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Kaatsu Inventor Also Sees HealingPotential

By ELEANOR WARNOCK

Yoshiaki Sato works out using the kaatsu training method mdashMiho Inada

Curiosity and patience led Yoshiaki Sato to invent kaatsu training method which tricksthe brain into thinking the body is exercising with greater intensity enhancing musclegrowth and burning fat

Mr Sato developed kaatsu in the 1960s after he spent long periods of time at a Buddhisttemple in a kneeling position the Japanese call ldquoseizardquo He realized that restricting theblood flow in his legs when he kneeled caused swelling similar to that resulting fromweightlifting He then spent seven years binding different parts of his body to restrict theflow of blood testing his theory that doing so aids muscleshybuilding

ldquoI felt with my own body that if you appropriately restrict blood flow you get a resultrdquo hesaid

After Mr Sato fractured his ankle in a ski accident in 1973 he used kaatsu on his legHis injury healed in a month and a half he said and when people in his neighborhoodheard about his recovery they started coming to him for help

Now the 67shyyearshyold Mr Sato is pursuing kaatsu as a means of both fitness andhealing a supplement to traditional medicine

ldquoI want to make kaatsu a third type of medicine after Western and Eastern medicinerdquohe said ldquoOf course therersquos a limit to how much you can heal [with kaatsu alone] but Ibelieve I can help a lot of peoplerdquo

Kaatsursquos challenge to traditional medicine is one reason it hasnrsquot caught on in Japanaccording to Mr Sato He said many doctors are suspicious of its potential because itcould cost them patients and fees

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20151222 Kaatsu Inventor Also Sees Healing Potential shy Japan Real Time shy WSJ

httpblogswsjcomjapanrealtime20151222kaatsushyinventorshyalsoshyseesshyhealingshypotential 23

Mr Sato 67 shows off some of the fruits of his labor mdashMiho Inada

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Comments (1 of 1) View all Comments raquo

People can only use kaatsu in Japanthrough expensive oneshyonshyone lessonswith a certified trainer Mr Sato said hewants to promote kaatsu as a fitnesstechnique in the US using a portablekaatsu device called Kaatsu Nano tohelp cut costs

He envisions franchising ldquokaatsu wellnesssalonsrdquo where customers can come infor a few minutes and take a group classHe also might sell the device tocompanies who can give it to employees

ldquoAmericans donrsquot like doing something painful Japanese people are the same wayThey want to get in shape while having funrdquo he said

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1205 pm December 22 2015

Damien Jordan wroteLearn more about KAATSU Training at httpwwwKAATSUshyGLOBALcom

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Japan Real Time is a newsy concise guide to what workswhat doesnrsquot and why in the oneshytime poster child for Asiandevelopment as it struggles to keep pace with fastershygrowingneighbors while competing with Europe for Michelinshyratedrestaurants Drawing on the expertise of The Wall StreetJournal and Dow Jones Newswires the site provides an insidetrack on business politics and lifestyle in Japan as it comesto terms with being overtaken by China as the worldrsquos secondshybiggest economy You can contact the editors atjapanrealtimewsjcom

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