My blood pressure, lifestyle, and weed. FUCK.

[KMK0420]

So i'm in my early 20's. Father has high BP, not to mention his addiction to heroin and other narcotics over 30+ years has him in bad health. I work out daily (mainly weight training, working on cardio - i can do about a half mile full pace running without stopping...not that great at all.)...i eat right most of the time (cereal, chicken, fish, fruit, apples, bananas, etc.)...occasionally dabble in sweets, but rarely. I'm 5'10, about 200-210lbs, but mostly muscle. I curl 50-55lbs 1 arm, bench ~250-300lbs, depending. Not the skinniest guy, but most of my mass is muscle but i do have some fat i need to work off. Anyway, the "goal" is 120/80. Tested it 10 minutes ago, 133/98. This is a normal day, no work out for once, haven't smoked since early AM...i drink a TON of fluids, and i take hawthorn berry occasionally to assist. Could WEED be what's keeping me from lowering my BP? My doctor is dumbfounded. She knows i eat healthy, exercise...drink a ton of water...what else can i do, seriously - while keeping my habit? Is THC raising the blood pressure, or the method of smoking (ie, blunts vs vaporizer?) They say quitting smoking will help, but does that mean ANY smoke?

 

[KMK0420]

ps, i know i might have a genetic condition which may require medication no matter what my lifestyle consists of, but i'm not going on medication if weed or something i'm missing is causing it to stay high. it's been high since i was a kid, but they attributed it to high fat intake in my food..

 

[madrecinco]

No it is not the weed. Weed actually helps hypertension.
Watch you sodium/salt.
Might want to shed a few more pounds by lowering your caloric intake and you actually might be drinking too much fluids and becoming hypervolemic which will raise the pressure in the arteries.
Genetics is a big factor. Relaxation and lowering your stress can help.
Meditation and yoga or tai chi is good for relaxing. If that don't work your physician needs to prescribe an antihypertensive. Hyperetension is a killer and you can have a CVA even young. And I hope you don't do crack/meth/coke or these drugs which will kill the hypertensive.

Nurse Madre in the house LOL!

 

[madrecinco]

I take a med for my hypertension and smoke pot. It works for me and blood pressure is under control.

 

[KMK0420]

No it is not the weed. Weed actually helps hypertension.
Watch you sodium/salt.
Might want to shed a few more pounds by lowering your caloric intake and you actually might be drinking too much fluids and becoming hypervolemic which will raise the pressure in the arteries.
Genetics is a big factor. Relaxation and lowering your stress can help.
Meditation and yoga or tai chi is good for relaxing. If that don't work your physician needs to prescribe an antihypertensive. Hyperetension is a killer and you can have a CVA even young. And I hope you don't do crack/meth/coke or these drugs which will kill the hypertensive.

Nurse Madre in the house LOL!

I'm def always watching sodium content of foods. I refuse to eat ramen noodles, fast food, canned soups (which are loaded with salt)..and i stick to your normal/low sodium foods. Doc said weights not the problem for my build...dont know what else?

 

[madrecinco]

Genetics then and not much you can do about that. But it sounds like you are on the right track with your sodium and not eating canned or prepared foods. Fresh is always better and use spices instead of salt for seasoning and herbs also.

But you do need to be on medication if your diastolic blood pressure is 98. Unless it is not often that high.

Learn the signs of CVA/cerebral vascular accident/stroke and when to go to the emergency room.
Headache...weakness...facial asymetry...one sided weakness...confusion are some of the signs and symptoms...

I myself am high risk for CVA per diagnosis of paroxymal A Fib. Lucky me has to take blood thinners to prevent stroke.
But I am happy...meditate...maintain a positive attitude. I live each day to its fullest and count my blessings. Love my fellow man...[mostly] LOL!
Mind and body work together for optimal homeostasis.

Stress is hard on the immune system. Slow down and smell the roses and mostly love yourself and take care of yourself first so you are able to care for others.

We are all unique!

 

[Wacky Tobacky]

whats your body fat %?

 

[AndreNicky]

Well the first problem is you don't eat healthy, your what i like to call fake healthy. Stop eating cooked, acidic and starchy foods, this will solve all your problems

 

[KMK0420]

whats your body fat %?

last time i checked, 10-15%. my mother is a nurse, and her husband has HBP. he went on medication and swears he will never take it again...blurred vision, slurred speech...lightheadedness...the list goes on... i work in a VERY stressful job. VERY stressful. i am a technical support agent for the largest cable company in the US. daily, i receive calls from people telling me to "do what they fucking tell me to do" or "youre a fucking bitch" and god knows what else. it doesnt end, and its constant. i speak to ~50 people a day, every day. at least 25% of them are pissed off, and end up cussing me out, or running their mouth about shit i don't care to listen to. but, i have to. its my job. and in this economy, i have no other choice. i'm starting to lose my hair quicker too...so i think i need to focus on lowering stress, and weed helps a lot, but its not a miracle cure. thanks for the input tho...might start supplementing with garlic too. i currently take hawthorn along with vitamin E and total EFA softgels (omega3-6-9s)

 

[KMK0420]

Well the first problem is you don't eat healthy, your what i like to call fake healthy. Stop eating cooked, acidic and starchy foods, this will solve all your problems

no offense dude, but i worked at a supplement store, spoke to nutritionists frequently and both my doctor and other doctor's my mother works with have all said i eat pretty damn healthy. fish, chicken, meat (not so much), tons of fruit and vegetables and a ton of water along with vitamin supplements and other herbs daily. that is not unhealthy. sodium is the important part when it comes to HBP, cooked/acidic/starchy foods would have more of a part with gastrointestinal problems rather than HBP.

 

[AndreNicky]

no offense dude, but i worked at a supplement store, spoke to nutritionists frequently and both my doctor and other doctor's my mother works with have all said i eat pretty damn healthy. fish, chicken, meat (not so much), tons of fruit and vegetables and a ton of water along with vitamin supplements and other herbs daily. that is not unhealthy. sodium is the important part when it comes to HBP, cooked/acidic/starchy foods would have more of a part with gastrointestinal problems rather than HBP.

You would be amazed at the amount of problems food can cause and the main reason i said anything is because u mention u eat cereal and chicken which are both not good.

 

[free radical]

Avoid carbs high on the glycemic (sp?) index like WHITE bread, pasta, etc. Stick to whole wheat/ whole grain.

I also think weed may contribute to raising BP by increasing heart rate in some, and the way it is smoked I think also contributes....Take your BP an hour after smoking a blunt and see what it is.

One way to tell for sure is to take a tolerance break for a month or two, i know you said your job is stressful but a t-break helps everyone. So if you can go a month then test your BP and see if its going down.

best of luck, report back with results whatever you do.

 

[dri]

do you take steroids? steroids can raise bp. overhead presses can cause stress on your heart. cardio is your friend, even though it sucks. limit high stress situations. - maybe go to a bbforum for more support.
i have mine under control. i stoped lifting weights about a year ago because of an injury. limited my love interest to one. no more stress on heart

 

[KMK0420]

no steroids. did anabolic steroids once years ago, but i properly finished them and havent touched them since. stress is unavoidable at my job, some people deal with it by ignoring it, but even when i try, this "heat" builds up in me and i want to literally smack the motherfucker in their mouth at that moment. but, we eat strictly whole grains in our house...we get that multi-grain bread (with the green label that says oatnut...along with the other multigrain breads.)...we quit cooking with certain things because of the health concerns, and we use hemp oil when possible in certain foods

 

[JJScorpio]

You haven't said whether you drink cofee, tea or other drinks with caffiene....

 

[marx2k]

I would suggest more cardio. Get within 80% of your MHR for at least 45 minutes every day. I try to hit an hour a day. After a few years of that, my blood pressure is actually spot-on perfect and my heart rate is an amazing 45 beats per minute (I shit you not).

 

[socioecologist]

Great advice already given in here--the diet always has room for improvement (for everyone), but exercise is key. Why don't you stop smoking for two weeks and monitor the BP changes each day? Call it the "control". Then smoke every day for two weeks after that and see where you're at. As for this:

No it is not the weed. Weed actually helps hypertension.

That's a pretty wet blanket statement, and not in accordance with the literature I've read. It's also not true for me (and I would guess others), due to the strains I prefer. I would hazard a guess that it varies depending on the particular plant you are smoking on. Some strains shoot my BP through the roof while others nearly drop me into a coma.

 

[Haps]

Your work is poison. Weed does increase BP, but only a little and short term, except hazes, they are not to fuck with. Weed lowers blood oxy a little, and this prepares the heart for times of stress, that is why I am alive. BP meds are easy and if one gives you problems, switch, no big deal. You are doing the right thing by addressing it.
H

 

[Frostynugz]

Dude it's as simple as this. Get your stress in check. It leads to hypertension which is a major contributor to heart disease. It also causes your body to produce cortisol which can cause things like weight gain, water retention, etc... Just find something to decompress, if it has to come down to meditating or writing thoughts down then do it. Shit i tried everything under the sun except any meds( personal choice i'd rather go homeopathic if possible) I know you have a stressful job, but so do a lot of ppl. You just gotta find a way to get your mind of that shit as best you can while you're at work. I'm not trying to be a dick man but sugar coating things isn't gonna benefit you. I work in a fitness facility with over 5,000 members and i see/hear this scenario quite often. Also when buying food there's only 4 areas in that grocery store you should even frequent, the rest should be left to rot(only it won't cuz it's full of preservatives and nitrates). Produce, Fresh breads and grains, meat department(lunch meat is a no no, over processed over salted. chicken, beef, pork, fish) and lastly dairy. That's it. Anything else is absolute shit for you. It's processed and packaged. If it took more than 4 steps to get from mother nature to your dinner plate, don't touch it. strength training is fine and dandy but you gotta throw some cardio in 3 times a week 30-45mins. To figure out your cardiovascular training zone use this formula.

[220 - your age] - Resting Heart rate X 0.80 + Resting Heart Rate = *0% of your heart's maximum output. This is the area where you target your heart and lungs the best, without going overboard. To get your resting heart rate, count the amount of times your heart beats in 10 seconds and multiply by 6. Or if you want something more accurate use one of those automated blood presure machines @ Wal-Mart lol. So here's what it looks like with #'s plugged in. 220 - 25 - 73 X 0.80 + 73 =
195 - 73 X 0.80 + 73 =
=170bpm

A lot of cardio equipment will have target heart zones printed on them. Don't use them they are inaccurate. This formula takes your age and resting heart rate into account whereas the other is a generalization. Feel free to ask questions . hope this helps

Nugz

 

[madrecinco]

Your work is poison. Weed does increase BP, but only a little and short term, except hazes, they are not to fuck with. Weed lowers blood oxy a little, and this prepares the heart for times of stress, that is why I am alive. BP meds are easy and if one gives you problems, switch, no big deal. You are doing the right thing by addressing it.
H

A lot of times hypertensive people benefit from weed if their HTN is caused by STRESS!

I know on a personal level because I have taken my BP when stressed and after smokin. and it does lower my BP....Stress induced HTN....


Helps with the A Fib also as it gets worse when I am stressing over something. Which I don't do much these days since I retired,,,,BUT watching a 14 month old boy on steroids is stressful at 60.....