What makes KAATSU stand apart (and above, IMO) from other products in the marketplace is the design of the Air Bands. Dr. Sato experimented with all kinds of straps to come up with his KAATSU protocols. He settled on narrow bands that are pressurized using air pressure and are specifically engineered to slow down the venous blood flow from the limb back to the heart. The slightly flexible KAATSU Air Bands respond to the shape of the limbs during the contraction and relaxation of muscles, all while staying put and doing their job of applying the optimal KAATSU pressure.
BFR products that are based on stiff blood pressure-type cuffs or surgical tourniquets are reported by users to be uncomfortable to wear. Cuffs and tourniquets are not meant to move with the body, so flexing underneath them doesn’t give the muscle anywhere to go. They’re stiff because their underlying purpose is to occlude blood flow. They weren’t purposefully designed to modify the venous return. That’s the difference between KAATSU and other forms of occlusion-based BFR: KAATSU Air Bands are specifically designed for their purpose.
For those of you wanting to get into BFR training, you’ll very likely find KAATSU to be the most comfortable system available. Flexible, purposefully designed KAATSU Air Bands set KAATSU apart from the competition. As we’ve said before, only KAATSU is KAATSU.