# Normal ambulatory blood pressure

**URL:** <https://forum.barbellmedicine.com/t/normal-ambulatory-blood-pressure/8055>\
**Category:** Medical Q&A \[Moderated\]\
**Created:** [February 1, 2020, 8:42pm UTC](https://forum.barbellmedicine.com/t/normal-ambulatory-blood-pressure/8055 "2020-02-01T20:42:32Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![WK89](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d6d6ee/32.png) [@WK89](https://forum.barbellmedicine.com/u/WK89)\
**Post date:** [February 1, 2020, 8:42pm UTC](https://forum.barbellmedicine.com/t/normal-ambulatory-blood-pressure/8055/1 "2020-02-01T20:42:32Z")

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Hi Drs.,

I have a question regarding blood pressure I was hoping you could shed some light on. What is considered a normal blood pressure when you’re going about your day to day business? I know this answer can vary wildly based on activity but is there a number or range that is considered normal while you’re up and ambulatory, moving around your house, walking around the grocery store, etc? As I understand it, normal blood pressure is anything under 120/80, but since blood pressure is supposed to be measured while you’ve been still and quiet for several minutes, it seems that 120/80 when you’re up and walking around might not apply.

Thank you for your insight!

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**Author:** ![Austin\_Baraki](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/forum.barbellmedicine.com/austin_baraki/32/1095_2.png) [@Austin\_Baraki](https://forum.barbellmedicine.com/u/Austin_Baraki)\
**Post date:** [February 1, 2020, 11:33pm UTC](https://forum.barbellmedicine.com/t/normal-ambulatory-blood-pressure/8055/2 "2020-02-01T23:33:56Z")

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Cutoffs for “normal” blood pressure on ambulatory blood pressure monitoring remain an area of debate.

A (somewhat dated, at this point) [meta-analysis of 23 studies](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed?term=1826069) found that among non-hypertensive individuals, “the 24-hour BP averaged 118/72 mm Hg, the daytime BP 123/76 mm Hg, and the nighttime BP 106/64 mm Hg.” Here are some [clinical guidelines](https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/full/10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.118.11946) on the use and interpretation of ABPM.

With this all said, these numbers are specific to _ambulatory blood pressure monitoring_ as a specific diagnostic method; you should not be taking individual measurements of your blood pressure while active and attempting to interpret them, as it will be essentially useless.