#64 - Blood flow restriction and exercise with Professor Jeremy Loenneke

Dr Glenn McConell chats with Associate Professor Jeremy Loenneke from the University of Mississippi, USA. He is an expert on resistance training and in particular the effect of blood flow restriction (BFR) on muscle hypertrophy and strength. He is finding that you can get similar increases in hypertrophy, and close to similar increases in strength, by conducting low load resistance training with blood flow restriction compared with high load resistance training. Surprisingly, he is also finding that there can be dissociations between increases in strength and increases in hypertrophy when undertake resistance training. We also discussed other interesting research he has been undertaking. I was actually blown away by some of his findings. A very interesting, long chat. Twitter: @jploenneke
0:00. Introduction and how Jeremy got into exercise research
4:20. How to utilize resistance training for hypertrophy vs strength
9:45. Dissociations between hypertrophy and strength with resistance training
15:35. Why changes in muscle size may not effect strength
17:55. Specificity of training and strength
19:35. What is blood flow restriction (BFR) and why do it?
21:28. BFR and aerobic/endurance exercise
23:25. The history of BFR and exercise research
27:45. How much pressure is applied during BFR to reduce the blood flow?
31:50. Discomfort from BFR
34:15. % of 1RM to use during BFR
35:22. Comparing resistance training with and without BFR
37:58. BFR and rehabilitation
41:00. Using BFR to train harder?
43:57. How common is BFR?
45:30. Do some use BFR to not have to train as hard?
46:41. What does BFR feel like? Uncomfortable?
48:06. Mechanisms that BFR during exercise has its effects
52:43. BFR, resistance training and muscle fibre recruitment
56:24. Hypoalgesia: reduced pain during and after exercise
1:01:31. Safety issues and BFR? Muscle damage, blood clots, blood pressure?
1:07:52. Relationship between muscle mass and strength
1:09:44. Hormonal responses to BFR and resistance training
1:11:50. Muscle signaling with BFR and resistance training
1:13:50. Protein synthesis with BFR and resistance training
1:14:40. Endurance exercise and BFR
1:18:00. Ischemia preconditioning
1:20:50. Cost of BFR systems etc
1:25:20. Effects of BFR on endothelium dysfunction or veins?
1:28:38. Any sex differences with BFR and resistance training
1:32:50. Strength training one arm affects the other arm
1:39:08. Do men and women have the same strength per muscle size?
1:43:56. Hand grip in kids as a biomarker
1:46:24. Career challenges etc
1:50:50. Takeaway messages
1:54:43. Outro (9 seconds)
Inside Exercise brings to you the who's who of research in exercise metabolism, exercise physiology and exercise’s effects on health. With scientific rigor, these researchers discuss popular exercise topics while providing practical strategies for all.
The interviewer, Emeritus Professor Glenn McConell, has an international research profile following 30 years of Exercise Metabolism research experience while at The University of Melbourne, Ball State University, Monash University, the University of Copenhagen and Victoria University.
He has published over 120 peer reviewed journal articles and recently edited an Exercise Metabolism eBook written by world experts on 17 different topics (link.springer.com/book/10.100....
Connect with Inside Exercise and Glenn McConell at:
Twitter: @Inside_exercise and @GlennMcConell1
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LinkedIn: Glenn McConell / glenn-mcconell-83475460
ResearchGate: Glenn McConell
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Not medical advice

[@stephen_pfrimmer]

good audio! I truly love hearing Dr McConnell's lightly spoken perspectives, his research reflections. Thank you.

[@insideexercise]

Great to hear on both fronts!!! Thank you.

[@kenmare16]

Great episode Glenn. Like possibly some others, I was initially put off by the length but I'm so glad I eventually watched it. Answered lots of questions that I've found puzzling. If Kaatsu has been around so long and BFR is beneficial why is it not more well known and been more widely adopted? Fascinating learning of the origins and potential benefits. Was also comforted regarding comments about potential for self harm, something that has concerned me. As one of the many hazards of aging is sarcopenia, leading to frailty, loss of functional capacity, and possible falls (I'm male aged 77) there must be huge potential application for BFR in assisting older people retain healthy function for as long as possible through training using low weights, even at home? In my own case, I recently started recreational running again but have already been frustrated by repeated calf strains. As I'm sure you know but I've only recently found out the solution to calf/archilles problems is to make the calf muscle and archilles tendon stronger and better able to withstand impact forces of running. And fewer slower repetitions of high weight load exercises (such as calf raises) are far better than doing more repetitions with just body weight or with low weight? It should therefore be possible to replicate the high weight beneficial effects using low weights and BFR? Was excited to learn that BFR cause type 2 fast twitch muscle fibres, which are those lost earliest during aging, to grow. Do you think it possible this would be the case for older individuals like me? Would love to have more spring in my step and be able to run just a little bit faster;-) Very useful to know how much cuff pressure to apply and how to gauge it. So far as cost is concerned, I recently purchased a good quality full set (both arms and legs) of cuffs from an on-line seller in China delivered for $40 Australian. Now feel informed and confident enough to use them. Thanks.

[@insideexercise]

Great to hear you persevered despite it being long. That’s partly why I include timestamps so people can jump around but better if watch the whole thing.
Also really great to hear that you got so much out of it. You have made some really good points/raised good questions. I’ll see if Jeremy can kick in re the type 2 fibers and age question.

[@JeremyLoenneke]

Thank you for the kind words about the episode and I appreciate you listening. There is evidence that muscle growth can occur in response to BFR exercise in older adults. I think losing some muscle size is likely inevitable but I do think that BFR offers one option for those looking to maintain muscle mass as high as possible for as long as possible. I am not aware of fiber type data on older adults using BFR but I would expect that it would have similar effects to that observed with higher load resistance exercise.

[@kenmare16]

@@JeremyLoenneke Thanks Jeremy, Only recently learned of BFR but have since managed to gain some understanding. Seems to have been widely accepted at the elite athlete level? I just came across an interview with Jim Stray Gundersen, who I understand played a major role in bringing Kaatsu to the US and introducing BFR to elite sport participants. It also addressed many of the questions to which I was seeking answers. Sad to learn of his passing last year.

[@fraktaliaful]

One of the best episodes!

[@Canada_Kasthuri]

Great info ❤

[@JuanRamosNCWrestling]

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