Respond to prefers-color-scheme dark in app web views

Follow section front redirects in Spectrum

Enable NLP source in PCS for load testing

Switch off the News Alerts Survey Widget when we have enough responses

Poll to determine if new LUF updates are available

Allows the winning A/B test variant to be turned on without Spectrum deployment

Show infinite scrolling sections in Assembler MultiView

Show option for NLP article summaries in Action Bar

Show NLP summaries collection recirc on article pages

A general feature flag for Recipe Features that aren't yet released

Feature flag for media team features that aren't yet released

Use new Orca video player for preroll plugin in Spectrum

Show the snow tracker (instead of the heat tracker) on Spectrum

A college professor wants to use Section 230 against Big Tech

Commerce Department revokes more export licenses to China’s Huawei

Defense think tank MITRE to build AI supercomputer with Nvidia 

RFK Jr’s ‘history lesson’ on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine flunks the fact test

The Trump-Biden battle over the 2017 tax cut

That time football legend, rig-driving eligible bachelor Biden was arrested

Nats go over .500 the hard way by beating the O’s and Corbin Burnes

These Nationals are pretty fun. They’d be more fun with James Wood.

Baseball can crush rookies. Why hasn’t it crushed Trey Lipscomb?

Serve seared scallops on a creamy herb sauce for a quick, elegant meal

Seared Scallops With Creamy Herb Sauce

From a forgotten Indian cookbook, a deeply flavored chickpea curry

The next global crisis could come from the sun. We should prepare now.

The FTC’s noncompete clause rule goes too far

The crisis Biden and Trump don’t want to deal with

‘Look at the U.S.A.’: A photographer’s reflection on post-9/11 conflict

How Trump’s allies amplify his Truth Social messages to the wider world

In photos: The scene after tornadoes struck Michigan and Oklahoma 

Social Security has to be fixed. But you still need your own savings.

An I bond is now at 4.28 percent. Are they still a good deal?

Use these 6 points to say no to a college you and your kid can’t afford

Biden back in the battleground state of Wisconsin

In court, Stormy Daniels pulled a Trump on Trump 

Arrested U.S. soldier was in Russia to pursue girlfriend

Middle East conflict live updates: WHO says health services in south Gaza will run out of fuel in three days

U.S. signals optimism for Gaza cease-fire as Israel moves into Rafah 

Dog hit by car loses leg, is adopted by firefighter who helped her

Postal worker finds WWII-era letters, drives 5 hours to deliver them

Strangers help Sesame Street puppeteer after heirloom necklace was stolen

In Arizona, election workers trained with deepfakes to prepare for 2024

Cruise worker charged with stabbing 3 with scissors on ship off Canada

France tries to shed its rude reputation ahead of the Olympics

Don’t be a jerk at the airport: A guide for headphones

Carolyn Hax: Family pushes siblings to ‘make amends’ after their mother’s death

Miss Manners: I’m offended by a golfer’s skirt choice

Ask Amy: I want to be closer with my brother. He never reaches out to me.

Trump hush money trial live updates: Stormy Daniels to continue testimony

Former U.S. President Donald Trump appears at court in New York

iStock

The wall sit, a simple bodyweight exercise that can be done virtually anywhere, isn’t just for building strength. It can help your cardiovascular health, too.

A <a href="https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/early/2023/07/02/bjsports-2022-106503" target=_blank>recent study</a> in the British Journal of Sports Medicine suggests that isometric exercises, like wall sits (also known as wall squats), can help reduce blood pressure even more effectively than other forms of exercise, including aerobic activity, weight training or high-intensity interval workouts.

The research is good news for people who struggle to meet physical activity guidelines that recommend at least 150 minutes of weekly moderate-intensity exercise, like brisk walking or bicycling. The new analysis found that about eight minutes of isometric exercise, three times a week, can lead to a meaningful reduction in blood pressure.

This means holding a wall sit for two minutes and resting for two minutes. Repeat for a total of four wall sits with breaks in between. A single session, including rest, will take only 14 minutes.

On average, a regular isometric routine of wall sits lowered systolic blood pressure (the top number) by 10 mmHg and diastolic pressure by 5 mmHg, according to the research.

The study’s authors say the findings support development of new exercise guidelines that go beyond recommending aerobic exercise for the prevention and treatment of hypertension.

“Our main message is that actually engaging in exercise is fantastic and any exercise might reduce your blood pressure,” said <a href="https://www.canterbury.ac.uk/people/jamie-odriscoll" target=_blank>Jamie O’Driscoll</a>, the senior author of the study. “But if you’re an individual who is currently exercising to the guidelines and you’re still having a bit of difficulty reducing that blood pressure and you want to avoid going on medication, perhaps isometrics is an additional mode to complement the exercise you’re already doing.”

thenewreset

Practical tips and smart solutions for your health, technology, travel, food, money, home and more. Elevate your daily life with expertise from The Washington Post. <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/experts-for-every-day/" target=_blank>Find it all here</a>.

An isometric exercise refers to a static contraction in which the length of the muscle does not change, said <a href="https://www.canterbury.ac.uk/people/jamie-edwards" target=_blank>Jamie Edwards</a>, the first author of the study and a PhD researcher at Canterbury Christ Church University.

“Any kind of an exercise that is holding tension in any position which doesn’t involve dynamic movement is generally isometric exercise,” he said.

The research reviewed 270 randomized controlled trials that collectively studied 15,827 participants. The researchers looked at the blood pressure effects of three isometric exercises: squeezing a handgrip dynamometer, extending your legs against a fixed resistance and squatting with your back flat against the wall. (While planks are a popular example of isometric exercises, they were not included in the study.)

The researchers found that, overall, isometric exercise training was the most effective exercise for lowering systolic and diastolic blood pressures.

“From a clinician standpoint, these are very promising findings,” said <a href="https://www.kines.umich.edu/directory/laura-richardson" target=_blank>Laura Richardson</a>, a registered clinical exercise physiologist at the University of Michigan who was not involved in the study. “Being able to use isometric exercise as a therapeutic tool for those with hypertension is wonderful. I really think it’s a great way to get more individuals involved in being active.”

Isometric exercises effectively lower blood pressure because contracting a muscle and holding the position temporarily reduces blood flow to that muscle, O’Driscoll said. When you release that contraction, blood flow through the muscle tissue increases. This produces important signals that prompt blood vessels to relax more and creates<b> </b>less resistance to blood flow, which ultimately reduces blood pressure, O’Driscoll said.

To do a wall sit, find a wall that you can lean against. Take a couple of steps forward. Keep your feet hip width apart and slide your back down the wall until your knees are at about a 90-degree angle, as if you’re sitting in a chair, Richardson said.

The lower you squat, the more intense the workout. Be careful of how much you bend your knees in the beginning. Work your way down to 90 degrees. If you can’t get there, Richardson recommends sliding down based on your knee flexibility and holding steady until you feel lower-body muscle fatigue.

Isometric exercises like wall sits engage a lot of muscles, help build strength and are helpful for improving balance and range of motion, Richardson said.

“Primarily, you’re going to be using a lot of your leg muscles: your quadriceps, your glutes, your calves,” said Richardson, who is also a clinical associate professor at the University of Michigan School of Kinesiology. “If your back is flat against the wall, it’s going to help engage the abdominal muscles.”

Sign up for the Well+Being newsletter, your source of expert advice and simple tips to help you live well every day

Road Runners Club of America Excellence in Running Journalism, 2022

Society of Professional Journalists' D.C. Chapter Dateline Award, Overall Sports Coverage, 2020

Society of Professional Journalists Mark of Excellence Awards, National Finalist, Online Sports Reporting, 2013

University of Maryland, master's in journalism

University of Maryland, B.S. in kinesiological sciences

Kelyn Soong is a reporter on The Washington Post's Well+Being desk, covering fitness and exercise advice, trends and culture. 

Kelyn Soong

Doing wall sit exercises regularly can help lower your blood pressure

the-washington-post

Wall-sit

Contributor

Food

Fitness

Mind

Body

Life

Well+Being

washpost

prism://prism.query/tag,wb-fitness&limit=20

Well+Being Fitness

Well+Being: Fitness and Exercise

Stories about personal fitness, workout routines and exercise culture from The Washington Post’s Well+Being section.

Well+Being from The Washington Post covers healthy living, including nutrition, fitness, mental health, relationships, chronic illness and disability.