The study participants were instructed to rest quietly in a seated position for 10 minutes. During the last 3 minutes of the resting period, upper arm blood pressure was measured twice using an automatic blood pressure monitor (BP170, InBody, Korea). The blood flow restriction cuffs (BFR Therapy Cuff, BFR Therapy Co., USA) - measuring 5cm in width and 60cm in length - were applied to the upper third of the thigh on both legs. To maintain consistency in measurements, the distance from the proximal part of the kneecap to the distal edge of the cuff was measured. A Capillary Reaction Time (CRT) test was used to assess the appropriateness of the cuff pressure; this involved applying thumb pressure to the quadriceps muscle after cuff application and timing how long it took for the skin color to return to normal.

Lactate levels were measured using the Accutrend Plus (Roche, Germany). A small amount of whole blood was collected from the participants for blood lactate concentration analysis. The procedure involved the finger-prick method, where the tip of the right index finger was disinfected with an alcohol swab. Then, a lancet prepared for this purpose was used to obtain a small sample of capillary blood from the disinfected area. The collected blood was then applied to lactate strips, and the blood lactate analyzer (Accutrend Plus, Roche, Germany) provided the lactate level readings within 60 seconds.