damn systolic is what doesnt want to go down? Anyone know why this happens or has anything on this?

thats a tough one and probably would be handled by a doctor better. When you guys are getting these numbers are you getting from the doctors office? yourself? I don't trust nurses they do a crappy job when checking it is so routine for them. I watched one of them do it one time and my bottom number was around 100...so I figured she was going to say something to me but she doesn't...so I used my electronic cuff at home and my BP was normal...makes me wonder what she wrote in my file. lol I would recommend an at home kit to take your BP and pulse rate...but make sure to buy a big cuff as the normal ones are meant for arms 13 inches and smaller in circumference.

[therock]

I used the cuff at the supermarket and at the dr. office which a nurse did. Where can I get this home cuff at? Also what does the systolic mean anyways? I know the diastolic is the pressure when your heart is at rest, which means my heart is getting enough rest. I am also doing cardio for 15min after every workout, and doing Judo aswell. My diet is clean and good. If you need it I will PM you it as I dont want anyone to have it, cause it took me awhile to come up w/ it. Let me know bro. Thanks.

[giveitup]

my arm reading is always high.....in order to take an accurate BP the nurse or doctor places the cuff on my ankle. my bp there is 118/68

[therock]

how accurate is that? Doesnt seem like it would be a true reading. Explain. Thanks.

[shortz]

Originally posted by stonecold54
thats a tough one and probably would be handled by a doctor better. When you guys are getting these numbers are you getting from the doctors office? yourself? I don't trust nurses they do a crappy job when checking it is so routine for them. I watched one of them do it one time and my bottom number was around 100...so I figured she was going to say something to me but she doesn't...so I used my electronic cuff at home and my BP was normal...makes me wonder what she wrote in my file. lol I would recommend an at home kit to take your BP and pulse rate...but make sure to buy a big cuff as the normal ones are meant for arms 13 inches and smaller in circumference.

This is a pretty crappy statement. MOST nurses are very good at BPs, I should know. My wife is a physician and I can take a better BP than she can. Things can change. Dr's offices generally make people nervous and this can make BP go up, which arm you take it from, what size cuff and most importantly, with your sized arms, a normal machine is not going to give you an accurate number because it is designed for the average 12 inch arm, so, in actuality, the machine is more likely to be wrong, NOT the nurse.

Diastolic and systolic pressure are two different things. Diastolic pressure measures the pressure in the arterial walls when the heart it resting, and systolic measures it when the heart is at it's max during the pump.

Systolic is actually more difficult to lower in most cases. Arterial blockages can cause a high blood pressure too, so this may be why the diastolic as come down, but the systolic has not. You really need to see a doc and have an ECG and lab work done to make sure cardiac enzymes are normal.

[therock]

Well check this shit out! I went to Wal-Mart to go pick up my dad right. This is right after workout and cardio (about an hour maybe hour and a half after) and I was like what the hell, I am already here might aswell check the bp. I checked it and was amazed at the reults. It said 136/72 w/ a br of 71! I dont know if my bp is going lower now or it was just a one time thing. So tom. I am going to check it b4 I go to work and right after I get off and I will update yall on it. Just thought I would share this info.

[therock]

Gonna go check right now again. So I will let you know in about 25min what the results are.

[therock]

Ok just got back from the supermarket. I checked it about an hr after I ate breakfast. It was 138/79 w/ a 71br. That is 2 times in a row that it is lower!! I am happy cause 3 days ago it was 160/75. I am seeing improvement which is good. I am going to check it again after I get off work at 11pm. Later bros.

[therock]

Bump!

[therock]

Alright I checked it today at a different supermarket and it was 141/69 w/ a pr of 66. So it looks like it is finally going down. But I still want to get it down to 120's before I take any hardcore supplements (not gear). Just keeping yall posted.