The purpose of this study was to document the effects of Blood Flow Restriction (BFR) combined with low load resistance training on swimming performance and muscular hypertrophy following a three-week training period for an injured elite male swimmer. The subject was a 20 year old male swimmer with osteolysis in their left shoulder. The subject had 10 years` competitive experience and four years at Australian open nationals in multiple events. BFR training of upper and lower limbs twice a week in combination with accessory work were completed. The subject performed a low intensity resistance training restricted by BFR at 30% of one repetition max (1RM). The BFR cuffs were inflated to 200mmHg for lower and 150mmHg for upper limb. BFR stimulus was equivalent to 60% arterial occlusion, performed after the program as four sets (30, 15, 15, 15 repetitions) with 30 seconds` rest between sets. Swimming performance, lean mass using Dual energy X-ray Absorptiometry (DEXA) scan and girths were assessed pre and post testing. Lean muscle mass increased by 1.9kg in three weeks, with girths increasing by 1.6-2.6% respectively. 100m swimming time trial performance demonstrated an improvement of 1.65 seconds. This demonstrates BFR training, performed with low load resistance training, could represent an effective training method for swimmers. Current findings suggest that the inclusion of BFR training in combination with a normal resistance training program was advantageous to increasing hypertrophy and swimming performance in a trained swimmer over a three-week period. This training method can also be beneficial for athletes who are injured or returning from injury, through periods of de-load or during intense training blocks in the competitive phase.
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