Walk training with blood flow occlusion (OCC-walk) leads to muscle hypertrophy; however, cardiorespiratory endurance in response to OCC-walk is unknown. Ischemia enhances the adaptation to endurance training such as increased maximal oxygen uptake (VO₂(max)) and muscle glycogen content. Thus, we investigated the effects of an OCC-walk on cardiorespiratory endurance, anaerobic power, and muscle strength in elite athletes. College basketball players participated in walk training with (n = 7) and without (n = 5) blood flow occlusion. Five sets of a 3-min walk (4-6 km/h at 5% grade) and a 1-min rest between the walks were performed twice a day, 6 days a week for 2 weeks. Two-way ANOVA with repeated measures (groups x time) was utilized (P < 0.05). Interactions were found in VO₂(max) (P = 0.011) and maximal minute ventilation (VE(max); P = 0.019). VO₂(max) (11.6%) and VE(max) (10.6%) were increased following the OCC-walk. For the cardiovascular adaptations of the OCC-walk, hemodynamic parameters such as stroke volume (SV) and heart rate (HR) at rest and during OCC-walk were compared between the first and the last OCC-walk sessions. Although no change in hemodynamics was found at rest, during the last OCC-walk session SV was increased in all five sets (21.4%) and HR was decreased in the third (12.3%) and fifth (15.0%) sets. With anaerobic power an interaction was found in anaerobic capacity (P = 0.038) but not in peak power. Anaerobic capacity (2.5%) was increased following the OCC-walk. No interaction was found in muscle strength. In conclusion, the 2-week OCC-walk significantly increases VO₂(max) and VE(max) in athletes. The OCC-walk training might be used in the rehabilitation for athletes who intend to maintain or improve endurance.

The accumulation of physical activity appears to be more effective than a single continuous session in the management of prehypertension. Sympathetic modulation was associated with reduced blood pressure after each session.

The PAaccum reduces SBP in hypertension and prehypertension but does not appear to be related to the EE(PA-C). PAaccum can be utilized as an approach to treat prehypertension and hypertension.

Background: Although physical fitness in adolescents has been widely studied, there is the lack of information regarding developmental patterns of various youth fitness components. The LMS (L=skewness, M=median curve, and S=coefficient of variation) statistical method has been utilized to develop growth percentiles for height and weight as well as for fitness in the US and Europe countries. The purpose of this study was to develop age-and sex-specific smoothed percentile curves for fitness using the LMS method in Korean adolescents aged 13-18 years. Methods: A sample of 14,794 adolescents (7,688 boys and 7,106 girls) who participated in the National Fitness Award Project in 2013 and 2014 was analyzed. The components were cardiorespiratory fitness (20-m PACER), muscle strength (handgrip strength), muscle endurance (partial curl-up, 30-s endurance jump), and flexibility (sit and reach). Age-and sex-specific smoothed percentile curves were calculated for fitness using the LMS method. Results: Age-and sex-specific smoothed percentile curves (5th, 10th, 25th, 50th, 75th, 90th, and 95th) were presented for each fitness component. Except for flexibility, fitness levels were higher in boys than in girls. In general, performance in fitness components, except for partial curl-ups, increased with age in boys. However, in girls, performance in fitness components, except for partial curl-ups, slightly increased or remained stable. Conclusion: This study presented age-and sex-specific fitness percentile curves for Korean adolescents aged 13-18 years. This material might be useful in understanding and evaluating the fitness status of Korean adolescents.