Curated by Alessandro De Vettor and Alessandro Cioffi
Introduction
Weight training is dealt with using the most diverse methods, some more valid than others, which are constantly developed and applied to achieve targeted objectives. A new training mode comes directly from Japan and is called Kaatsu training, or occlusive training.
The original idea is due to a university student, Yoshiaki Sato, who through the research center for physical health and science of the Tokyo exercise began studies on training in oxygen deficiency and circulatory deficit to apply them especially to exercise in microgravity conditions for astronauts.
Soon in the Land of the Rising Sun this new way of training, based on the occlusion of blood vessels, began to find a much wider use, involving the practices of musculature, weight loss and rehabilitation.
Another important supporter of kaatsu training is the eminent sports physiologist Masahiko Tanaka convinced of the ability of this training to allow greater strength and mass gains than traditional training.
Physiological mechanisms of action
A valid training method must have clear physiological bases. Occlusion training seems to provide a particular stimulus to muscular hypertrophy, but thanks to what mechanisms?
The first is that of muscle recruitment. It may seem rather strange given that in such training the loads used are not high, but the explanation is simple: a prolonged lack of oxygen during an effort quickly depletes type 1 fibers, forcing the neuromuscular system to recruit 2x-type fibers and 2a. Furthermore, hypoxia creates a strong stimulus to the angiogenesis process, ie the generation of new blood vessels; this has a crucial role in improving vascularization, which is a key element in bodybuilding.
The second is that of stimulating GH synthesis, well known as the anabolic hormone par excellence. This occurs through the production of lactic acid by the muscle fibers, which rapidly increases in an oxygen-poor environment. Lactic acid binds to some receptors that, by communicating with the hypothalamus, stimulate the release of GHRH which in turn stimulates the production of GH.
The third and last concerns the activation of an inhibitory mechanism of myostatin, a protein that slows down muscle synthesis.
Two other aspects of kaatsu training are particularly interesting. First of all it allows gains in mass and strength without creating significant damage to the muscle fibers caused by classic training with high overloads. Moreover, due to its lower intensity and less intense muscular stress, it seems to induce a lower concentration of cortisol.
To recap: occlusion training can increase the recruitment of motor units, increase anabolic hormones and inhibit negative local regulators of muscle growth. It is also lacking in many of the potentially negative effects of high intensity training, such as trauma to the muscle fibers and increases in unfavorable catabolic hormones.
Example of an Occlusive Training Card ยป
