Effects of Sex and Cuff Pressure on Physiological Responses during Blood Flow Restriction Resistance Exercise in Young Adults

ABSTRACT Purpose The purpose of this study was to examine the physiological responses resulting from an acute blood flow restriction resistance exercise bout with two different cuff pressures in young, healthy men and women. Methods Thirty adults (18–30 yr) completed a bilateral leg extension blood flow restriction bout consisting of four sets (30–15–15–15 repetitions), with cuffs applied at pressures corresponding to 40% and 60% of the minimum arterial occlusion pressure (AOP) needed to completely collapse the femoral arteries. During each of these conditions (40% and 60% AOP), physiological measures of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) and EMG amplitude (EMG AMP) were collected from the dominant or nondominant vastus lateralis. After each set, ratings of perceived exertion (RPE) were collected, whereas only at baseline and at the end of the bout, mean arterial pressure (MAP) was assessed. Separate mixed-factorial ANOVA models were used to examine mean differences in the change in EMG AMP and NIRS parameters during each set. The absolute RPE and MAP values were also examined with separate ANOVAs. A P value ≤0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results Regardless of sex or cuff pressure, the change in EMG AMP was lower in set 1 (14.8%) compared with the remaining sets (22.6%–27.0%). The 40% AOP condition elicited the greatest changes in oxy[heme] and deoxy[heme], while also providing lower RPEs. For MAP, there was an effect for time such that MAP increased from preexercise (87.5 ± 4.3 mm Hg) to postexercise (104.5 ± 4.1 mm Hg). Conclusions The major findings suggested that the 40% AOP condition permitted the greatest amount of recovery during the interset rest. In addition, there did not seem to be any meaningful sex-related difference in this sample of young healthy adults.