Went to the new sports doc yesterday [more on him later] and received a “Stage 1 Hypertension” result from my blood pressure test. He has to read it on two more occasions before he can actually diagnose me, but it is what it is.<br/><br/>Now… what has caused it? According to WebMD, the following are common causes:<br/><ul><li>Smoking – I don’t.<br/></li><li>Being overweight or obese – I’m not.<br/></li><li>Lack of physical activity – Hah!<br/></li><li>Too much salt in the diet – Possible.<br/></li><li>Too much alcohol consumption (more than 1 to 2 drinks per day) – Nope.<br/></li><li>Stress – Hah!<br/></li><li>Older age – Not really.<br/></li><li>Genetics – Damn it?<br/></li><li>Family history of high blood pressure – Damn it?<br/></li><li>Chronic kidney disease – No.<br/></li><li>Adrenal and thyroid disorders – No.</li></ul>Back to the good old genes and family history. There’s a possibility I’m getting too much salt, but with the amount I sweat on a regular basis, I sort of doubt it.<br/><br/>My plan of action is to work out a little more in this downtime (although a couple months of [relative] inactivity aren’t enough to get me where I am), and focus on eating more healthy. I already eat healthier than 95% of Americans (could definitely improve on lunch quality, but that’s tied to stress and happiness; I love a nice lunch), but I guess given my genetics, that’s not good enough.<br/>