{"id":49496,"date":"2025-04-25T13:39:11","date_gmt":"2025-04-25T13:39:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/49496\/"},"modified":"2025-04-25T13:39:11","modified_gmt":"2025-04-25T13:39:11","slug":"the-most-mysterious-marginal-gain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/49496\/","title":{"rendered":"The Most Mysterious Marginal Gain"},"content":{"rendered":"

“], “filter”: { “nextExceptions”: “img, blockquote, div”, “nextContainsExceptions”: “img, blockquote, a.btn, a.o-button”} }”><\/p>\n

\u201cBlood flow restriction\u201d isn\u2019t only a search term that might appear on the dark web.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a powerful performance enhancer, too.<\/p>\n

\u201cRestricting blood flow when working at low intensity creates the same environment in a muscle as that which exists when training at high intensity,\u201d said Tudor Pro Cycling<\/a> trainer James Spragg.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been shown that if you restrict blood during an exercise, you can do 30 percent of a one rep max, and it gives a similar outcome as doing a one rep max exercise,\u201d Spragg told Velo.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s why BFR is seen as having huge potential for performance.\u201d<\/p>\n

Blood flow restriction [\u201cBFR\u201d] involves strapping a sort of sporting tourniquet to a working muscle.<\/p>\n

Slowing down blood supply \u201ctraps\u201d nutrients in already-stressed cells to create a massive metabolic boost.<\/p>\n

The practice was born decades ago in the murk of the weights room and has more recently escaped into the world of endurance.<\/p>\n

Since then, athletes recovering from injury have been using it to lift light but get outsize gains, whether they\u2019re bench press champions, Tour de France<\/a> contenders, or 2:05 marathoners.<\/p>\n

More recently, BFR has been pitched as a powerful \u2013 albeit risky \u2013 active training tool, too.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe evidence is very, very good that it has benefits for endurance performance,\u201d said Richard Ferguson, lead BFR researcher and reader in human and exercise physiology at Loughborough University. \u201cIt\u2019s a no-brainer.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt \u2018tricks\u2019 the muscle into thinking it\u2019s exercising hard. All the metabolic byproducts are trapped in the muscle, so that creates a boosted physiological response,\u201d Ferguson told Velo.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo if you combine low-intensity work with blood flow restriction, the muscle feels like it\u2019s working really, really hard.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

The Atlanta Falcons are always chasing peak performance, and now they\u2019re using Hytro\u2019s Blood Flow Restriction (BFR) tech to boost recovery like never before.<\/p>\n

See behind-the-scenes on YouTube: https:\/\/t.co\/GGyVToJkHU<\/a>
\u2070#HytroBFR<\/a> #NFLPerformance<\/a> #AtlantaFalcons<\/a> #BFRTraining<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/c66gO0iiai<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Hytro (@Hytrotraining) April 23, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Yet intriguingly, the peloton\u2019s use of BFR doesn\u2019t always match the science.<\/p>\n

This age-old strength training protocol is still something of a mystery to the high-precision world of bike racing.<\/p>\n

Bringing blood flow restriction cuffs to the team bus
\n\"\"Tudor Pro Cycling is bringing BFR in its recovery protocols. (Photo: Gruber Images\/Velo)<\/p>\n

Almost every top-level team will have tinkered with BFR in some capacity.<\/p>\n

Riders can use the practice to preserve muscle mass while stuck on the sidelines with a bone or soft-tissue injury.<\/p>\n

When blood-restricted, a low-intensity workout creates a physiological pump that won\u2019t strain damaged tendons or stress fragile fracture sites.<\/p>\n

At present, most riders will encounter a restriction cuff in this context of the rehab room.<\/p>\n

They\u2019re now increasingly finding them in their team buses and hotel rooms, too.<\/p>\n

BFR is becoming a passive recovery tool that staffers accept might be no more than an uncomfortable placebo.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe hypothesis behind it is that nutrient delivery can be really targeted, because you\u2019ve got targeted blood flow to exactly where you want to deliver nutrients,\u201d said Tudor training guru Spragg.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve seen in clinical and sporting populations that BFR can reduce muscle soreness and increase pain thresholds for around 24 hours,\u201d Spragg said. \u201cThis all remains unproven, though.\u201d<\/p>\n

Quick-Step, Tudor team up with specialist BFR supplier
\n\"HytroHytro BFR boasts partnerships with Quick-Step and Tudor as well as soccer, Formula 1, and NFL. (Photo: Courtesy: Hytro)<\/p>\n

Soudal Quick-Step<\/a> and Spragg\u2019s Tudor Pro Cycling team recently partnered with the brand Hytro for specialized blood flow restriction products.<\/p>\n

Hytro also boasts high-profile relationships with teams in the NBA, NFL, Premier League, and Formula 1.<\/p>\n

The brand makes shorts and T-shirts with integrated cuffs that have been approved as safe for use without professional guidance. Until recently, BFR was typically confined to environments under careful supervision.<\/p>\n

This super-caution is perhaps no surprise given the results of a recent study<\/a> into BFR.<\/p>\n

Associated risks include \u201cnumbness, nausea, hypertension, headache, venous thrombus, deterioration of ischemic heart disease, fainting, tingling, excessive pain, central retinal vein occlusion, and rhabdomyolysis.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n

Nottingham Forest have incorporated Blood Flow Restriction (BFR) training into their recovery sessions this season, tapping into the latest sport science.<\/p>\n

BFR accelerates recovery by enhancing muscle repair, reducing joint strain, and promoting muscle growth with lighter\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/2dAunksST2<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Keepitonthedeck (@Keepitonthedeck) February 7, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Soudal Quick-Step physiotherapist Manu Wemel explained to Velo how he has riders use Hytro for three intervals of five minutes during the copious dead-time around races.<\/p>\n

Remco Evenepoel\u2019s \u201cWolf Pack\u201d strap up their thighs, load up Netflix, and reap a \u201cbenefit\u201d that\u2019s so far anecdotal at best.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen they come on the bus after a race, they use the cuffs before or immediately after they shower,\u201d Wemel told Velo. \u201cIt only takes 20 minutes, and they can do it while they\u2019re eating or sitting and relaxing.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of riders are a bit unsure about it so far. Uptake has been very mixed \u2013 some think it\u2019s uncomfortable,\u201d Wemel continued. \u201cWe let them all choose their recovery strategy \u2013 it\u2019s not enforced.\u201d<\/p>\n

A \u2018no downside\u2019 addition to the recovery toolkit
\n\"\"Soudal Quick-Step and Tudor Pro Cycling is partnering Hytro for BFR products (see shorts). (Photo: Courtesy Soudal Quick-Step\/Hytro)<\/p>\n

Tudor staffer Spragg acknowledged there\u2019s little science to back blood flow restriction for passive recovery. Lead BFR academic Ferguson told Velo he\u2019s extremely sceptical of the application.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s unusual for the science-powered, evidence-based peloton to tinker with any unproven practice.<\/p>\n

But like compression socks, massage, and other semi-proven recovery protocol<\/a> \u2026 why not?<\/p>\n

\u201cThe potential negative impacts of BFR for recovery are minimal. And if we encounter a negative reaction with a rider, we can stop straight away, really easily,\u201d Spragg said.<\/p>\n

For Spragg, if BFR gives riders even a quarter-percentage boost when they can otherwise only scarf rice and scroll social media, it\u2019s a success.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe use BFR at times where riders can\u2019t do a lot more, like in a bus transfer. If we can add something at a point in time that has potential upsides and very few potential downsides, and the riders feel the benefit, that\u2019s a win,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cMany riders feel a benefit from it \u2013 if they can reduce the sensation of sore and tired legs, they\u2019re happy.\u201d<\/p>\n

The next frontier?
\n\"\"Will BFR break into the world of active training? (Photo: Gruber Images\/Velo)<\/p>\n

The recovery and rehab application of blood flow restriction isn\u2019t the sexiest, most progressive method in modern cycling.<\/p>\n

However, the potential of using BFR for a blood-restricted training boost could be.<\/p>\n

The power of blood flow restriction for performance<\/a> hasn\u2019t escaped the notice of an elite endurance community on an endless quest for \u201cmarginal\u201d gains.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe adaptive potential is really strong for components of endurance; things like VO2 max, lactate thresholds, and other physiological thresholds,\u201d university researcher Ferguson said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s underpinned by how it impacts the number of capillaries and the mitochondria \u2013 the energy components of the muscle that are important for endurance performance.\u201d<\/p>\n

The science behind BFR makes it potentially the best athletic cheat code since \u201caccidentally\u201d losing 10kg when racing on Zwift.<\/p>\n

Spragg explained how pushing 150 watts at the pedals could bring a physiological response equivalent to, for example, 450 watts. Using a cuff under effort could bring a humble weekend warrior a Poga\u010dar-level physiological response.<\/p>\n

Alternatively, athletes could strap up their legs between training intervals for a masochistic extension of suffering.<\/p>\n

\u201cUsing BFR in a rest period of a workout means the muscle doesn\u2019t recover,\u201d Spragg said. \u201cYou\u2019re taking the stimulus, removing the recovery by occluding the muscle, and then adding more stimulus on top.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yet the cycling world is extremely cautious to apply blood flow restriction in this training context.<\/p>\n

Until recently, BFR was rarely used without careful supervision, often by trained medics, rehab specialists, or P.T.s.<\/p>\n

BFR for active training? Maybe
\n\"Rogli\u010d,Teams are toying with the idea of using BFR within workouts. (Photo: Red Bull Content Pool)<\/p>\n

Performance-focused pressure cuff manufacturers could push BFR forward \u2013 if the peloton figures out how best to apply them.<\/p>\n

Both Spragg of Tudor and Wemel of Quick-Step indicated they\u2019re considering bringing some BFR into their training regime.<\/p>\n

But both acknowledged that caution would be key in an experiment loaded with risk. Any explorations would likely begin at a very low intensity.<\/p>\n

\u201cTraining is as much about what riders can recover from, rather than how far you can overload them. That\u2019s why we haven\u2019t gone down that path with BFR,\u201d Spragg said. \u201cWe\u2019re not looking to add extra stimulus on top. We can maximize that stimulus already with altitude or with heat or whatever else.\u201d<\/p>\n

Blood-restricted training is seen as the next frontier of this old-school protocol.<\/p>\n

Rider buy-in, deeper research, and, probably also, UCI opinion, might be the deciding factors in this weird and wild world of BFR.<\/p>\n