What causes diastolic pressure to increase during exercise?causes for this to happenPlease discuss this question with your primary care physician who can evaluate you. Generally speaking, an increase in both the diagnostic and systolic blood pressure is a normal thing during exercise. The reasons for this are as follows. As you exercise, your blood flow to your muscles must increase. This causes the heart to beat faster and harder. We call the amount of blood the heart pumps in a minute cardiac output. As cardiac output increases, blood pressure increases. The other factor to determining blood pressure its how tight the blood are squeezed. During exercise, some blood vessels constrict, while others dilate. When someone is out for a light jog, the level of blood vessel constriction is low. This means that blood pressure will only increase a small amount. When someone is lifting weights, there is more blood vessel constriction, so blood pressure is high. The other factor not mentioned above is the presence of catecholamines such as epinephrine and norepinephrine. These are released into the blood stream during exercise and act to change blood vessel contraction and increase cardiac output. In general, they also increase blood pressure. Therefore it is not only normal, but expected that your blood pressure to increase during exercise. However, I would suggest that you schedule an appointment with your primary care physician to discuss any concerns about your blood pressure and for a blood pressure check. This answer is for general informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. If you think you may have a medical emergency, call your doctor or (in the United States) 911 immediately. Always seek the advice of your doctor before starting or changing treatment. Medical professionals who provide responses to health-related questions are intended third party beneficiaries with certain rights under Zocdoc’s Terms of Service.