BFR training is effective in both male and female athletes. BFR training produces positive adaptations through individual and multi-joint exercises in athletes. Both low-intensity (10-30% 1RM) and high-intensity (70% 1RM) programs appear to be beneficial BFR training intensities for athletes. The BFR can be used as a metabolic finisher after a heavy endurance workout.
They can perform tight grip bench presses, triceps push-ups, and end up with tricep extensions with BFR dumbbells. There are potential risks associated with BFR training if not done correctly, says Drew Contreras, doctor of physical therapy and vice president of physician integration and innovation at the American Physical Therapy Association. For athletes such as basketball or baseball players with several games per week, BFR can be used as their strength work. This has important injury rehabilitation implications, as well as making BFR a great tool for athlete recovery.
In the hands of an experienced professional, BFR training can be a useful tool to support musculoskeletal rehabilitation for injury recovery and to support strength training and muscle conditioning for athletes and some patients with chronic illnesses. BFR is rapidly growing in popularity and is one of the most interesting new clinical tools of the decade. BFR is a great option to improve 26% strength hypertrophy without interfering with your already high training load. During periods of no weight bearing after surgeries, BFR is very effective in minimizing loss of strength and muscle mass.
According to Steven Munatones, CEO and co-founder of Kaatsu Global, who is also a Kaatsu Master Instructor, several Olympic-level athletes have used Kaatsu BFR training, as well as other professional athletes and amateur athletes involved in extreme sports (such as ultramarathon and mountaineers). Brown strongly recommends consulting a physical therapist before starting any training program that involves BFR Since it has been around, one of the reasons BFR training has taken a while to enter the mainstream fitness culture is fear of muscle damage and blood clotting. Gardner notes that people who should not generally use BFR include (but are not limited to) those with current or past blood clots, a diagnosis of a blood clotting disorder, bleeding disorders (including thrombophilia) and infections within the affected limb, as well as pregnant women. Because BFR causes less muscle damage, faster gains have been observed than in traditional strength training.
During BFR training, oxygen to the muscle is limited, which means that slow-twitch muscle fibers (Type I), which require oxygen as fuel, are less active. Comparison of traditional high-intensity resistance (HIT) exercise with BFR training and low-intensity training (LI). By forcing the body into an anaerobic state (when there is no oxygen reaching the muscles) with minimal weight, the BFR creates or develops muscles without putting unnecessary strain on the injured area.