Transformative exercise technique to develop strength and muscle mass
How does blood flow restriction (BFR) training work and what is it for?
Today I share with you a complete article by Dr. Joseph Mercola ( 4 ) and supported by a lot of research that mentions the KAATSU technique or Blood Flow Restriction (BFR) or Vascular Occlusion developed in Japan more than 50 years ago by Professor Yoshiaki Sato.
RFS is a technique that partially reduces the flow of blood into the arteries by reducing the flow of blood out of the veins of the exercised muscle in the extremities.
With this technique you can increase your strength and muscle mass using only a fraction of the weight that would be needed in conventional strength training and in half the time. Because the weight is so low, the risk of injury is dramatically reduced.
Using lighter weights makes strength training accessible to a greater number of people, including older age groups and patients with medical conditions or injuries. In adults over 60 years of age, muscle mass loss or sarcopenia rises to 25% and in those over 80 years of age up to 50%. Remember that loss of muscle mass puts a person at greater risk of falls and fractures.
According to Dr. Joseph Mercola, this technique stimulates the production of endogenous hormones such as human growth hormone and somatomedin C.
It has been discovered that it is not the Somatomedin C circulating in the blood that allows muscle growth but the Somatomedin C that the muscle produces when exercising and even more so when using the KAATSU technique.
How does blood flow restriction or RFS work?
The ability of RFS to achieve such physiological benefits is directly linked to the decrease in venous blood flow through the muscle group involved, creating an environment of relative hypoxia or low oxygen pressure in the muscle being exercised.
By doing a very light exercise for a period of 15-20 minutes, you achieve an exhaustive workout that sends a signal to the brain that a very hard workout is needed that requires recovery and adaptation.
The brain then sends out a wide variety of hormonal responses that stimulate the muscles and blood vessels to grow and strengthen. When I refer to muscle mass growth, it is not about acquiring the volume of a bodybuilder, but rather about developing and shaping your muscles according to your physical constitution and natural size.
Many people, especially those who are used to weight training, will think that using light weights to develop and strengthen muscles is not enough, but it has been shown that this technique allows an increase in muscle strength of 40% in just 12 weeks of training, depending on the health and the load used by the person. ( 3 )
RFS reproduces the effects of intense strength training without any risk
This technique is not conventional strength training with inflatable bands. The fact that it is done with such light weights prevents damage and much less trauma to the muscle fiber as occurs with conventional weight training. The KAATSU technique allows for a quick recovery that would otherwise leave you in pain for several days. In most cases, you can exercise different parts of the body almost every day and quickly obtain the physical and metabolic benefits you are seeking.
Training with light weights and without blood occlusion bands will not activate type 2 muscle fibers. By applying the KAATSU technique, type 1 muscle fibers tire during the first series of the exercise due to the lack of oxygen and requiring the use of type 2 fibers that produce energy without oxygen and generate high levels of lactate that are responsible for this metabolic effect.
RFS training not only increases your muscle mass but also your strength and endurance while reducing fat storage. According to Dr. Mercola, for people who are not competitive athletes, this is the type of training that meets their needs.
Local and systemic effects of RFS
For older people, the RFS technique is that the development of muscle mass is superior to any very heavy weight training you can do. The reason is that you need good blood flow to the stem cells of type 2 muscle fibers and practically, the microcirculation of humans decreases with age. So, even if your brain sends signals for muscle development generated by conventional strength training, it is not going to work if there is not sufficient capillary supply to the stem cells of type 2 muscle fibers.
Microcirculation
Image from Wikipedia
Lack of oxygen stress causes the release of HIF-1 alpha (hypoxia inducible factor alpha 1) which increases what we call vascular endothelial growth factor VEGF which is a potent signaling protein involved in angiogenesis (growth of blood vessels from pre-existing vessels).
Well, RFS has been shown to increase VEGF levels by 410% in young adults. What's more, RFS training has been shown to increase muscle stem cells by 300% in 8 days of training.
VEGF not only increases the microcirculation of muscle stem cells but also of the heart and brain. In Japan, where this technique has been most widely applied, it is often used in the rehabilitation of heart and stroke patients for this purpose.
RFS is a potent inhibitor of myostatin
RFS also controls the hormone myostatin which is a negative regulator of muscle mass development. According to Dr. Mercola, if your myostatin levels are high, you cannot build muscle mass.
In older adults, myostatin levels are twice as high as in young people, making it more difficult for them to develop strength and muscle mass.
Lactate was previously thought to be a metabolic waste product, but it is now understood to be a molecule involved in many metabolic processes and structural adaptations of the organism.
When the bands are applied and inflated around the muscle being exercised, the type 1 muscle fibers that require oxygen, glucose and fat to produce energy in the mitochondria, quickly give way and the muscle switches to using type 2 muscle fibers that require burning glucose without oxygen through the process of glycolysis.
The lactate generated by type 2 muscle fibers during RFS actually regulates myostatin production and helps prevent skeletal muscle loss.
The benefits of lactate continue even after the inflatable bands are released. Lactate travels from the muscles and is released into the bloodstream to reach the brain where a monocarboxylate transporter dumps it into the brain to be used as fuel.
Once lactate reaches the brain, it increases the production of a powerful hormone called Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF). BDNF is a member of the brain growth factors that contribute to neuroplasticity and improve cognitive performance.
If you want to incorporate this technique into your sports practice, here is what you should keep in mind
Correct inflation pressure
Since the bands must be tight enough to decrease the oxygen level in the muscle being exercised, you must avoid 100% arterial occlusion, as this would be like applying a tourniquet and this would be dangerous.
In fact, arterial occlusion should only be a maximum of 60% and a minimum of 40% to obtain the benefits of the technique. A pressure greater than 60% will not increase the benefits and a pressure less than 40% is as if the technique were not being applied.
When you apply the bands manually, you should tighten them so that your skin becomes pink or red compared to your normal skin color. You should also see that your veins bulge a little. The bandages should not be uncomfortable and your skin color should not turn whitish or take on a grayish or bluish hue because this means that arterial flow is restricted.
You need to keep in mind that your arms are going to swell during the exercise which will make you tighten the bands a little more. Another simple way to determine that the bands are tight enough is if you can't fit 2 fingers between the band and your skin, but loose enough to push a finger between the band and your skin.
The importance of proper pressure and how to monitor it
Remember that if the bands are too tight, you can atrophy the muscle. It is important to monitor capillary refill to ensure that you are getting enough blood flow to the limb you are exercising.
The capillary refill test can be performed as follows: with the index finger of the hand opposite the limb being exercised, press the palm of the hand whose arm is under arterial occlusion, exactly in the area below the thumb, lift the index finger quickly and observe how long it takes for the whitened area to return to its normal color.
WARNING : To prevent muscle atrophy in the extremities due to lack of oxygen, the bands are used on the arms for only 15 minutes at a time and for 20 minutes on the legs.
Only put the bands on the limbs you are currently using and remove them before exercising another area of the body. That is, do not apply the RFS technique simultaneously to arms and legs, as this can lower your blood pressure so much that you may faint.
How to determine your endurance level
As mentioned above, RFS is much safer than using very heavy weights for conventional strength training. RFS training requires only 20% to 33% of resistance compared to the weights you normally use.
This light weight is combined with a high volume of repetitions while applying light compression to the blood flow to activate the skeletal muscles of the arms and legs.
As for weight, you'll find your way around it. If you're older or haven't been exercising regularly, you may need to start with no weight.
Fortunately, you would have access to a wide variety of exercises to progressively increase resistance, this includes exercises with your body weight and eventually, you will not need more than 12 kilos when applying the technique.
As you begin to incorporate weights into your training, you should know that the maximum weight you can handle is the weight with which you can perform ONE repetition of the chosen exercise. For example, if you can do one repetition of the biceps curl with a 25-pound dumbbell (100%), you can divide the weight by 5 (that will be your 20%) or by 4 (your 25%) or by 3 (your 33%). So, you can start with a 5-pound dumbbell (20%).
If you do not know the maximum weight for a repetition of a certain exercise, it is better to start with very little weight, especially if it is your first time and because your tissues need time to adapt to the pressure of the bands and the movements with them.
WARNING : The only exception to these guidelines is when you are using them for the first time. It is important to keep in mind that your muscle tissue needs time to adapt to the RFS technique. At least in the first training session, try to use 40% pressure on the bands and use 10% of the maximum weight for one repetition. During the next two sessions, increase to the minimum pressure of the bands and load for performing the exercises.
NOTE: You need to exercise intensely to get the benefits
Muscle development depends deeply on metabolic factors, so it is key that the repetitions of each series are until fatigue to achieve it, beyond the established number of repetitions.
Remember to sweat and feel out of breath. Because RFS is a high-intensity exercise and stimulates the sympathetic nervous system, sweating and out of breath are the telltale signs that you are doing it properly.
General RFS Exercise Guide
According to Dr. Mercola's instructions, you can adapt to RFS training with various types of resistance, including machines, but it seems that dumbbells are ideal to start with. Since the weight used is so low, you would not need dumbbells heavier than 25 pounds. If you are an older, weaker adult, 5-10 pound dumbbells will suffice.
Number of repetitions in each series
1st set: 30 repetitions with 20 seconds of rest for both arms and legs.
2nd set: 20-30 reps with 20 seconds rest for both arms and legs.
3rd set: 10-20 reps with 20 seconds rest for both arms and legs.
4th set: 1-10 reps with 20 seconds rest for both arms and legs and 60 seconds maximum before continuing with the next exercise.
Training frequency
The training frequency is individualized and varies with each person and their needs. It can vary between 2 times per week to 3 times per day depending on your personal goals.
How to perform RFS
The arm bands go near the armpits and fasten where the biceps begin and the deltoid muscle ends. On the legs they are fastened at the groin level, upper part of the quadriceps.
There is a spillover effect of training where the muscles whose blood flow has not been restricted will also receive the benefit once you remove the bands at the end of the workout. That is, the chest muscles will receive the benefits, even if you only used the bands on your arms.
The bands should not be placed around the knees or elbows as this can cause nerve damage. The bands should only be placed in the places already mentioned as the aim of RFS is to increase vascular elasticity and provoke a metabolic and hormonal response that leads to muscular and aesthetic improvement, of course.
When the technique is applied correctly, lactic acid builds up in the muscle and produces a burning sensation due to the excess hydrogen ions produced. Of course, this is an uncomfortable sensation, especially if you are pushing your muscle to its limits, but understand that this uncomfortable feeling will ease with adaptation.
On average, it can take between 4-6 weeks to gain muscle mass and strength, although most people start to see dramatic changes within the first two weeks. According to one study, older adults who used the technique twice a week achieved desired results and maintained them while those who dropped training to once a week did not maintain the effects they had achieved.
Dr. Mercola notes that you can benefit from using bands on a daily basis. You can vary the number of exercises or simply put the bands on your legs and walk for 30 minutes, or put them on your arms for a swim. The workout doesn't have to involve weights, you can use them to practice your favorite sport, taking into account the guidelines mentioned above.
Without a doubt, the RFS technique is a great innovation for physical health as it allows you to increase not only your longevity but also your quality of life while maintaining all your physical and mental capacities in an optimal state.
Personally, I have not yet used this technique, but I do not doubt that what Dr. Mercola sets forth in his article is based on his practice and the studies mentioned that I have corroborated by reading.
I hope that I will soon be able to offer the results of my experience with this technique.
Types and prices of blood flow restriction bands
