On the football field, he was known as "Joe Cool" and "The Comeback King" because he led his team to 31 NFL victories after trailing in the fourth quarter.
He took his San Francisco 49ers to four Super Bowls, and was named MVP for three of them.
The 6-foot-2-inch star set all kinds of records for passing and yardage gained and was voted into eight Pro Bowls. After he retired, he was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
There are many who will argue that Joe Montana is among the best who ever played the game.
You might think an athlete with his kind of numbers wouldn't have to worry about any health-related numbers. But at age 40, Montana found out he had seriously high blood pressure. It was diagnosed "at a routine physical that my wife made me go to," he said in a telephone interview.
It took diet, exercise and medication to get Montana's blood pressure back to acceptable levels. "It was hard at first," he admitted. "I didn't succeed right away. But it was not long before I found the right medication. And once you start to see the benefits it gets easier. The important thing is to not give up and to stick with a treatment plan that is right for you." He looks at it as one more very important comeback he's had to make.
Montana also credits his wife, Jennifer, for helping him stay on the right path.
You need that family support, he said. Which is one reason Montana is serving as a spokesman for the "BP Success Zone," an educational program sponsored by Novartis Pharmaceuticals that encourages learning about the risks and treatments for high blood pressure as well as promotes family activity and fitness as a preventive measure.
Joe Montana is far from alone in having to deal with high blood pressure. It is a dangerously prevalent condition, said cardiologist and fitness expert Jim Rippe, an associate professor at Tufts University, who is also working with the BP Success Zone program.
More than 65 million Americans — about one in four — have this problem, said Rippe, also speaking by telephone. "It is one of the major risks in both heart attack and strokes, two conditions that kill more Americans than all other diseases."
According to figures from the Centers for Disease Control, 40 percent of Utah residents aged 55 to 64 have high blood pressure or hypertension.
Rippe estimates that 70 percent of people with the condition do not have it under control. Many aren't even aware of the problem. "Part of that is because they don't understand the risks and part because there are no symptoms."
This is how it works: Your heart beats about 100,000 times each day, pumping some 2,000 gallons of blood through your blood vessels. The force of the blood pushing against the inside walls of your vessels plus your vessels' resistance to blood flow due to constriction or narrowing of the vessels create the blood pressure. "The higher those numbers, the more risk that it can damage not only your heart but also your brain, your eyes, your kidneys and other organs," said Rippe.
The medical community has adopted more stringent guidelines for healthy blood pressure, he said. A measurement of 120/80 is considered the "BP Success Zone." Measurements of 121-139/80-89 are now considered pre-hypertension, and a measurement of 140/90 is considered hypertension.
"Get yourself measured and then talk with your doctor about treatments," Rippe advised. The good news is that "we now have great treatments." Even if medication is required, "we now have medicines with minimal side effects. There are a lot of good options. We just have to get people to act."
Equally important, said Rippe, are lifestyle factors such as weight loss, diet and exercise. And it's good to start early. "In children, we're mostly looking at preventive measures. Being physically active can help a lot."
According to recent figures from the American Heart Association, about 16 percent of all American children and teens are overweight, a four-time increase since the mid-1960s.
And that, said Montana, is why getting to the "success zone" should be a family affair.
"My wife and kids keep me on my toes, and we try to do a lot of heart-healthy activities together. Just like in football, you need a game plan."
He has learned that he has to watch what he eats. "I don't call it a diet, because I hate that word. It's so extreme. I still can enjoy the foods I enjoy — like cheeseburgers and steak — I just have to do it in moderation. And I have to increase my exercise."
One thing he's learned, he said, is that if you want your kids to be more active, "you have to do it with them. And with eating, too. Parents have to set an example."
He and Jennifer still have two sons at home, ages 13 and 15. "They are at an age that it is fun to do things together. They're into sports. One of our sons is really into basketball, and both Jennifer and I get out there and shoot hoops with him."
As a parent, he said, "that not only gets you involved, but it gives you things to talk and laugh about, to be interactive about."
A healthy, active lifestyle shouldn't be a chore for families, Montana said. "It can be an incredible bonding experience that builds not only stronger relationships, but a stronger body and hopefully a lifetime of good fitness habits."
E-mail: carma@desnews.com