23/08/2019
BFR bands training-:
The system is a cycle with the heart at the core. Oxygenated blood enters the heart and is pumped (with great force) into the arteries. The arteries carry oxygen rich blood to all the tissues of the body, including muscle. For simplicity, let’s use the biceps as an example. As the arteries approach the muscle, they become thinner and thinner until they become so thin that the nutrients and oxygen diffuse across its walls and into the tissue. These super thin blood vessels are called capillaries. After the blood “drops off” its oxygen and nutrients, it is picked up by more capillaries, which feed into larger blood vessels called veins. The veins passively carry the deoxygenated blood back to the heart. Once back at the heart, the deoxygenated blood gets sent to the lungs to get re-oxygenated, sent back to the heart, and is pumped back into the arteries to start the cycle all over again.
So the force from the initial pump from the heart is enough to send the blood from the heart, through the arteries, through the capillaries, into the veins, and back to the heart all while fighting gravity, plaque build up, etc. (pretty amazing huh?). So it is easy to see that the velocity of blood flow is MUCH greater in the arteries than it is in the veins. Think of pushing a toy car across the floor. The initial push (the heartbeat) gives the car a decent amount of velocity, however as the car travels further and further away, its velocity lessens.
What is BFR Training?
The goal of BFR training, or occlusion training, is to maintain arterial inflow of blood while occluding venous return during exercise. We want to get that nutrient, hormone, and oxygen-rich blood to the muscle, while delaying its escape. This is accomplished by the application of a blood pressure cuff, knee wrap, or anything that can be tightly secured around the most proximal (closest to the midline of the body) part of a limb. If we use the arm muscles as an example, the wrap would be tightly secured around the upper arm, as close to the shoulder as possible, causing the blood to pool in the arms. It is thought to have a positive effect on hypertrophy while using much lighter loads than conventional weight training.
How is it possible to restrict venous return without restricting arterial flow? Let’s think back to our circulatory system review. The blood in arteries has a much higher velocity and propulsion force than the veins, so in order to occlude arterial blood flow, a much higher pressure is needed. It is easier and requires less pressure to restrict blood flow in the veins because at that point, the flow of blood is not as forceful. Think of in the movies when someone gets an injury and the blood is squirting and pulsing out. The movie is depicting an arterial injury because of the high velocity of blood. If a vein were injured, the blood would just ooze out.]
