KAATSU Aqua

KAATSU Aqua can be used by the following individuals

• Competitive and fitness swimmers
• Triathletes and multi-sport athletes
• Water polo players
• Synchronized swimmers
• Divers
• Individuals who do aquarobics, aqua-jogging, or aqua-walking
• Individual who do adventure sports that involve swimming
• Individuals recovering or rehabilitating from injury or surgery
• Individuals who prefer to exercise in a pool

Competitive Swimmers

Collegiate swimmers

KAATSU Aqua can be done by those who are at least 14 years of age.

KAATSU Aqua Bands must only be used by individuals who are pool safe and who can swim.

Professor Sir Yoshiaki Sato, M.D., Ph.D., FNAI, 70-year-old KAATSU inventor

KAATSU Aqua are intricately woven and layered neoprene pneumatic bands that enable KAATSU exercise to be safely conducted in the water using standard KAATSU protocols.

KAATSU Aqua Bands can be used in combination with any KAATSU device (e.g., KAATSU Master or KAATSU Nano).

KAATSU is not occlusion training or tourniquet training.  KAATSU's controlled and individualistic pneumatic Air Bands are much different than simple arm straps or inexpensive knee wraps or wide blood pressure cuffs that are used by individuals who do BFR (Blood Flow Restriction).  

KAATSU Aqua is a means to safely and effectively engorge the limbs in blood that lead to myriad physiological benefits and advantages.

KAATSU Aqua Bands can be used in swimming and therapy pools.

KAATSU Aqua Bands should not be used while holding your breath underwater or while free diving or when diving from a diving board.

KAATSU Aqua Bands should not be used in open bodies of water like lakes, rivers, seas or the ocean or while surfing or diving.

KAATSU Aqua Bands should be used under the supervision of a certified KAATSU Aqua Specialist.

KAATSU Aqua can be done every time you train or exercise in a pool.

Competitive athletes can use the KAATSU Aqua Bands during every training period as long as the KAATSU Arm Bands are limited to 15 minutes and the KAATSU Leg Bands are limited to 20 minutes per session.

KAATSU Arm Bands and Leg Bands cannot be used simultaneously.

KAATSU Aqua Band Sizes

• The KAATSU Aqua Bands come in 2 different types: Arms and Legs.
• The Arm Bands are thinner and shorter than the Leg Bands.

KAATSU Aqua Bands on Arms

KAATSU Aqua Band Positioning

• Position the KAATSU Aqua Bands high up on your arms and legs.  On your arms, place the bands above your biceps and below your deltoid muscle, next to your armpit.  On your legs, place the bands right under your swimsuit line along the groin on your legs.
• Place the buckle on the outer (harder) part of the arms and legs so the KAATSU Aqua Bands do not chafe the softer skin on the inside of the arms and legs.

KAATSU Aqua Bands on Arms

KAATSU Aqua Bands on Legs

KAATSU Aqua Band on Arms above the bicep

KAATSU Aqua Band on Arms below swimsuit line

KAATSU Aqua Pressure

• In order to identify and set the proper pressure for the KAATSU Aqua Bands, use your KAATSU C3 (or KAATSU Master 2.0) as you would for dryland KAATSU Training.

• Identify your proper Base SKU level as normal as you do on land with the KAATSU Air Bands.
• Identify your Optimal SKU level on the KAATSU Nano (or KAATSU Master).  However, start conservatively with only 50% of your Optimal SKU value on the KAATSU Aqua Bands.  That is, if your Optimal SKU is 250 SKU on land with KAATSU Air Bands, start with 125 SKU with the KAATSU Aqua Bands.  If this 125 SKU level is too low, gradually increase the SKU level to a more appropriate level.
• Most users prefer to use significantly less Optimal SKU in the water compared to their Optimal SKU level on land - as much as 50% less.  This reduction in band pressure with the KAATSU Aqua Bands is perfectly acceptable.
• Note: Fatigue may come much sooner in the water with the KAATSU Aqua Bands as compared to the onset of fatigue with the KAATSU Air Bands on land.

KAATSU Specialist confirming KAATSU Aqua Band Pressure

Recommendations

• Warm-up with the KAATSU Cycle function on the KAATSU Nano (or KAATSU Master) before getting into the water.
• Start very conservatively with the KAATSU Aqua Bands. That is, apply significantly less pressure on the KAATSU Aqua Bands than the Optimal SKU on the KAATSU Air Bands, especially for the first few KAATSU Aqua sessions.
• After the third session, you can start to increase your KAATSU Aqua Bands to tighter pressures if they feel comfortable and capable.
• Do KAATSU Aqua at the end of the your workouts if possible.
• Limit KAATSU Aqua to 15 minutes per workout on your arms and 20 minutes per workout on your legs.

• Never place the KAATSU Aqua Bands on both your arms and legs at the same time.
• You can do KAATSU Aqua Training every day, but 3 times per week is probably ideal for most users.
• Do not rest more than 20 seconds between each swim or set of exercises, although you may need to release the pressure of the KAATSU Aqua Bands between sets.
• You must learn how to properly place the KAATSU Aqua Bands on your upper arms and upper legs.
• You can use KAATSU Aqua Bands in combination with dryland use of KAATSU Air Bands, but limit your use per session to 15-20 minutes.
• KAATSU Aqua Bands can be used with aquatic equipment such as hand paddles, pull buoys, snorkels, floats, and fins.

Key Safety Rules

• Alternatively use KAATSU Aqua Leg Bands and Arm Bands in workouts.  Never use the Leg Bands and Arm Bands together at the same time.
• Always remember that KAATSU is not occlusion training or tourniquet training.
• Always focus on your skin coloration.  You want a nice “KAATSU Color” in your palms of your hands; an appearance of a pinkness or redness in your limbs.  That is, blood flow must always be maintained to and from the limbs.  KAATSU Aqua Bands must not be used as tourniquets.
• If you feel lightheaded or the coloration of your limbs becomes white, blue or gray, immediately remove your bands.

KAATSU Color(pinkness of palms and arms)   

KAATSU Color(pinkness of palms and arms)

Key Safety Rules

• Your and your coaches must always conduct a visual check of the your limbs so pinkness (or redness) always appears in the your palms and fingers (or on your legs and feet).
• Always remember that you should always feel a pulsation under the KAATSU Aqua Bands.
• Your must stop if they see any type of whiteness in your limbs while doing KAATSU Aqua.
• You must stop if you feel any numbness in your limbs while doing KAATSU Aqua.

Goal Achievement

Competitive Athletes

• For performance gains, the most important goal for by competitive athletes is to ‘go to failure’ while doing KAATSU Aqua.
• Going to failure can mean either (a) not being able to move your limbs as normal, or (b) not being able to use the proper technique when swimming or doing exercise
• Competitive swimmers can practice starts and turns, and swim short distances (25 – 50 yards) until your stroke technique becomes poor or you cannot stand the discomfort of lactate build-up.

Goal Achievement

Non-competitive Athletes

• For health maintenance, toning, or fitness improvement by non-competitive athletes, the most important goal is consistency and a feeling of “getting tone” in the limbs while doing KAATSU Aqua.  It can be described as “feeling the burn” or experiencing a significant muscular exertion.
• You can continue to move until you become fatigued or “feel the burn”.

Uses of KAATSU Aqua 

• Once you find the Optimal Pressure for your Aqua Bands, you can use KAATSU Aqua for flexibility or recover from a hard workout or from a competition.

KAATSU Aqua Pressure Levels

• You can change the pressure by increasing or decreasing the SKU levels at any time.

Sculling in water with KAATSU Aqua Bands on arms

Passing ball with KAATSU Aqua Bands on arms

Kicking with KAATSU Aqua Bands on legs

Leg lifts against pool wall

Leg lifts against pool wall

KAATSU Aquarobics Examples (for individuals of all ages & abilities)

Core Work (with Leg Bands)

• Move your legs up and down while hanging on wall
• Move your legs side to side while floating upright
• Move your legs front to back while floating upright
• Do vertical butterfly kicking (with or without fins)
• Twist from side to side
• Advanced Core Work #1 (“Bells”): Tread water in deep part of pool.  Stretch both your arms out to the side.  Keep legs straight (i.e., no knee bend).  Keeping your hands and arms outstretched to the side, bring both your feet and legs forward up to the surface of the water without bending your knees.  Then keep both your arms stretched out to the side and move both your feet and legs back until your feet are positioned behind.  Repeat as possible.   Note: this is extremely difficult.

Bells

KAATSU Aquarobics Examples (for individuals of all ages & abilities)

Core Work (with Leg Bands)

• Advanced Core Work #2 (“Tick, Tock”): Tread water in the deep part of pool.  Stretch both your arms out to the side.  Keep your legs straight (i.e., no knee bend).  Keeping your hands and arms outstretched to the side, bring both your feet and legs up to the surface of the water on the left side of your body without bending your knees.  Then keep both your arms stretched out to the side and move both your feet and legs to the right side until your feet are positioned on the right side of the body.  Repeat as possible.
  Note: This is extremely difficult.

Treading Water

KAATSU Aqua Swimming Workout Examples

KAATSU Aqua Workout #1a (with arms bands) or #1b (with leg bands):

• 4 x 50 with KAATSU Light Pressure
• 4 x 50 with KAATSU Medium Pressure
• 8 x 25 with KAATSU Optimal Pressure
• 8 x 25 with KAATSU Optimal Pressure and hand paddles (for arms) or fins (for legs)

KAATSU Aqua Workout #2a (with arms bands) or #2b (with leg bands)

• 3 x 100 with KAATSU Light Pressure
• 5 x race starts with KAATSU Medium Pressure
• 16 x 25 with KAATSU Optimal Pressure, 4 of each stroke

• 200 with KAATSU Light Pressure
• 2 x 100 with KAATSU Medium Pressure with hand paddles (for arms) or fins (for legs)
• 12 x race-pace breakouts, 4 of each stroke with KAATSU Optimal Pressure
• Vertical kicking to failure

KAATSU Aqua Workout #4a (with arms bands) or #4b (with leg bands)

• 8 x 50 stroke drills with KAATSU Light Pressure
• 8 x 50 easy-hard with KAATSU Medium Pressure
• 8 x 25 all-out with KAATSU Optimal Pressure
• Vertical kicking to failure

KAATSU Aqua Water Polo Workout Examples 

• Different types of KAATSU Aqua exercises can help improve the User’s speed, stamina, agility, reaction time, eggbeater vertical height and flexibility:
• For shooting (Arm Bands for field players)
  • Shoot with accuracy and intensity.  The athletes may not be able to shoot more than 10 times as failure will quickly be reached.  When failure is reached, remove Aqua Bands and continue shooting if time permits.

Shooting with KAATSU Aqua Bands on arms

KAATSU Aqua Water Polo Workout Examples 

For passing (Arm Bands for field players)

• Pass with accuracy.  Start passing 3-5 meters apart and then increase distance until failure is reached.  If time permits, pass with non-dominant arm too.

For shooting (Leg Bands for field players)

• Shoot with accuracy and intensity.

For passing (Leg Bands for field players)

• Pass with accuracy.  Start passing 3-5 meters apart and then increase distance until failure is reached.  If time permits, pass with non-dominant arm too.

Shooting with KAATSU Aqua Bands on arms

KAATSU Aqua Water Polo Workout Examples 

For eggbeater vertical height and strength (Leg Bands for field players)

• Eggbeater for 10 seconds with your hands down in water followed by 10 seconds with your hands out of the water followed by 10 seconds with elbows out of the water.
  Rest 20 seconds and eggbeater for maximum vertical height 3 – 5 times or until failure is reached.
• Repeat the set if possible.  This will be difficult in the beginning and especially at Optimal SKU pressure.
• Have 2 athletes (of nearly equal strength) push against one another for 10 seconds, rest for 10 seconds, repeat.
• Have 2 athletes pass under heavy defensive pressure by eggbeatering up and then passing.

Eggbeater with KAATSU Aqua Bands on legs

KAATSU Aqua Water Polo Workout Examples 

For eggbeater lateral movement (for goalies)

• Eggbeater in cage and alternate moving quickly to left side of cage and then right side of cage.  Repeat until failure is reached.

For swimming speed and stamina (Arm Bands for field players)

• 8 x 25 sprints @ 30 second interval with push off the wall.
• 8 x 25 sprints head-up with no push off the wall @ 30 second interval.
• 9 x 25 alternate butterfly, backstroke and freestyle @ 30-40 second interval.

For swimming speed and stamina (Leg Bands for field players)

• 4 x 25 sprints @ 30 second interval with push off the wall.  Eggbeater during rest period.  Ask athletes to kick hard.  Repeat if possible.
• 8 x 25 sprints head-up with no push off the wall @ 40 second interval.  Ask athletes to kick hard.  Repeat if possible.
• Vertical kicking to failure (3 sets)

For lateral movement and explosiveness (Leg Bands for field players)

• Start in middle of pool.  Swim 5 quick strokes forward, pivot 180° and return to start position with 5 strokes.  Rest 10 seconds and repeat until failure.
• Start in middle of pool.  Swim 5 quick strokes forward, pivot 90° right and swim 5 strokes.  Rest 10 seconds and repeat by swimming 5 quick strokes forward, pivot 90° left and swim 5 strokes.  Repeat until failure.
• Vertical kicking to failure (3 sets)

KAATSU Aqua Recovery Examples

For leg recovery (Leg Bands for any post-workout athletes)

• Walk 8 lengths of pool in waist-high water.  Bring knees as close to surface as possible.  Rest and then jog if possible.  Rest when necessary.
• Stretch in the water by stretching calves, quadriceps and hamstrings against the wall.

For arm recovery (Arm Bands for any post-workout athletes)

• Stretching
• Scull back and forward with or without hand paddles in waist-high water.  30 seconds on followed by 20 seconds rest.  20 seconds sculling followed by 10 seconds rest.  10 seconds sculling and rest.

Post-workout Stretching 

• KAATSU Cycle is an ideal way to warm-up for dryland KAATSU training or KAATSU Aqua workouts.
• KAATSU Cycle can be done anywhere, at the office, at school, in an airplane, at home, or on poolside before or after workout.
• KAATSU Cycle can be done with either the KAATSU Master or the KAATSU Nano and the KAATSU Air Bands.
• KAATSU Cycle consists of 8 cycles of 20 seconds of pressure on followed by 5 seconds of no pressure.  The total duration of a Full KAATSU Cycle is 3 minutes 20 seconds.

KAATSU Cycle

• Short KAATSU Cycle consists of 4 cycles of 20 seconds of pressure on followed by 5 seconds of no pressure.  The total duration of a Short KAATSU Cycle is 1 minute 40 seconds.
• On your arms, the KAATSU pressure starts at a low level and gradually increases by 10 SKUs (Standard KAATSU Units) until your Optimal Pressure is reached on the last cycle.  For example, if your Optimal Pressure is 250 SKUs, then the first cycle is 180 SKU, second cycle is 190 SKU, third cycle is 200 SKU, fourth cycle is 210 SKU, fifth cycle is 220 SKU, sixth cycle is 230 SKU, seventh cycle is 240 SKU, and eighth cycle is 250 SKU.
• On your legs, the KAATSU pressure can start at a low level and gradually increases by 20 SKUs (Standard KAATSU Units) until your Optimal Pressure is reached on the last cycle.  For example, if your Optimal Pressure is 300 SKUs, then the first cycle is 160 SKU, second cycle is 180 SKU, third cycle is 200 SKU, fourth cycle is 220 SKU, fifth cycle is 240 SKU, sixth cycle is 260 SKU, seventh cycle is 280 SKU, and eighth cycle is 300 SKU.
• KAATSU Cycle can be repeated 2 – 3 times in a single session.

KAATSU Cycle

6.1  KAATSU Cycle Uses

• You can do the KAATSU Cycle before a workout, game, competition or race as an effective form of warm-up.
• You can do the KAATSU Cycle after a workout, weight-training session, game, competition or race as a form of recovery.
• If you are recovering from injuries, the KAATSU Cycle can be extended to 1 minute of Pressure On followed by 20 seconds of Pressure Off for 5 – 6 cycles.  Please consult with your KAATSU Specialist for more information.

6.2  KAATSU Cycle Benefits

• KAATSU Cycle can be used to exercise in the office, without the need to change out of your work clothes.
• KAATSU Cycle can be done without the need to worry about perspiration.
• KAATSU Cycle can be done in your economy-class airplane seat or on long rides in a car, bus or train.
• KAATSU Cycle can be done to reduce or eliminate atrophy when injured and during recovery.

• KAATSU Cycle can be done to warm-up or warm-down for KAATSU Aqua workouts or weight-training sessions or competition.
• KAATSU Cycle can be done while reading, watching television, or writing emails.
• KAATSU Cycle can be done while doing the standard KAATSU 3-point exercises on your arms (hand clenches + bicep curls + tricep extensions) or legs (toe curls, toe raises, heel raises, hamstring curls, squats), stretching, walking around, or doing calisthenics or isometric exercises.

• KAATSU Aqua Bands should be laid out flat or hung out to air dry after use.
• KAATSU Aqua Bands do not need to be machine-washed.
• KAATSU Air Bands can be wiped clean with a damp cloth.
• The KAATSU Master and KAATSU Nano should not be immersed in or sprinkled with water.
• You can do some intense exercises with your KAATSU Aqua.

Congratulations!
You have completed this section.

KAATSU Aqua Bands drying out