Everyday, millions of people workout at gyms aspiring to build muscle and achieve their ideal physique. Their workout programs can consist many different techniques to try to cause their muscle fibers to hypertrophy, in other words causing muscle fibers to grow leading to increased muscle mass. Some classic techniques include supersetting (e.g: doing 8-12 reps of bench press then immediately doing 20 pushups without rest in between the two exercises), drop sets (e.g: doing 8-12 reps of 25lb bicep curls then doing 8-12 reps of 20lb bicep curls and then doing 8-12 reps of 15lb bicep curls), or negative reps where the user focuses on controlling the eccentric part of muscle contraction.
Figure 1. An example of biceps training using negative reps. The user concentrates on slowing down and resisting the weight during the eccentric muscle contraction. Users can handle more weight on the eccentric muscle contraction and some believe this can lead to more muscle hypertrophy.
A new technique that has come to light is blood flow restriction (BFR) training. In blood flow restriction training, a band is wrapped around your arm or leg just tight enough to restrict blood to the veins while leaving arteries open. This allows blood to rush to your muscles but decreases the rate at which it can be returned via the veins. This restriction coupled with high rep training can lead to an increase of cell swelling and lactic acid buildup which can promote protein synthesis and muscle hypertrophy. The increased cell swelling causes muscle fibers to create small tears that are repaired via protein synthesis. The result is a bigger muscle fiber. (Loenneke, Fahs, Rossow, Abe, & Bemben, 2012) If you are an adventurous person looking to build muscle, try this technique and incorporate it into your routine.
Figure 2. An example of an occlusion band applied during bicep training. The band is tight enough to block venous return, while allowing blood to freely flow through the arteries.
References:
Loenneke, J. P., Fahs, C. A., Rossow, L. M., Abe, T., & Bemben, M. G. (2012). The anabolic benefits of venous blood flow restriction training may be induced by muscle cell swelling. Medical hypotheses, 78(1), 151-154.
This technique reminds me of a muscle-manipulation/self-myofascial release called voodoo flossing. Essentially, you voluntarily occlude the blood vessels, and upon release, you have a rush of blood re-perfusing the tissue. It is supposed to help with increased range of motion and recovery. My only hesitancy is that such tightness may cause injury to the endothelium lining the vessels. As a result, I have similar concerns with BFR training; aside from a 'pump' during the workout, and knowing that regular lifts will cause muscle fiber tears anyway, what are the negative effects of this type of training? Additionally, how do you determine how tight to go, and can you only train extremities? I definitely think it is an interesting concept, but I also feel as though more research needs to be done on this subject!
ReplyDeleteHello Mr. Powers,
DeleteSome of the negative effects with this type of training directly aligns with some of the concerns you brought up. Because it is up to the individual to determine how tight the bands are, some people may restrict blood flow from the arteries and the veins. These results in less blood going to the muscle and less muscular production. As a general guideline, you should wrap your legs on a perceived 7/10 and your arms 6/10. It's okay to feel like you're going too loose, it has been shown that 40% tightness and 80% tightness is the sweet spot.