Does wrapping your leg after lifting make muscles bigger?
Postexercise blood flow restriction does not enhance muscle hypertrophy induced by multiple‐set high‐load resistance exercise
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Postexercise blood flow restriction (PEBFR) did not enhance muscle hypertrophy beyond high-load resistance training alone.
Many believe restricting blood flow after training boosts muscle growth by trapping metabolites—this study shows no added benefit when lifting heavy.
Practical Takeaways
If you’re already doing heavy resistance training (70%+ 1RM), skip the post-workout cuffs—they don’t make your muscles bigger.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Postexercise blood flow restriction (PEBFR) did not enhance muscle hypertrophy beyond high-load resistance training alone.
Many believe restricting blood flow after training boosts muscle growth by trapping metabolites—this study shows no added benefit when lifting heavy.
Practical Takeaways
If you’re already doing heavy resistance training (70%+ 1RM), skip the post-workout cuffs—they don’t make your muscles bigger.
Publication
Journal
Clinical Physiology and Functional Imaging
Year
2018
Authors
Haruhiko Madarame, Satoshi Nakada, Takahisa Ohta, N. Ishii
Related Content
Claims (3)
If you do heavy weight training for eight weeks, your thigh muscles get stronger—no matter if you use a special band to restrict blood flow after your workout or not.
If you lift heavy weights and then wrap your legs tightly after, it doesn’t make your thigh muscles grow bigger than just lifting heavy weights without the tight wraps.
If you build muscle and get stronger by lifting heavy weights, you won’t lose those gains even if you stop training for eight weeks.