This exercise may help lower your blood pressure. You just need a wall

A simple exercise that requires no equipment and can be done at home may help people maintain lower blood pressure, even if they cannot work out several times a week, a new study found.

The exercise is a wall squat, which involves leaning against a wall and lowering your body into a seated position while holding the pose. Research suggests that this type of exercise may offer cardiovascular benefits without requiring a lengthy workout.

A study published in BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine examined whether people could maintain improvements in blood pressure by doing wall squats less frequently. Researchers found that exercising once or twice a week helped preserve some benefits over the short term, although three weekly sessions produced greater reductions.

Here's what to know about the findings and how the exercise routine worked.

How the study worked

Researchers studied 100 adults with an average age of 37.4. Participants had systolic blood pressure readings between 120 and 140 mmHg and did not regularly participate in structured exercise programs. None had been diagnosed with hypertension.

For the first four weeks, participants in the exercise groups completed four wall-squat holds per session, resting for two minutes between holds. They performed the routine three times a week.

For the following four weeks, participants either continued exercising three times weekly, reduced their sessions to twice or once a week, or stopped exercising.

Exercising once a week helped maintain improvements

After the initial four weeks, the exercise groups showed improvements in blood pressure compared with the control group.

By the end of the eight-week study, participants who exercised once or twice a week had maintained significant reductions in systolic blood pressure, the pressure in the arteries when the heart contracts.

Those who continued exercising three times a week saw the greatest reduction, with systolic blood pressure falling by an average of 13.73 mmHg from the start of the study.

The twice-weekly group recorded an average reduction of 6.95 mmHg, while the once-weekly group saw a reduction of 6.56 mmHg.

Neither the once-weekly nor twice-weekly group maintained a statistically significant improvement in diastolic blood pressure, which measures pressure in the arteries between heartbeats.

Participants who stopped exercising lost their earlier improvements. By the end of the study, their blood pressure readings were no longer significantly different from those of the control group.

What is isometric exercise?

Wall squats are a form of isometric exercise, which involves contracting muscles while holding a position rather than repeatedly moving the body. Planks and handgrip exercises are other examples.

Previous research has linked isometric exercise to lower blood pressure. The latest findings suggest that even people who cannot maintain a frequent workout schedule may be able to preserve some benefits by continuing to exercise.

However, the study's maintenance period lasted only four weeks. More research is needed to determine whether less frequent exercise can sustain improvements over months or years.

People with high blood pressure should consult a health care professional about an appropriate exercise routine. Wall squats should not replace prescribed medication or other recommended treatment, researchers noted.

Reporter Anthony Thompson can be reached at [email protected] or on X @athompsonUSAT.