Health · Fitness & Nutrition · 1 day ago
Weekly wall-sit exercise was linked to lower blood pressure in a small study
Researchers in the UK studied 100 mostly sedentary adults whose blood pressure was slightly high.
For four weeks, everyone did wall sits three times a week, with each session consisting of four 30-second holds.
The researchers then assigned participants to do the exercise once, twice or three times a week, or to stop, for another four weeks; a separate control group did not exercise.
Blood pressure fell meaningfully among those doing wall sits once a week, and the biggest reductions were in the group exercising three times a week.
The study was short and small, and it measured blood pressure rather than whether people lived longer or avoided heart disease.
Researchers suggest that muscle tension during the holds and increased blood flow when the muscles relax may help blood vessels work more easily.
They say three sessions a week may be best for lowering blood pressure and maintaining wider benefits.
A study of 100 relatively sedentary adults in the UK examined whether wall sits could reduce mildly high blood pressure.
In the first four weeks, participants completed three weekly sessions, each consisting of four 30-second wall sits with two-minute rest periods.
After that phase, participants were assigned to exercise once, twice or three times a week for another four weeks, or to stop exercising; a separate control group did not exercise at any point.
After the first four weeks, average systolic blood pressure had fallen by 9.45 mm Hg and average diastolic blood pressure by 5.8 mm Hg.
The greatest reported reduction in the second phase was among those exercising three times weekly, whose systolic blood pressure fell by about 13.7 mm Hg.
- Who
- Researchers from Canterbury Christ Church University studied 100 relatively sedentary adults.
- What
- The study tested whether isometric exercise using wall sits could lower blood pressure.
- When
- Participants were followed for about eight weeks.
- Where
- The study was conducted in the UK.
- Why
- Researchers examined whether wall sits could help reduce mildly high blood pressure.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
For optimal blood pressure reductions and the maintenance of a broader range of physiological adaptations, a frequency of three times per week may be recommended,
This story does not have a timeline yet.
- Participants
- 100 adults; average age 37, with about 55 percent men
- Study duration
- About eight weeks, in two four-week phases
- First-phase exercise
- Three sessions per week, each with four 30-second wall sits and two-minute rest periods
- Average blood pressure change after four weeks
- Systolic fell by 9.45 mm Hg and diastolic by 5.8 mm Hg
- Largest reported second-phase systolic reduction
- About 13.7 mm Hg among participants exercising three times a week
- Study publication
- BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine
Sources
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