You don't need the gym to lower your blood pressure. Learn how to move with these seven exercise alternatives to keep your heart healthy.
May 2022. This article is independently written by Shelby Golding. All opinions given are hers. Shelby has been certified as a personal trainer and nutritional specialist since 2007. In 2008, she found her passion for writing about these topics and hasn't looked back.
Truthfully, strenuous exercise like weightlifting and sprinting is best avoided for anyone with high blood pressure. Instead, you're better off finding ways to exercise without the gym, where you can start slowly and listen to your body.
Lower your blood pressure naturally with these seven ways to exercise outside of a gym and keep your heart healthy!
7 Ways to Exercise Without the Gym
These seven forms of exercise will get you moving without straining your heart and blood vessels. Incorporate one or more for a well-rounded workout routine.
1. Practice Yoga
People who don't practice yoga often think it's nothing more than a glorified stretching routine. However, practicing yoga is believed to lower blood pressure, reduce stress, and improve the overall quality of life.
Yoga uses a combination of poses, breathwork, and meditation to relax the body and mind. It helps you access the parasympathetic nervous system, or "rest and digest" state. When relaxed, the heart beats slower, cortisol and adrenaline levels drop, and there's less strain put on the heart.
Yoga has a great variety of class options available today. People with high blood pressure should avoid the more intense hot yoga and fitness-based classes. Instead, they should opt for slow vinyasa flows, hatha yoga, and yin yoga classes that combine easy movements with mindfulness.
Yoga uses a combination of poses, breathwork, and meditation to relax the body and mind. It helps you access the parasympathetic nervous system, or "rest and digest" state. When relaxed, the heart beats slower, cortisol and adrenaline levels drop, and there's less strain put on the heart.
Yoga has a great variety of class options available today. People with high blood pressure should avoid the more intense hot yoga and fitness-based classes. Instead, they should opt for slow vinyasa flows, hatha yoga, and yin yoga classes that combine easy movements with mindfulness.
2. Pick Up Tai Chi
In Tai Chi, each posture moves precisely into the next with deliberation and purpose. This combination of defense training, mindful movement, and meditation is the perfect pace to lower your blood pressure.
Tai Chi is a particularly effective exercise for people with heart disease or other heart-related problems. The movements are slow and controlled, which means that Tai Chi practitioners can strengthen the heart without putting too much strain on it.
Studies show that Tai Chi also lowers cholesterol and BMI (body mass index). Lower cholesterol means fewer fatty deposits in your blood vessels and less chance of developing heart disease. And a lower BMI implies a healthier weight which will put less strain on all parts of the body, including the heart.
3. Go For A Hike
Hiking is a cardiovascular workout that builds muscle in the legs and core, lowers blood pressure, and improves balance. A short hike or walk outside also has the added benefit of allowing you to enjoy the great outdoors. In addition, you get a healthy dose of vitamin D, spend time with friends or family, and alleviate stress.
You do not need to hike to the top of the tallest mountain to get the benefits of hiking. Even 20 minutes of walking outdoors are better than not hiking at all! If you have high blood pressure, you shouldn't attempt an intermediate or advanced hike without first consulting your doctor.
You do not need to hike to the top of the tallest mountain to get the benefits of hiking. Even 20 minutes of walking outdoors are better than not hiking at all! If you have high blood pressure, you shouldn't attempt an intermediate or advanced hike without first consulting your doctor.
4. Bodyweight Exercises
If your high blood pressure is related to being overweight or obese, bodyweight exercises might be a great gym alternative. While powerlifting and high-intensity lifting is better avoided, bodyweight exercises give you the benefits of weight training without the strain.
Weight training's a great way to build lean muscle. Increasing your lean muscle mass will help you lose weight faster because muscle burns more calories than fat. More muscle also increases your resting metabolic rate, which means you burn more calories even when you're relaxing.
In bodyweight training, you use your weight to maintain and build muscle. Examples of bodyweight exercises are push-ups, squats, burpees, pull-ups, and crunches. Be sure your routine works all parts of the body, including the arms, legs, abs, back, and butt!
Weight training's a great way to build lean muscle. Increasing your lean muscle mass will help you lose weight faster because muscle burns more calories than fat. More muscle also increases your resting metabolic rate, which means you burn more calories even when you're relaxing.
In bodyweight training, you use your weight to maintain and build muscle. Examples of bodyweight exercises are push-ups, squats, burpees, pull-ups, and crunches. Be sure your routine works all parts of the body, including the arms, legs, abs, back, and butt!
5. Dance Lessons
One of the easiest ways to start exercising again- especially if you took time off due to illness- is to make it fun! Moderate intensity dancing is linked to a lower risk for developing heart disease. In addition, it works your heart and lungs, improving cardiovascular health.
Dancing challenges your brain, especially the parts of the brain involved in long-term memory, spatial recognition, and executive function. It also has several mental health benefits. The music that accompanies dance lessons stimulates the brain's reward centers and helps to process complex emotions like grief and trauma. Dancing is also a social activity that can foster a deeper connection with friends or a significant other.
Check out what local dance classes are happening near you! Connect to your community while you build a stronger heart.
6. Go Swimming
Swimming is a low-impact form of exercise highly recommended for people at risk for heart disease. This aerobic exercise increases circulation and lowers your blood pressure. Other benefits of swimming include better coordination, muscle building, and improved breathing.
To get the full benefits of swimming, you need to go a few times a week.
Ultimately, your heart's a muscle that needs exercise to get stronger. Swimming allows you to maintain a slow or fast pace, and you can choose which stroke best fits your breathing pattern.
To get the full benefits of swimming, you need to go a few times a week.
Ultimately, your heart's a muscle that needs exercise to get stronger. Swimming allows you to maintain a slow or fast pace, and you can choose which stroke best fits your breathing pattern.
7. Housework
While this type of exercise doesn't always qualify as pleasurable, housework does get you moving and burns calories. Housework can be anything from cleaning and cooking to working in the garden. For example, people burn about 170 to 300 calories an hour cleaning and about 200 to 400 gardening.
Any lifestyle or daily activity that gets your blood moving will impact your blood pressure. A 2022 study on women over the age of 62 showed that those who moved every day had a lower risk of developing cardiovascular disease. So, stagger the housework over the day, and you'll quickly meet the recommended daily movement quota of 30 minutes of activity every day.
Any lifestyle or daily activity that gets your blood moving will impact your blood pressure. A 2022 study on women over the age of 62 showed that those who moved every day had a lower risk of developing cardiovascular disease. So, stagger the housework over the day, and you'll quickly meet the recommended daily movement quota of 30 minutes of activity every day.
Take Charge of Your Health
Lower your blood pressure outside of the gym with these seven alternatives. Listen to what your body enjoys and choose a way to exercise outside the gym on your terms. Remember, you're ultimately responsible for your health and wellness. So, get up and move to keep your heart healthy for years to come!
And remember, you don’t have to let chronic pain get in the way of physical activity – just apply your Kailo pain patch and get on with your day! A recent study showed a significant increase in quality of life when switching to Kailo from oral medication
Disclaimer: Kailo should not be used if you have a pacemaker or if you are pregnant. Always consult your doctor or health care professional before using Kailo.
