Isometric movements can help keep blood pressure levels within limits. We talk about it in the Corriere Salute on newsstands for free with the Corriere della Sera
We are publishing a preview of an article in the new Corriere Salute. You can read the full text on the issue on newsstands for free Thursday 10 February or in Pdf on the Digital Edition of the «Corriere della Sera».
High blood pressure is a major risk factor modifiable for cardiovascular death worldwide and physical exercise, especially at the beginning of the problem, plays a crucial role in keeping blood pressure under control. But what are the recommended activities for this purpose?
Not just walks
“We usually recommend to our patients aerobic exercise, that is endurance, based on the exercise of light and moderate cardiovascular effort to be repeated very constantly and frequently over time” says Daniele Andreini, director of the Monzino sport center in Milan and professor of cardiology at the University of Milan. «An example are walks, or stationary bikes or running with moderate intensity and without external loads that induce resistance. These are the activities suitable for both hypertensive and for patients with metabolic syndrome with high cholesterol, but also for more complex patients with known coronary artery disease because this kind of activity, it is now widely demonstrated, involves many cardiovascular benefits “.
Everything on the spot
Recently, however, the scientific literature has suggested that isometric exercise also has the ability to reduce blood pressure. Isometry is a form of static muscle contraction. Isometric exercises are essentially “standing movements” that train muscle power, where what counts is the strength of each execution: it must not be less than 20 seconds or exceed 30. They can be performed free body (for example plank , abdominals) or with the help of a machine in the gym.
The new research
In particular, a meta-analysis by an Australian working group of the University of New South Wales, recently published in the journal Hypertension Research, considered 1,140 people with an average age of 56 years, showing that this type of exercise, if performed in regularly, it is able to lower the systolic pressure (the maximum) by 7 millimeters of mercury and the diastolic (the minimum) by 4 millimeters of mercury. This is a minor effect, not comparable to what can be obtained with pharmacological treatment, but significant for those in a «borderline» phase and must return the values to the recommended ranges. “The new analysis shows us something rather new, first of all that isometric exercise seems to be safe in hypertensive subjects because a significant number of adverse events have not been recorded” comments Andreini who, however, specifies: “Isometric exercise is only recommended to those with mild and moderate hypertension or to those who, thanks to drug therapy, maintain controlled blood pressure levels. However, I would not recommend this activity to complex heart patients, such as those who have undergone coronary surgery or have had a heart attack, for whom aerobic exercise is essential, even if only walking constantly and continuously, trying to abandon laziness, perhaps choosing to walk at least one bus stop or not to take the lift, of course if there are no chest pains ».
You can continue reading the article in Corriere Salute on newsstands for free on Thursday 10 February or in Pdf on the Digital Edition of Corriere della Sera.
February 9, 2022 (change February 9, 2022 | 17:45)
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