Exclusivia Talks KAATSU With John Doolittle
Episode Description
John Doolittle graduated from the US Air Force Academy back in the ’90s. He served in the US Navy for 25 years where he was deployed as an officer in the SEAL teams. That’s right, he’s a Navy SEAL. He’s been in Kosovo, Bosnia, Iraq, Afghanistan. He retired as a Navy captain after his last assignment, and then went on to become a certified KAATSU master instructor.
Check out and order a KAATSU support system and keep in the fight.
Transcript
There is a lot of interest in rapid rehabilitation. And anything that’s out there, any emerging technology that’s out there that can help speed up the rehab of guys that get hurt because it’s not a matter of if they get hurt. Everyone gets hurt. That’s just the nature of the training and special operations especially. Everyone gets hurt. The faster you can rehab them, the better that is from a taxpayer perspective.
Statements made in this podcast have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. For more information about KAATSU and KAATSU products, visit KAATSUglobal.com. That’s K-A-A-T-S-U-Global.com.
This is Exclusivia.
KAATSU Global Chief Operating Officer, John Doolittle, talks about his 25 years as a special ops commander in the Navy SEALs and how his own injuries ultimately led him to joining the KAATSU team. I grew up in Northern California. I was a swimmer. Sister and parents are still in California. Graduated high school, went to the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. About my junior year, I realized I wasn’t due to my grades and whatnot. I wasn’t going to make it to pilot training. So I started looking at other options. And my swim coach at the time, 1960 double gold medalist Mike Troy was an X steel UDT guy from the Vietnam era. And Mike said, “Hey, you should look into the Navy because there’s a transfer program and maybe go into Navy and go into the SEAL team.” So long story short, that’s essentially what I did. I did an inner service transfer to the Navy, ended up getting into the SEAL teams, went through the BUDS training and all that.
I was in the Navy for 25 years. I’m kind of a taller, lanky guy. So guys like me usually don’t do really good in BUDS training. I had a lot of orthopedic issues over the course of a 25-year career. I just recently had a total knee replacement and that was number 11 ortho procedure from a wide variety of things, everything from overuse to parachute accidents and things like that. But I got beat up pretty good.
My last shoulder surgery while I was still active duty, I was working at that time at SOCOM headquarters. So Special Operations Command headquarters in Tampa, Florida. The Human Performance Section fell under my directorate. So our exercise physiology trainers, PTs, they all fell under my purview. So I was exposed to some really cool emerging technology in physical therapy space and trainer strength and conditioning space. And I tore my rotator cuff while I was there and one of the trainers said, hey, why don’t you let the PT work with you and do some KAATSU and see how it goes. I was blown away by that experience and a year later I was retiring out of the Navy. While I was doing that rehab, I met Mr. Steven Munatones. He’s the CEO of KAATSU Global and he works directly with Dr. Yoshiaki Sato. He’s the owner-founder out of Tokyo.
Basically, I asked Stephen, you know hey, I really am impressed with this product. What are your plans with growth with the business? And long story longer, that turned into an interview, that turned into a trip to Tokyo to meet Dr. Sato. So now here we are. I work in business development for KAATSU and loving every minute of it. Work a lot in the VA space, everything from wound care to chronic pain to orthopedic rehab. So I get to stay in that veteran space, which is exciting as well. The way I explained it to my kids was the old job was making bad people go away. The new job is taking care of people. I think if you go back about eight years ago, I had a torn supraspinatus rotator cuff, and three years ago, I had the exact same injury. My rehab from that rotator cuff injury previously was almost a full year. It was like 11, 11 and a half months. When the PTs did my rehab with KAATSU, they didn’t change any of the physical therapy standards or protocols. All they did is they added the KAATSU pressure cycle to the existing rehab protocol. And at six months, I was back in 95% strength, range of motion, mobility, and everything. I was basically swimming butterfly at master’s practices again. So I was blown away. Five or six years younger previously, and it took almost a year, then jumped forward. Same injury, same repair. I mean, you could argue that the surgeon the second time maybe did a better job. That’s absolutely part of it. But I rehabbed in almost half the time. That’s why I really was blown away, was my personal experience with it. And now with having had a total knee replacement five weeks ago today, the effect on the healing process is pretty incredible. This is exclusivia.
KAATSU Global Chief Operating Officer, John Doolittle, talks about the KAATSU bands, KAATSU training techniques, and why it’s different from occlusion bands or tourniquets. We should probably talk a little bit about what KAATSU is. It’s essentially flexible and elastic air bladders in a band that you wear at the most proximal side of the arms or at the most proximal side of the legs. And when the machine is going through its cycle phase, it’ll create excess pressure in that band. And it’s really important to understand that these bands are not rigid. They are not surgical tourniquets. There’s stuff on the market that are surgical tourniquets. They are not occlusion bands. People that might be listening to this, you get on there, you Google KAATSU, and there’s a bunch of stuff that comes up. A lot of it is occlusion bands, which are essentially surgical tourniquets that are really created for, guess what? Surgery. And the KAATSU band’s not that at all.
When you get the pressure, the blood is always moving. As a matter of fact, when you put the machines at the highest possible pressure and you put a pulse ox on your finger or on your toe, you can still see that the blood is moving. You still have your high oxygen saturation. You still get a good pulse rate. You still have really good capillary refill when you look at the fingernails or in the palm of your hand and whatnot. So the blood’s always, always moving. When the bands are at that pressure phase, imagine all the vascular tissue, all the capillaries, everything distal of the band, everything down range of the band becoming full with blood, engorged with blood, right? But again, it’s always moving. So you’re kind of pooling blood. You’re slowing that venous return, the speed of the blood coming back to the heart. So it’s moving, but it’s engorged. When you start moving the limb while it’s in that state, there’s all kinds of physiological and on the endocrinology aspect that happen with hormonal response. But I think the easiest way to think of it is you’re just improving the elasticity of the vascular tissue. You’re just improving circulation. One of the ways the VA is looking at using this going forward is if you engorge tissue and hold it for 20 seconds, let’s say, and that one of the devices we have holds it for 20 seconds and then a five-second complete total release. And then the next 20 seconds is a little more pressure. So engorging all that tissue a little bit more, hold it for 20 seconds and let it go.
When you do that continuously, you’re creating more elasticity in the blood vessels and you are improving circulation. So if you think of somebody that has, let’s say, a type two diabetic or a prediabetic, and they have lower extremity wound issues or ulcers or just bad circulation, if you imagine engorging all that tissue with blood, hold it for a short period of time and then let it go. Engorge it more, hold it for a short period of time, let it go. You’re improving that blood flow. And there’s a lot of guys in the VA that are getting toes and feet cut off due to prediabetic and type two diabetic scenarios. So there’s all kinds of other benefits besides just muscle hypertrophy, just making big muscles.
This is Exclusivia.
KAATSU Global Chief Operating Officer and former Navy SEAL, John Doolittle, talks about the financial implications of fast recovery for military soldiers. John also covers a study that was done on a military base in San Antonio, Texas, where they tested soldiers who trained with KAATSU bands. For a guy that comes into the Navy and goes through basic underwater demolition seal training and their initial A-school and basic training in the Navy and the advanced training and the specialized training and the deployment. You start adding all that up. The number we’ve always recently put on the wall is about a million dollars. It costs about a million dollars to fully train somebody that’s a deployable special operator with the appropriate skill set. That’s how much is spent on them during a career of training. Now, a SEAL platoon, let’s say, is usually 16 people. And you can imagine if you take one person out of that mix, that’s a major impact.
So there is a lot of interest in rapid rehabilitation. And anything that’s out there, any emerging technology that’s out there that can help speed up the rehab of guys that get hurt because it’s not a matter of if they get hurt. Everyone gets hurt. That’s just the nature of the training and special operations, especially. Everyone gets hurt. The faster you can rehab them, the better that is from a taxpayer perspective.
Our lead researcher, he did an initial study with Air Force Special Operations. What they did is they took a group of guys, they baselined them for a mile and a half runtime. They took muscle girth, muscle size, VO2 max, and then had them for three weeks, four times a week, 20 minutes at a time, walk on a treadmill with the KAATSU leg bands on at their optimal pressure, 20 minutes of walking. And they wanted them to be walking at between 20 and 30% of their VO2 max, which essentially is a pretty easy walking pace with you’re not even breathing hard and you can talk and whatnot. It was a small trial. It was only 10 guys, but they were tactical athletes, Air Force Special Operators. After 10 days, muscle girth measurements in their hamstring, quad, that thickest part of the leg all increased.
All of their VO2 max and VO2 reserve scores improved and all of their run times. The average decrease was, I think it was 7.2 seconds faster in their mile and a half runtime. Some guys went significantly faster, some went just a little bit faster, but they all went faster. The only thing where the findings weren’t across the board positive was on the strength and power measurements. That was the other thing they baseline. So when we presented that at the Special Operations Medical Assembly in North Carolina two years ago, the response was, wow, even if half of those findings are true and legit, this is something we should look at. Is it possible for you to go back, do another IRB, and do another study that is larger and has a control group, make it a more legit study. That study is ongoing. The initial findings are all very positive.
So it’s the fact that you can take an endurance athlete, let’s say, somebody who VO2 max is very important to, and have them do 30% VO2 max walking. We call it KAATSU walking on a treadmill. The fact that you can improve endurance, blood flow, oxygenation of the tissue, the fact that you can improve aerobic capacity in a special operator, in a tactical athlete, simply by having them walk at 30% VO2 max. That’s pretty impressive because all their sleep habits, all their diet, all their existing workout routines, all those were maintained the same throughout the study.
The KAATSU Cycle 2.0 is launched. After years of research, design modifications, software changes, user feedback, and utilization of metabolite testing results, the next generation KAATSU Cycle 2.0 is now available. It is more compact and quieter. It is more capable and more powerful than the first generation KAATSU Nano and KAATSU Master products. The KAATSU Cycle 2.0 enables exercise, recovery, and rehabilitation anywhere, anytime, by anyone. The Ultra Compact Ultra Light Durable Unit offers the KAATSU cycle and KAATSU master training modes and utilizes precise software controlled limb pressure for both your arms and legs. The KAATSU Cycle 2.0 includes four KAATSU airbands for both arms and legs, a rechargeable battery with a USB-C charger. The pneumatic elastic bands can be disconnected from the KAATSU Cycle 2.0 unit and are waterproof for use in the pool. Based on the original KAATSU know-how and U.S. patent number 9775619 compression and decompression control system and vascular strengthening method. The KAATSU Cycle 2.0 can do the following. It can tone muscle without weights. It’s convenient. It can be done anywhere, anytime, by anyone. It offers access to the KAATSU Performance Database. It offers six preset KAATSU cycle levels. It can efficiently and effectively improve speed, stamina, and strength. The KAATSU Cycle 2.0 is an incredible time-saver. It can improve circulation. It enables faster recovery. It enables greater range of motion for those rehabilitating and recovering from injuries and surgeries. It is reimbursable with various CPT codes. And the KAATSU Cycle 2.0 offers customizable KAATSU pressures. KAATSU, profoundly simple and simply profound. Statements made in this podcast have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. For more information about KAATSU and KAATSU products, visit kaatsuglobal.com.
That’s K-A-A-T-S-U-Global.com.
This is Exclusivia.
KAATSU Global Chief Operating Officer and former Navy SEAL, John Doolittle, talks about the effects of using KAATSU training for joint health, chronic injuries, and the overall efficiency in our everyday lives. Think of aging athletes, right? The guys that are pro and elite athletes that are getting into their mid-30s, right? I mean, usually somebody that’s in their low 30s, they’re probably near the end of their career with few exceptions, right? If you can take somebody like that, and let’s just say in their weight room gym routine, and if you can back the weight off significantly, but still get the same physiological response, that’s a smarter way of training for these guys. And I would argue you’re absolutely increasing longevity for that athlete. Now take that to the tactical athlete on the military side.
One of our biggest issues is chronic injury. And, you know, you look back at how we trained 25, 30 years ago, I mean, we were idiots with the way we were training these guys. And now you got these exercise kinesiology professionals that are building these exercise programs, but they still involve pretty intense stuff, and in a lot of cases, pretty heavy lift. And as the guys get older, that’s an issue. Knees, hips, shoulders, lower back, neck, ankles in approximately that order. In my opinion, the most important thing that KAATSU does is it simply improves circulation. And in my favorite demographic to deal with, which is the VA or the veteran space, when we look at all the issues with hypertension and prediabetes and type 2 diabetes, improving circulation with those guys, especially in their lower extremities, that’s one of the most important things I think we do with KAATSU.
There’s all kinds of things that KAATSU does, but to me, that’s one of the most important things, really improving the quality of life for people that, in a lot of ways, have given up. Here’s a good example of KAATSU use, not from a rehab perspective, but just day-to-day use. My wife and I, after dinner, the kids go off and do their homework. Katie and I will clean up the kitchen, doing KAATSU cycles on our legs. So we’ll put the little nano device on our belt there and put the leg bands on. And we’ll do a couple cycles while we’re cleaning up the kitchen. And then we’ll put the bands at our optimal pressure. We’ll untether from the machine, leave the machine in the kitchen, go get the leashes, go get both dogs, and we’ll go for a 15 or 20 minute walk. And I’m telling you, you come back from that 20 minute of sustain what we call KAATSU training pressure, you’re done, you’re smoked. And that is your leg workout for the next two days. And it’s that simple. So when you talk about from an efficiency of integrating exercise into your life, I don’t go to the gym anymore. When it’s time to work out, I go in the backyard, I grab some TRX bands, I put the KAATSU on, I do a couple simple exercises during the cycle mode. Then I’ll go to the training mode, I’ll untether so I don’t have the tubes hanging off me, and then I’ll get after it for five or 10 minutes. But within 20.. max 25 minutes, I’m done. And that’s a tough, significant taxing workout on the body. So I love it purely from a efficiency saving time perspective. From a rehab perspective, I really have enjoyed the fact that I can have this little device and in the comfort and security, privacy of my home, I can do KAATSU cycles for as long as I want. ‘Cause when you’re doing the training mode, you’re limited in how long you can keep the bands on at sustained pressure.
It’s 15 minutes for the arms, 20 minutes for the legs. When you’re doing the cycle function, you can do as many cycles as you want. And Dr. Sato would tell you, the more cycles you do, the healthier that is for your vascular system and elasticity, and the better it is for you. When I’m at home, whether I’m in a rehab mode or just hanging out, if I’m doing emails, I got the armbands on and I’m doing cycles because I’m exercising that vascular system. So from a personal perspective, I love the ease of use and I like that I can do it in the privacy of my home. This is Exclusivia. KAATSU Global Chief Operating Officer and former Navy SEAL, John Doolittle, talks about the new KAATSU Wearables product and has the potential to really change lives. The wearables are, in our opinion, a game changer for this industry and for this space.
Because when we were dealing with assisted living locations, some of the feedback we were getting was, hey, we love how this population, call it the baby boomers, right? We love how this demographic is able to work out without pushing weight and straining their skeletal system. But we have significant issues with these tubes hanging off of this device that’s on their belt. They saw them as trip hazards. And we had that same conversation with the VA.
So we started looking at other options, and the wearables are essentially going to allow the client to have all the functionality of the KAATSU cycle and all the functionality of the KAATSU training mode, purely through a smartphone and the Bluetooth pump on the bands themselves, and they’ll be removable. So if you want to work arms, you control it with your phone and the Bluetooth pumps, and they’re pretty small. They’re like two inches by one inch, and they’re connected to the armbands. When you’re done with your arm workout, you just undo them from the armbands, and they connect to the leg bands, and you can do the same thing. Everything that you can do with the KAATSU Nano, you’ll be able to do with the KAATSU wearables. And it will be even better because you’ll have the ability to collect all your data, whether it’s your O2 sat data, your heart rate, if you use it with the pulse oximeter or your base pressures, your optimal pressures, your duration of training and whatnot. All that will be captured automatically in a cloud database for you.
Introducing the KAATSU Cycle 2.0. KAATSU is the ultimate bio hack for health, rehabilitation, and recovery. Train bilaterally and untethered from the unit. Tone muscle without weights, lessening the risk of injury to joints and muscles. Improve speed, stamina and strength. Exercise, recover, and rehabilitate anytime, anywhere. Increase range of motion and promote improved circulation. Accelerate training when time is of the essence. These are just a few of the benefits of the new KAATSU Cycle 2.0. Invented in 1966 by Dr. Yoshiaki Sato of Tokyo, Japan, and protected by 47 patents. KAATSU, next-generation equipment and protocols have a unique and unprecedented safety track record with over 20 million individual KAATSU sessions in 48 countries around the globe. Backed by over 50 years of expertise, Kantsu Global is excited to introduce the latest advancement in health and wellness, the KAATSU Cycle 2.0. Fitting in the palm of your hand or in your pocket, the KAATSU Cycle 2.0 is the most advanced, most portable, easiest to use compression device in the world in combination with a precise algorithm controlled limb pressure KAATSU’s narrow elastic bands yield to muscle contractions, providing safe and effective exercise and rehabilitation for users of all ages and from all walks of life, from Olympic champions to disabled individuals. KAATSU users have a full range of motion, providing complete control and the opportunity for a wide variety of movements and training. From elite athletes and soldiers to aging baby boomers and busy executives, KAATSU Cycle 2.0 is the next generation training and rehabilitation device used around the world. KAATSU is used by the United States Department of Defense, as well as the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. KAATSU, profoundly simple and simply profound. Statements made in this podcast have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. For more information about KAATSU and KAATSU products, visit kaatsuglobal.com. That’s K-A-A-T-S-U-Global.com.
