Blood Flow Restriction Does Not Attenuate Short-Term Detraining-Induced Muscle Size and Strength Losses After Resistance Training With Blood Flow Restriction

Teixeira, EL, de Salles Painelli, V, Silva-Batista, C, de Souza Barros, T, Longo, AR, Lasevicius, T, Schoenfeld, BJ, Aihara, AY, and de Almeida Peres, B. Blood flow restriction does not attenuate short-term detraining-induced muscle size and strength losses after resistance training with blood flow restriction. J Strength Cond Res 35(8): 2082-2088, 2021-After a short-term resistance training with blood flow restriction (BFR), we investigated the effects of 12 days of detraining (DET), without an exercise stimulus, on quadriceps cross-sectional area (QCSA) and muscle strength (1 repetition maximum [1RM]), with 1 leg receiving daily intermittent BFR during DET vs. the same nonexercise condition without BFR (CON) in the contralateral leg. Both subjects' legs were evaluated for QCSA and 1RM before (PRE) and after (POST) both legs being unilaterally submitted to 3 weeks (4 days per week) of low-load (3 sets of 15 repetitions, 30% 1RM) resistance training with BFR. The DET period started immediately after POST, where each leg was randomly submitted to a daily intermittent BFR protocol or CON, without any associated exercise stimulus. Quadriceps cross-sectional area and 1RM were reassessed after DET. Both legs at CON and BFR conditions increased QCSA (6.3 and 6.8%, respectively; both p < 0.0001) and 1RM (9.5 and 10.1%, respectively; both p < 0.05) from PRE to POST. Both legs at CON and BFR conditions reduced QCSA (-4.6 and 4.9%, respectively; both p < 0.0001) and 1RM (-9.0 and -8.2%, respectively; both p < 0.05) from POST to DET, with no significant differences between conditions (p > 0.05). We conclude that muscle strength and hypertrophy gains obtained in 3 weeks of resistance training with BFR are not maintained after 12 days of DET. Moreover, the application of BFR, without an associated exercise stimulus, does not attenuate such losses.