Blood pressure medication

[Ozz]

I go to the doc next week for a physical / check up. I suspect that I will end up on some kind of blood pressure medication....I have been told I have "pre-hypertension" for a couple years now. BP has been about 135/80 or so....gave blood last week and it was 140/90, but I had just returned from my spinning class, so it could have been a little high from that.

My concern is what that different medications will do to my cycling? I've always liked riding up hills at my "red-line" and will these medications cause any problems for me?

What should I be concerned about? Questions to ask?

FWIW - I am not overweight (6'2", 180 lbs), my cholesteral levels have always been good.....the BP issue baffles me other than my father has high BP as well.

Thanks for any insights.... :beer:

[gasman]

I go to the doc next week for a physical / check up. I suspect that I will end up on some kind of blood pressure medication....I have been told I have "pre-hypertension" for a couple years now. BP has been about 135/80 or so....gave blood last week and it was 140/90, but I had just returned from my spinning class, so it could have been a little high from that.

My concern is what that different medications will do to my cycling? I've always liked riding up hills at my "red-line" and will these medications cause any problems for me?

What should I be concerned about? Questions to ask?

FWIW - I am not overweight (6'2", 180 lbs), my cholesteral levels have always been good.....the BP issue baffles me other than my father has high BP as well.

Thanks for any insights....:beer:

First get a decent home BP monitor. Take your own BP at home at various times of the day so you have a true baseline BP as you pressure normally varies during the day-it's highest when lifting weights or kids and lowest when asleep.You need to know that you do infact need medication.
Second-there are a huge number of BP meds out there. If you do need medication there will be a good fit for your indivdual physiology. The only class you med to avoid are beta blockers they will limit your heart and act like a governor on your engine.
Third your Dad having high BP makes it more likely you will.

[spiderman]

to make 'patients like you'
do a 24 hour ambulatory blood pressure monitor test!
...maybe you could sign up for one of those...

[WadePatton]

Please don't be one of those folks taking BP meds and BP stimulants at the same time (caffeine and nicotine). If I had inherited BP issues I'd surely consult a nutrition/lifestyle-oriented MD. Asa Andrew of Nashville is one of those. He's a bit heavy on the "health food store/supplement routine", but gets good results and is an athlete as well. http://asaandrew.com/ He has a radio call-in show, but I doubt that it's widely distributed.

Great luck to you.

[Viper]

Bro, get and read this book atmo:

http://www.amazon.com/Body-Mind-Sport-Mind-Body-Lifelong/dp/0609807897


:beer:

[jhcakilmer]

Definitely check your diet, and nutritiona lifestyle. Sounds like your otherwise healthy, but if your predisposed (hereditary) to hypertension, than even small changes in diet, might make a huge difference is BP.

We have a family friend that is a heart surgeon/cardio-thoracic surgeon, recommends a vegan diet to all his patients, and is himself a vegan. As others have said also, stimulants are a "no no!". Need to watch your salt intake, especially from processed foods.

Any kidney issues?

[Ozz]

Thanks for all the replies!

Viper - the book is on the way! (OT - looking forward to BSG starting up again!)

I should have qualified my "hereditary" issue with the fact my father is also about 150 lbs overweight and gets no exercise....

Diet is fairly healthy....definitely not a vegan, but my wife does not eat beef, pork, or chicken, so I only do when we eat out. Probably eat too much cheese (pizza), but plenty of veggie meals and fish. Sodium intake could probably be moderated....it will really bum me out if the coffee has to go. :crap:

I will look into the home BP machines.

No kidney issues as far as I know....

[rnhood]

I am your height and weight and, take a small bit of blood pressure medicine(Atenelol), not to mitigate my blood pressure but to mitigate lone atrial fib which comes and goes. I also take Fecainide.

It does lower your max heart rate, no doubt about it. However, as this past summer progressed I just did not notice any drop in performance from it. I put my saddle at the max height and lowered my typical climbing cadence to maximize my output power. And I climbed just fine - even better than I had expected.

If you have to take beta blockers (like Atenelol), then I recommend compensating by getting your saddle as high as possible. I think us taller folk tend to get more performance out of a "power stroke" than a "spin stroke" anyway.

[thwart]

Sodium = big effect on BP for a lot of folks.

Caffeine = small effect on BP, for most, anyway. We're talking moderate use... ;)

I'd second the rec for the home cuff.

Traditionally in athletes, avoid diuretics and beta blockers for hypertension. Nothing is written in stone, though.

[jimcav]

step one is really to do serial BP checks.
your BP is supposed to be up after exertion (spinning), after a crappy meeting etc.
I like to get multiple readings over 2 weeks--aiming for at least 2 per day and one of those at a true restful state ( ideally we like someone to have 20 mintues sitting relaxed prior to BP check--rarely happens)

next is a food/beverage log, in particular log the amount of sodium and caffeine you consume. you'd be surprised in a weekly average some people have huge amounts of sodium (if you /wife cook at home you have to convert the recipe salt to milligrams and est the serving size, etc)

I've had guys drop BP by cutting back on sodium and caffeine

or you may have/be headed for essential hypertension and meds may be right for you. most people throw an ace inhibitor or diuretic as a 1st choice.

at your current 135/80 you have time to do the serial BPs and really scrutinize your diet--then talk to your doc.

[SoCalSteve]

I am your height and weight and, take a small bit of blood pressure medicine(Atenelol), not to mitigate my blood pressure but to mitigate lone atrial fib which comes and goes. I also take Fecainide.

It does lower your max heart rate, no doubt about it. However, as this past summer progressed I just did not notice any drop in performance from it. I put my saddle at the max height and lowered my typical climbing cadence to maximize my output power. And I climbed just fine - even better than I had expected.

If you have to take beta blockers (like Atenelol), then I recommend compensating by getting your saddle as high as possible. I think us taller folk tend to get more performance out of a "power stroke" than a "spin stroke" anyway.

Try to avoid this class of medication, if at all possible as it does act as a "govener" on your heart rate and its truly weird to be plugginjg along up a hill and your heart rate does not get over 105.

I have had to take BP medicine in the past. The class that I recommend and that seems to be very effedctive is a diuretic. Lowers your BP right up (or down) and the only side effect is that you pee a bit more.

Good luck and I must say that diet and excercise play a huge role in all this, at least in my case.

Steve

[Viper]

FWIW - I am not overweight (6'2", 180 lbs), my cholesteral levels have always been good.....the BP issue baffles me other than my father has high BP as well.



Also, forgot. One question, are you fit? I have a friend who keeps telling me, "Hey, I'm under 200lbs!" thinking he's in shape and his bodyfat is prolly 25%. That book above is awesome, enjoy!

:beer:

[TomP]

Hi,

There are a variety of HTN medications that should have minimal impact on exercise performance. The categories are: ACE inhibitors, ARB's, and Calcium channel blockers. Talk to you doctor about which is best for you.

[Kurt]

you BP is not that bad yet, you have time to check into other options. if your dr suggests an ACE like quinapril and you are one of the lucky ones not to take to it well you will wish you never met that dr. you can get a cough that is on 24/7 and even if you stop it can takes months to resolve - in addition is will alter your entire hr range - you will want to put a gun to your head, I am not joking here. I say this with the strongest of warnings, be very careful with the meds you take relating to BP. Take care.

[gasman]

Also, forgot. One question, are you fit? I have a friend who keeps telling me, "Hey, I'm under 200lbs!" thinking he's in shape and his bodyfat is prolly 25%. That book above is awesome, enjoy!
:beer:

he is fit and climb like a bat out a hell

[Bud_E]

I have marginally high BP. Once you've ruled out causes like kidney problems, etc., my impression is that the number one cause of high BP is genetics, number two is being overweight, then diet, etc. If you have the genetics, it's hard to get it lower without medication. I sort of had the opposite experience of SoCalSteve : I took diuretics for awhile but I found I annoyingly had to pee all the time and one of the side effects is that it raises uric acid levels which may result in kidney stones ( which I've also had ). I take atenolol and yes I can't get my heartrate super high on max efforts but I don't race anymore and I never was going to be Cancellara anyway so it works for me. Different meds affect people differently.

Once you decide that you're going to go the "meds" route, you may have to try a few different ones before you find what works for you.

[Kingfisher]

I too have marginally high BP, anywhere from 130/80 to 140/90. I take toprol xl,yes, a beta blocker and honestly can't really tell a difference in performance. Yes, my heart rate is lower but that's about it, nothing else, (except I have vivid dreams EVERY night).

I consider myself to be in good shape, certainly not the racing shape I used to be in. My biggest issue, and why I have to take BP meds is that I had my right kidney removed in August (found a cancerous tumor), and I really have to protect my remaining kidney.....meaning keeping my BP way down.

Good Luck.

[OperaLover]

I have borderline HBP (from my fahter; thanks Dad!). My doctor has told me the meds are in my future (I'm 46), but so long as I keep riding (commuting 3-5 days/week) we are putting off the inevitable. I, too, will get a home BP kit and start testing at home. My problem is that I now have BP anxiety and whenever they bring out the cuff I get nervous and that is skewing my readings.

Viper the book is ordered and on its way!

[gasman]

[QUOTE=OperaLover]I have borderline HBP (from my fahter; thanks Dad!). My doctor has told me the meds are in my future (I'm 46), but so long as I keep riding (commuting 3-5 days/week) we are putting off the inevitable. I, too, will get a home BP kit and start testing at home. My problem is that I now have BP anxiety and whenever they bring out the cuff I get nervous and that is skewing my readings.

QUOTE

That's why having a home BP machine will eventually allay that anxiety so you can get some good readings.

[KeithS]

I don't have high blood pressure but in my post stent life Atenalol is part of the protocol and I will be on it for a year or so. My BP and heart rate are great, I have coronary artery disease. Can't get my HR very high for any sustained time either. I feel great and can ride for hours..

Hang in there, as Dr. Spiderman responded when I asked how I could have prevented my heart disease, he said "Choose better parents".

[Skrawny]

I second what others have said.

The class of beta blockers (atenolol, metoprolol, etc) are good medicines, however, do act as a governor on your engine. Sometimes they are necessary, either because you are on a med like flecanide, or because of coronary disease. I do try to avoid prescribing them to active people (especially men) because of some of their adverse effects.

The class of calcium channel blockers (CCBs) is a mixed bag. The non-dihydropyridine CCBs (diltiazem, verapamil) act much like beta blockers to slow the heart, but the dihydropyridine CCBs (amlodipine, felodipine) do not limit the heart rate and are good for active people.

The ACE inhibitors (captopril, quinapril, lisinopril, etc) are also really good for active people, but can -especially in Asians- cause a nagging cough that doesn't go away until the medicine does.

The best bet is for both you AND your MD to be open-minded and honest to each other and to discuss why a particular medication was chosen.

Good luck!
-s

[Ozz]

Well, saw the doc this morning....got poked, prodded and groped.....I guess they have to do that. :cool:

BP was up around 150/90, so I am now scheduled to go back in a month after doing some home monitoring 3x per day. :crap:

This really sucks.....I'm supposed to be the "healthy guy"! :crap:

[gasman]

Ozz-

You are a healthy guy. Again i would buy a home BP machine-you can get a good one for less than $100. That may seem like a lot but it will be worth it if you can take a series of readings on your own, at home at various times of day and bring your results into the doctors office. You may find that your BP really isn't elevated, if it is taking a med shouldn't affect your lifestyle. I know you don't need to lose weight or to exercise more.



dave

[Ozz]

Ozz-

You are a healthy guy. Again i would buy a home BP machine-you can get a good one for less than $100. ...dave
The machine will be here on Thursday.....$75 at Amazon.

I hope you are right, but I do need to exercise more :cool: .....a frakkin' chest cold laid me up from the end of September until after Christmas! i didn't gain any weight, but the leg strength / speed is gone. :crap: I have a good routine going now for the past couple weeks so hopefully it will come back soon.

We are going to miss you at Tour de Blast this year!

Cheers.

[thwart]

I am now scheduled to go back in a month after doing some home monitoring 3x per day. I think the studies that look at home BP monitoring discourage checking this frequently.

It starts to take over your life; becomes a bigger deal than it should. Sort of a vicious cycle sort of thing... One study suggests 2-3 readings on an 'average' day once a week, for example.

[gasman]

I think the studies that look at home BP monitoring discourage checking this frequently.
It starts to take over your life; becomes a bigger deal than it should. Sort of a vicious cycle sort of thing... One study suggests 2-3 readings on an 'average' day once a week, for example.

Yes don't make it too big of a deal. I check mine about once a month. I check my wife and kids less often.

Yea I'm bummed I won't be doing the Tour de Blast this year.

[CaptStash]

Ozz -- empty your inbox!

PS: I was hoping to actually MEET Ozz and GAsman at TDB this year (if I am able to be there).

CaptStash....

[Ozz]

Ozz -- empty your inbox!

PS: I was hoping to actually MEET Ozz and GAsman at TDB this year (if I am able to be there).

CaptStash....
sorry...all clear now!

I'm registered for TdB, so I'll be there!

[stackie]

OK,

I maybe the only complete wack job doc around here, but I am going to ask this anyway. Here goes, do you, or could you have sleep apnea? Current estimates are that as much as 25% of our population has sleep apnea. One of the many side effects of sleep apnea is hypertension.

Some may discount this possibility given your excellent height/weight ratio. However, there are quite a few slender individuals who have sleep apnea, so it is not outside the realm of possibility.

If your wife says that you snore, I would recommend that you speak with your doctor about screening for sleep apnea, whether it be historical by your doctor or with a formal sleep study.

Everything else that needs to be said has been already.

Take care of you,

Jon

[bigbill]

If it comes down to meds, I take Cozaar which is a brand name for losartan. It is an ARB and I have no side affects other than lower blood pressure. High Blood Pressure runs on my dad's side and even at my fittest, it was still borderline. Without, 130/90. With 120/78. I also had a cholesterol issue that I couldn't fix with diet and exercise. My doctor put me on 10mg (very tiny dose) of Zocor and it dropped from 240 to 180 in five weeks with perfect ratios. My liver must hate me.