[snowbird]

Here's my problem. I'm 65 and my resting rate is 71 over 132. They've done away with the pre-hypertensive category and call anything over 80/120 hypertensive.
Do athletic people have a higher than normal sistolic heart rate?

 

[wild]

I am 67 and at my last checkup mine was 70 over 110 I allso am in A fib all the time. I go for a halter monitor every year last year thay found my hart stoped twice during the night but only fo 5 sec the hart Dr. said we dont worry abot that untill it stops for 6 seconds, by the way I use a C-pap machine at night. I have rode allmost 4,000 miles this year and feel good.

 

[photosbymark]

For the record that is a pressure and not a heart rate. Im no doctor and don't play one on TV, but at 65 I'd call that pretty good. Exercise over time will often help control blood pressure, but some people are more sensitive to sodium and that can hide in many places like soft drinks that you wouldn't expect. IF it was just one reading, you are dealing with a snap shot and may not be representative of your condition. Sometimes the accuracy of a measurement can be affected by your arm size and the size of the cuff used to take it. Its one of the limitations of the machines you find in the drugstores. My advise is that if you haven't checked with your doctor, do so and listen to his or her advise. Yet I wouldn't lose any sleep till you can get to an appointment. I would follow up with them as soon as you can, but just don't panic. For the record at one time they called it normal for blood pressure to rise as you age, (because it often does) and as you aged you would get a higher number for normal. I don't remember the breakdown anymore, but 150 for your age would be about right, but still the best place for medical advise is a Dr. that can look you in the eyes.

 

[snowbird]

photosbymark; Thanks for the reply. Yes, I go to the doctor for my yearly physical. Check my blood pressure every few days. Avoid salt like it's rat poison. I just can't seem to bring down my systolic pressure. The one you get when the heart pumps. I was just working on a theory that highly physical people like bicycle riders have a normally higher systolic rate due to a stronger heart. Look at wild. 110/70 at 67 years old. It's got to be the exercise. Way to go wild!
What's your heart rate?

 

[wild]

I am on meds Warfrain and Diltiazem, Atenolol for the A-fib and blood presure. I do have hart rate on my cycle computer and hills that I got 150 on befor are about 135 now, I will have to look and see what it is when I start out.

 

[RoadHollow]

At 43 years it holding at 65

 

[rola643]

I don't think I'll ever know...I can never remember to check when I wake up :/

 

[photosbymark]

Exercise usually drops the pressure, and with some people its just part of their system. Have you ever checked it laying down? That usually drops it significantly. Stress can raise it in some people. Sometimes its in the genes. What I would do is for about a week, check it very regularly throughout the day. When you wake up, right before you go to bed, before exercise, after exercise, an hour after exercise, and in general times throughout the day where the doctor can get a good picture of what your pressures are likely like throughout the entire day. Then take those records to your doctor and let him or her make the call. Its not the end of the world to need meds if they think thats the proper course to take.

 

[SixtyPlus]

It sure is better than the "end of the world" if you needed and did not take the meds!!

 

[joemorreale]

I'm 55 and ride 150 miles a week. My resting pulse is about 52-55. My blood pressure is usually around 105/55. My max. sustainable heart rate is about 145 and absolute max before I blow up is 155-160. Doctor thinks it's great even though I'm 25 lbs overweight.

 

[BlazingPedals]

A true resting pulse is the one you take before you get out of bed in the morning. Mine runs about 42 bpm. As soon as I sit t up it goes to 60, though. BP-wise, I've been running about 130/86 ever since I started monitoring it 25 years ago. Doc says it's not worth medicating at this point. Exercise, sodium, even caffeine, seem to have little effect unless I go off the deep end with one of them.