A Comparison between High and Low Cuff Pressures on Muscle Oxygen Saturation and Recovery Responses Following Blood-Flow Restriction Resistance Exercise

The aim of the study was to compare the recovery response and muscle oxygenation of a blood-flow restriction resistance exercise (BFR) session with high [HP: 80% of the arterial occlusion pressure (AOP)] and low cuff pressure (LP: 40% of AOP). Both exercise sessions included 4 sets to failure at the barbell preacher curl exercise. Twelve resistance trained men (27.4 ± 5.0 years; 83.5 ± 11.6 kg; 176.6 ± 7.0 cm) performed each protocol in a counterbalanced, randomized order. Maximal isometric force, muscle morphology and muscle soreness of the biceps brachii muscle were assessed at baseline, 15-min, 60-min and 24-h post each testing session. In addition, muscle oxygen saturation (SmO2) was assessed during each training session. A lower number of repetitions (p = 0.013) was detected in HP compared to LP. A lower SmO2 (p < 0.001) was detected in the recovery time between the sets in HP (mean: 47.6 ± 15.7%) compared to LP (mean: 68.9 ± 7.2%). No differences between the two trials (p > 0.05) were noted for isometric force, muscle architecture and soreness at any timepoint. Results indicate that, despite a high cuff pressure may induce a more hypoxic condition compared to a lower cuff pressure, recovery responses may not be affected.

[1]  Jeremy R. Townsend,et al.  Effect of watermelon supplementation on exercise performance, muscle oxygenation, and vessel diameter in resistance-trained men , 2022, European Journal of Applied Physiology.

[2]  I. M. Guardado,et al.  Acute responses of muscle oxygen saturation during different cluster training configurations in resistance-trained individuals , 2021, Biology of sport.

[3]  R. Di Michele,et al.  Mud Pack With Menthol and Arnica Montana Accelerates Recovery Following a High-Volume Resistance Training Session for Lower Body in Trained Men , 2020, Journal of strength and conditioning research.

[4]  M. Clarkson,et al.  Is there rationale for the cuff pressures prescribed for blood flow restriction exercise? A systematic review , 2020, Scandinavian journal of medicine & science in sports.

[5]  D. Rojas-Valverde,et al.  Lower-limb Dynamics of Muscle Oxygen Saturation During the Back-squat Exercise: Effects of Training Load and Effort Level. , 2019, Journal of strength and conditioning research.

[6]  D. Rhon,et al.  The Safety of Blood Flow Restriction Training as a Therapeutic Intervention for Patients With Musculoskeletal Disorders: A Systematic Review , 2019, The American journal of sports medicine.

[7]  J. Vaz,et al.  Tissue Oxygenation in Response to Different Relative Levels of Blood-Flow Restricted Exercise , 2019, Front. Physiol..

[8]  V. Totti,et al.  Upper-Body Resistance Exercise Reduces Time to Recover After a High-Volume Bench Press Protocol in Resistance-Trained Men. , 2019, Journal of strength and conditioning research.

[9]  T. Abe,et al.  Muscle Adaptations to High-Load Training and Very Low-Load Training With and Without Blood Flow Restriction , 2018, Front. Physiol..

[10]  F. Merni,et al.  Comparison Between Bench Press Throw and Ballistic Push-up Tests to Assess Upper-Body Power in Trained Individuals , 2018, Journal of strength and conditioning research.

[11]  T. Abe,et al.  Moderately heavy exercise produces lower cardiovascular, RPE, and discomfort compared to lower load exercise with and without blood flow restriction , 2018, European Journal of Applied Physiology.

[12]  T. Mittlmeier,et al.  Impact of Blood Flow Restriction Exercise on Muscle Fatigue Development and Recovery , 2017, Medicine and science in sports and exercise.

[13]  J. Loenneke,et al.  Are higher blood flow restriction pressures more beneficial when lower loads are used? , 2017, Physiology international.

[14]  J. Loenneke,et al.  The effects of upper body exercise across different levels of blood flow restriction on arterial occlusion pressure and perceptual responses , 2017, Physiology & Behavior.

[15]  S. Pearson,et al.  A Review on the Mechanisms of Blood-Flow Restriction Resistance Training-Induced Muscle Hypertrophy , 2015, Sports Medicine.

[16]  T. Abe,et al.  Does blood flow restriction result in skeletal muscle damage? A critical review of available evidence , 2014, Scandinavian journal of medicine & science in sports.

[17]  J. Hisdal,et al.  Contractile function and sarcolemmal permeability after acute low-load resistance exercise with blood flow restriction , 2012, European Journal of Applied Physiology.

[18]  R. Ferguson,et al.  Enhancing strength and postocclusive calf blood flow in older people with training with blood-flow restriction. , 2011, Journal of aging and physical activity.

[19]  C. Ugrinowitsch,et al.  Vascular occlusion training for inclusion body myositis: a novel therapeutic approach. , 2010, Journal of visualized experiments : JoVE.

[20]  T. Abe,et al.  Neuromuscular fatigue following low-intensity dynamic exercise with externally applied vascular restriction. , 2010, Journal of electromyography and kinesiology : official journal of the International Society of Electrophysiological Kinesiology.

[21]  B. Clark,et al.  Delayed-onset muscle soreness induced by low-load blood flow-restricted exercise , 2009, European Journal of Applied Physiology.

[22]  T. Barstow,et al.  Dynamics of noninvasively estimated microvascular O2 extraction during ramp exercise. , 2007, Journal of applied physiology.

[23]  B. Clark,et al.  Effects of exercise load and blood-flow restriction on skeletal muscle function. , 2007, Medicine and science in sports and exercise.

[24]  Takashi Abe,et al.  Muscle size and strength are increased following walk training with restricted venous blood flow from the leg muscle, Kaatsu-walk training. , 2006, Journal of applied physiology.

[25]  Yasuo Kawakami,et al.  The accuracy of volume estimates using ultrasound muscle thickness measurements in different muscle groups , 2004, European Journal of Applied Physiology.

[26]  C. Foster,et al.  A New Approach to Monitoring Exercise Training , 2001, Journal of strength and conditioning research.

[27]  Y. Takarada,et al.  Effects of resistance exercise combined with moderate vascular occlusion on muscular function in humans. , 2000, Journal of applied physiology.

[28]  J. Stevens,et al.  Applied Multivariate Statistics for the Social Sciences , 1993 .

[29]  Kathryn A. Lee,et al.  Validity and reliability of a scale to assess fatigue , 1991, Psychiatry Research.

[30]  Bruce J Tromberg,et al.  Effect of blood flow restriction on tissue oxygenation during knee extension. , 2015, Medicine and science in sports and exercise.

[31]  D. Allen,et al.  Skeletal muscle fatigue: cellular mechanisms. , 2008, Physiological reviews.

[32]  Takashi Abe,et al.  Eight days KAATSU-resistance training improved sprint but not jump performance in collegiate male track and field athletes , 2005 .