prehypertension and complacency

U

Unregistered

Member
I am 36, 5'7", 155, and fortunate enough to have a good natural baseline of fitness. After reading numerous posts by Ben, Bruce, Michael, and now Nate, however, I'd like to avoid complacency.

My BP has been on the high side of normal since high school but never raised any eyebrows until I got my 3rd class medical. The AME suggested that I get a home bp monitor, and I did so.

I was a light smoker (1 pack/week) but quit entirely six months ago. Alcohol consumption is moderate (<=2 drinks/day, not every day). Gave up bourbon. Gave up beer and lost weight. Down to wine now.

I substituted coffee for tea and am now tempted to wean off caffeine entirely. I'm curious to see what effect that will have, if any.

My diet is good and all of my precious bodily fluids tested fine at my last physical, along with a normal EKG. I don't think I consume a lot of salt, but I may try KCl just for grins.

I drive a desk for a living, so making time for exercise can be a challenge. I will need to find a way to address this. I also need to find a way to manage stress constructively.

What are you doing to "own your medical"?
 
Unregistered said:
I don't think I consume a lot of salt, but I may try KCl just for grins.
Click to expand...
While I've used KCl powder (not for blood pressure reasons, though I believe it lowered my BP a bit) you need to be careful to insure your kidneys haven't been impaired by drinking and smoking. You can no doubt locate net references yourself, here are a few that you may find helpful:

http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/Condi...nd-High-Blood-Pressure_UCM_303243_Article.jsp
http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/salt-substitutes/
http://www.health.harvard.edu/fhg/updates/update0705c.shtml


I drive a desk for a living, so making time for exercise can be a challenge. I will need to find a way to address this.
Click to expand...
For the price of a nice iPad or computer you can buy an elliptical exercise machine and use it 30 to 45 minutes a day. We bought a NordicTrack one for about $650 from Sears a couple years ago and put it in the master bedroom (that sucker is heavy, so it doesn't get moved often.) I've been using it right after work - about 5 PM - at least 5 days a week. (It doesn't hurt that I work at home, so commute time to it is walking across the house.)
 
Back
Top