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Study shows how many minutes and which type of exercise lowers blood pressure

It turns out, you don't have to push yourself to the point of exhaustion for over an hour to lower your blood pressure

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man cycling outside on the grass
Kingbull Bikes / Unsplash

Hypertension or consistently high blood pressure is a risk factor for heart disease, kidney damage, stroke, and heart failure. Certain factors can increase your blood pressure, such as stress, low potassium levels, and added sugar. On the other hand, you can take certain steps to help lower blood pressure and improve your overall health, like getting more exercise. If you’re wondering how many minutes and which type of exercise lowers blood pressure, an interesting new study provides the answers.

What is blood pressure?

blood pressure arm machine mockup-graphics
Mockup Graphics / Unsplash

When your heart beats, it pumps oxygen-rich blood into your arteries. Blood pressure refers to the pressure of your blood flow on the walls of your arteries. Arteries are blood vessels that transport blood away from your heart to other parts of your body. Your blood pressure is the measurement of that force or pressure inside your arteries. A blood pressure cuff and gauge is the only way to effectively measure your blood pressure. Your blood pressure differs from your heart rate, which refers to the number of times your heart beats in one minute.

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The study

Man running
Vilkasss / Pixabay

A brand-new study published in Circulation involved nearly 15,000 participants and data from six previous studies from the Netherlands, Australia, the United Kingdom, Finland, and Denmark. The participants wore an accelerometer on their thighs for one week, 24 hours a day. An accelerometer is a device that measures and senses different types of accelerations or vibrations to determine the orientation of your body. It’s similar to a pedometer, but it tracks many different types of movement. 

Researchers looked at six behaviors:

  1. Sleep
  2. Sedentary behavior
  3. Standing
  4. Slow walking
  5. Fast walking
  6. Combined vigorous ‘exercise-like’ activities, such as cycling, stair climbing, walking up an incline, and running.

The researchers ran in-depth statistical analyses that considered variables that influence blood pressure, such as sex, age, alcohol intake, and smoking status.

The results

Man cycling on road
Photoboyko / Adobe Stock

The researchers concluded that replacing just 5 minutes of sedentary time with vigorous exercise-like activity reduced diastolic blood pressure by an average of 0.54 mmHg and systolic blood pressure by an average of 0.68 mmHg. They discovered significant reductions in blood pressure when participants replaced standing, slowly walking, or sedentary behavior with exercise-like activities. Blood pressure was lowered by an average of 2 mmHg in systolic and 1 mmHg in diastolic. They also found that replacing sedentary behavior with 20-27 minutes of vigorous exercise in a day could reduce the risk of heart disease by 28%.

The takeaway

man running on stairs dark background
Steven Erixon / Unsplash

The takeaway is that even if you think you don’t have enough time, fitting in five minutes of cycling, running, or another vigorous ‘exercise-like’ activity improves your blood pressure and makes a meaningful difference to your overall health and fitness. We know exercise is good for heart health, but it turns out that as little as five minutes per day is associated with lower blood pressure readings. If you can manage 20-27 minutes, you can reduce your risk of heart disease.

Steph Green
Steph Green
Steph Green (Steph Zee) is a singer-songwriter and professional writer with over 12 years of experience in healthcare and… Read Full Bio
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