A meta-analysis published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine has shown that isometric exercises, which involve contracting muscles to hold the body in position without moving such as in wall squats, are best for reducing resting blood pressure. The researchers reviewed 270 randomised clinical trials with a total of 15 827 participants.
All of the studies included measured blood pressure after two weeks or more of exercise intervention, and included non-intervention control groups. It was found that isometric exercises reduced systolic and diastolic blood pressure by 8.24 and 4.00mmHg respectively. The next most effective forms of training in reducing blood pressure were combined training, followed by dynamic resistance training, aerobic exercise, and high-intensity interval training (HIIT).
The researchers noted that current guidelines are based on older research and as such don’t include data from new forms of exercise such as HIIT. These guidelines tend to emphasise aerobic training such as running for controlling blood pressure. In addition to helping clinicians optimise individualised exercise recommendations, the new findings suggest that it might be time to update exercise guidelines for preventing and treating high blood pressure.
Source: JAMA Network
