Post-Exercise Recovery in Basketball Players: The Efficacy of Blood Flow Restriction (BFR) Interventions on Acute Performance Restoration

The aim of this study was to compare the acute effects of Blood Flow Restriction (BFR) and time-matched passive recovery following high-intensity exercise in trained male basketball players. Twenty participants (age: 18.75 ± 0.85 years) completed both conditions in a randomized crossover design with a seven-day washout period. Following a basketball-specific Line Drill, countermovement jump (CMJ), agility, heart rate (HR), RMSSD, and perceived fatigue (VAS) were assessed at baseline (T1), post-fatigue (T2), and post-recovery (T3). Condition × Time effects were analyzed with Holm adjustment. A significant interaction was found for HR (F(2, 38) = 7.70, p = .002, Holm-adjusted p = .008, partial η² = .289). At T3, HR was lower following BFR (105.10 ± 8.27 bpm) than passive recovery (115.00 ± 11.47 bpm; Holm-adjusted p = .006), while no differences were observed at T1 or T2. No significant interactions were found for CMJ, agility, RMSSD, or VAS. These findings indicate that BFR altered the acute cardiovascular recovery response without producing detectable advantages in neuromuscular performance, RMSSD, or perceived fatigue. Further research is needed to determine its relevance to basketball-specific performance.