Blood Flow Restriction (BFR) Training: More muscle with less work?

A little over a year ago I came across a concept in strength training called "blood flow restriction" training, or BFR.

Seemed strange at first, but the research was pretty solid. Use some type of a device to restrict blood flow into the arms or legs and do your strength training.

The idea is that, with the added stress on the muscles, you can get better gains with less work (can compare 70% of max weight use vs 20% of max weight) because of increased growth hormone released as well as stress-responses in the muscles themselves.

Heck--there have even been studies showing benefits of BFR with NO weight training. Kind of reminds me of those electrode-thingees that you put on your abs and get a 6 pack in 4 weeks without actually doing anything (and no--this doesn't work).

This means people who have been injured, who recently had surgery, or people with other conditions like MS, RA or Parkinson's can get better outcomes despite physical challenges.

Because of this, there has been an awful lot of research on BFR training over the years and this comprehensive review gives us some answers as to how to best use BFR for the best benefits.

Here's some highlights:

1) Works best with resistance exercise over aerobic (makes sense)
2) Works best at 2-3 days / wk vs 4-5 days / wk
3) Higher pressures did not lead to better gains - 140-160 mmHg may be the sweet spot. It's possible that a wider cuff may allow lower pressures.
4) Give it some time-studies lasting at least 10 wks showed better outcomes

Find out more in the video.

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Pedro-Marin-3/publication/51646963_Low_intensity_blood_flow_restriction_training_A_meta-analysis/links/00b4953248f39bc34b000000/Low-intensity-blood-flow-restriction-training-A-meta-analysis.pdf

Bands shown in image from Amazon https://amzn.to/3JwNfbd

Видео Blood Flow Restriction (BFR) Training: More muscle with less work? канала James Bogash, DC