UNDER PRESSURE

When something sounds too good to be true, it usually is. Cut-price car? Call the mechanic. Weight-loss tea? Try running instead. A quick route to strength, size and improved recovery? Well, hear us out.

Blood flow restriction training (you might also see it called ‘occlusion training’ or ‘hypoxic training’) isn’t a difficult term to unpack – but the physiological processes involved take a fair amount of explaining.

Put simply, BFR (the acronym used from here on out) involves restricting the flow of blood out of the working muscle. That’s achieved by applying a pressure wrap around the top of the working limb(s): the armpit-ends of your arms for biceps and triceps, and the groin-end of your quads for leg work. Thanks to a process called arterial flow, blood is able to enter the muscle, despite the pressure being applied, but once it’s in there the blood finds its veiny exit routes partially blocked, and only a small amount can take its leave. As a result, the muscle swells and an almighty muscle pump is delivered.

Now, this is where things get technical, so to help us get