You may or may not have heard of the growth of the latest cutting edge technology to enhance training and recovery: blood flow restriction (BFR) training.
BFR is rapidly becoming a popular tool used by physical therapists, strength and conditioning coaches, and competitive elite-level athletes including Olympians– it’s one of the many tools we use at AWAKEN to help athletes get an edge on their training or as an apparatus to aid with injury recovery in patients.
BFR essentially consists of strapping cuffs around your legs or arms, which then constrict blood flow (similar to getting your blood pressure taken) electronically through a bluetooth device. This restriction of blood flow creates a hypoxic environment for your muscles.
If the cuffs are around your lower extremities, for example, they produce a feeling in your legs comparable to the “lactic” feeling you’d get from sprinting at the end of a hard race or workout!
Once the BFR cuffs are strapped on, clients will typically perform body-weight exercises, go for a short walk, or spin the legs on the bike for a short period. This safe, effective, and portable training method can be used in treatment protocols for orthopedic injuries or post-surgery treatment sessions. It can also be used to enhance athletic performance through the numerous benefits that BFR generates.
BFR training produces numerous skeletal muscle adaptations as well as systemic adaptations. Highlighted, below, is a list of just a few of these various adaptations that regular BFR training demonstrated through research.
Skeletal Muscle Adaptations of BFR Training:
Hypertrophy - Decreased oxygen in muscles from BFR can increase metabolite production shifting fluid into the muscle cell wall. This causes cells to expand and stimulates protein synthesis in muscles, which increases muscle growth from limited movement (i.e., limitations that occur from recovering post-op).
Strength - The increased duration of limited oxygen in the muscles from BFR training will boost the production of muscle recruitment due to increased muscle excitability. This, in turn, will increase muscle strength through low-oxygen-induced muscle fatigue. Essentially, BFR training increases muscle strength by enhancing the muscles’ ability to buffer blood lactate more efficiently.
Bone Healing - Acute hypoxia from BFR training causes an up-regulation of a protein called vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). When used in patients with bone fractures, BFR actually increases blood vessel formation into damaged bones due to this increased production of VEGF. Therefore, regular BFR training has the ability to promote brown growth.
Systemic Adaptations of BFR Training:
VO2 Max - VO2 Max, also known as maximum oxygen uptake, represents a key factor in endurance ability and signifies the body’s efficiency at delivering oxygen to working muscles. BFR training can improve the body’s ability to use oxygen (essentially, increasing VO2 max) by exercising the muscles in a hypoxic environment– similar to altitude training!
Soft Tissue and Tendon Repair - BFR training actually induces the release of Human Growth Hormone (HGH). HGH in the body is responsible for collagen synthesis, cell reproduction, and cell regeneration of human tissue including muscle, cartilage, and bone, to name a few. This is yet another reason why BFR training can promote faster healing in patients/athletes recovering from injury!
At AWAKEN Performance Rehab, our goal is to offer the highest-level medical care in our boutique-style physical therapy clinic that offers one-of-a-kind physical therapy and sports performance training using cutting edge research and technology including BFR training.
If you are serious about figuring out the root cause of your pain or injury, addressing the soreness/tightness associated with an athletic lifestyle, and/or ultimately learning how to prevent injuries while improving your athletic and everyday performance, then it’s time to contact us to AWAKEN YOUR POTENTIAL today!
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