The Effects of Blood Flow Restriction (BFR) Training at Different Pressures on Testosterone, Growth Hormone, IGF-1, and Lactate Levels

Blood Flow Restriction Training:

BFR training involves doing exercises (usually with relatively light weight) while partially restricting blood flow to and from the target muscles using an inflatable cuff at pressures that are based on a percentage of the user’s blood pressure.

This method has multiple proven benefits (including increased muscle size, strength, and endurance), and is particularly useful for people who still want to gain the benefits of high-load exercises without putting too much strain on their joints or tissues, since doing low-weight exercises with BFR has been shown to provide the same or greater gains as high-load exercises.

Anabolic Hormones:

How effectively we can build muscle (and burn fat) is largely dependent on a set of hormones within our bodies that regulate muscle-growth processes. As a group they’re often referred to as “anabolic hormones”. Three of the most important and potent anabolic hormones are Testosterone (especially for men), Growth Hormone, and IGF-1. Blood lactate levels are also important, since research has shown that high lactate levels increase the production and release of both Testosterone and Growth Hormone in the body.

These anabolic hormones are temporarily elevated in the body by weight training, and that hormonal increase is considered to be one of the primary things that trigger muscle growth in response to the training. Therefore it’s in many people’s interest to figure out ways to enhance their hormonal response to weight training.