Hypotensive effects of resistance exercises with blood flow restriction

J Strength Cond Res. 2015 Apr;29(4):1064-70. doi: 10.1519/JSC.0000000000000734.

Abstract

The effects of low-intensity resistance exercise (RE) combined with blood flow restriction (BFR) on blood pressure (BP) are an important factor to be considered because of the acute responses imposed by training. The aim of this study was to compare the hypotensive effect of RE performed with and without BFR in normotensive young subjects. After 1 repetition maximum (1RM) tests, 24 men (21.79 ± 3.21 years; 1.72 ± 0.06 m; 69.49 ± 9.80 kg) performed the following 4 experimental protocols in a randomized order: (a) high-intensity RE at 80% of 1RM (HI), (b) low-intensity RE at 20% of 1RM (LI), (c) low-intensity RE at 20% of 1RM combined with partial BFR (LI + BFR), and (d) control. Analysis of systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) was conducted over a 60-minute period. The 3 RE protocols resulted in hypotensive SBP (HI = -3.8%, LI = -3.3%, LI + BFR = -5.5%) responses during the 60 minutes (p ≤ 0.05). The LI + BFR protocol promoted hypotensive (-11.5%) responses in DBP during the 60 minutes (p ≤ 0.05), and both the HI and LI + BFR protocols resulted in mean blood pressure (MBP) hypotension between 30 (-7.0%, -7.7%) and 60 minutes (-3.6%, -8.8%), respectively. In conclusion, postexercise hypotension may occur after all 3 exercise protocols with greater reductions in SBP after HI and LI + BFR, in DBP after LI + BFR, and in MBP after HI and LI + BFR protocols.

Publication types

  • Randomized Controlled Trial

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Blood Pressure*
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Muscle Strength
  • Muscle, Skeletal / blood supply*
  • Muscle, Skeletal / physiology
  • Physical Conditioning, Human / adverse effects*
  • Physical Conditioning, Human / methods
  • Physical Conditioning, Human / physiology*
  • Post-Exercise Hypotension / physiopathology*
  • Radial Artery / physiology
  • Regional Blood Flow / physiology
  • Resistance Training / adverse effects*
  • Resistance Training / methods
  • Tibial Arteries / physiology
  • Young Adult