Simple wall-squat exercise done once a week could help lower blood pressure, study finds

Wall squats and blood pressure

Isometric exercise involves contracting muscles without moving the joints. In a trial published in BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine, researchers examined this type of training in 100 inactive adults with normal to high-normal blood pressure.

For the first four weeks, participants did lower-body wall squats at home three times a week. Each workout included four two-minute efforts, with two minutes of seated rest between them; heart-rate straps were used to monitor effort.

Changes after four weeks

At the end of the initial training period, participants’ systolic pressure had fallen by an average of about 9.5 points. Their diastolic pressure also declined compared with the control group.

The study included people whose systolic readings ranged from 120 to 140 millimeters of mercury. Researchers then tested whether exercising less often could help maintain the improvements.

Less frequent training

During the next four weeks, participants were randomly assigned to exercise three, two, one or zero times weekly. Those who stopped entirely saw their blood pressure return to baseline. Participants who continued once or twice a week retained a significant portion of their blood pressure reductions, according to the study.