5 Foam Rolling Moves For Everyone!

5 Foam Rolling Moves For Everyone!

Foam Roller: Your Personal Physiotherapist!

Foam rolling is like having a personal massage therapist at home—for free. But if you’ve never used a foam roller before, it might seem more like a torture device than a useful recovery tool.

Here’s why it’s worth it, though: Day to day activities and working out hard creates slight tears in your muscles. As the muscle heals and becomes stronger, adhesions—commonly known as knots—sometimes form between your muscle and your fascia (the layer of connective tissue that sits between your muscle and your skin). Normally, muscle and fascia glide across each other when you move, but if you have adhesions, the muscle doesn’t contract like it normally would. “That’s where foam rolling could be helpful!”

Pointers for Foam Rolling

Roll each muscle group for 1-2 minutes and roll very SLOWLY. When you hit a tight spot that is painful or uncomfortable, HOLD on that spot for 30-45 seconds. You should feel the tension release slowly.

Make sure to keep breathing, even when it’s painful. Holding your breath won’t allow the muscles to release and relax.

Be sure to RELAX the muscle as best you can. If you are flexing or tensing the muscle group you are trying to roll out, you won’t feel the trigger points you need to release.

Drink plenty of water for the next 24 hours. Your body needs to rid itself of the lactic acid released after rolling.

The next day your muscles may be a bit sore. That’s normal, they should feel slightly fatigued and possibly a tiny bit tender. Wait 24-48 hours to foam roll again if you’re sore.

Never roll on a joint or bone and DO NOT roll your lower back. Also, when rolling your upper back be careful not to roll directly on your spine, instead always roll one side of your back at a time by slightly leaning to that side. There are small knobs on your vertebrae, called facets, that could get injured when rolling directly on your spine.

If an area is too painful to apply direct pressure, shift the roller, and apply pressure on the surrounding area and gradually work to loosen the entire area.

Here’s a good routine to get you started using your foam roller. Some muscle groups may be more sensitive than others, THOSE are the ones that you need to focus on! You will eventually be able to feel which muscle groups tend to always be tight for you personally. If you work at a desk (like most people), some areas to pay special attention to are the chest (and fronts of shoulders), lats, hip flexors, and IT-band.

Also Read: Anterior Pelvic Tilt: The Gift of The Modern Lifestyle!

5 Foam Rolling Moves For Everyone!

Quad Foam Roll

5 Foam Rolling Moves For Everyone!

Start in a forearm plank position with the roller under the center of your quads perpendicular to your legs, as shown. Keep your head in line with your spine, eyes facing downward, and pull in your belly.

On your forearms, crawl forward until the roller is just above your kneecaps, then crawl backward until the roller is at the top of your thigh.

If you hit a sore spot, hold the roller there, and bend and extend the leg that is feeling the knot.

Focus on placing your weight in your left leg for 90 seconds, then focus on your right leg for 90 seconds.

Calf Foam Roll

5 Foa

What Is A Foam Roller And How Do I Use It? | FashionBeans

m Rolling Moves For Everyone!

Lie on your back with your hands behind your head, fingers interlaced. Position the roller under the bottom of your left calf, and cross your right ankle over your left calf on the roller for pressure, as shown.

Keeping your left foot relaxed, slowly turn the foot in and out to massage your left calf.

Slide the roller up your left calf and repeat the movement until the entire calf has been rolled out.

When you feel a sticking point as you roll your calf, hold on to that point and do a giant circle with your bottom foot 3 times in one direction and 3 times in the opposite direction. Then move to the next section of the calf.

Continue for 90 seconds, then repeat with your right calf.

Glute Foam Roll

5 Foam Rolling Moves For Everyone!

Sit on the roller (perpendicular to your body) with your knees bent, feet flat on the floor, and hands on the floor behind you to support your body.

Cross your left ankle onto your right knee.

Tilt your left knee down toward the floor to open up your hip, as shown.

Using your right foot to move you, slowly roll back and forth. Try a few slightly different knee angles to adjust the intensity.

Continue for 90 seconds, then repeat with your right glute.

Lat Foam Roll

5 Foam Rolling Moves For Everyone!

Lie on your left side with knees slightly bent, your left knee slightly in front of you.

Bend your left elbow and cover your ear with your hand to support your head and neck. Try to not have any tension in your neck.

Place the roller just below your left armpit, perpendicular to your body, as shown.

Slowly rock forward and backward 5 times at the armpit, and then move the roller to about midway to your upper body. Rock forward and backward slowly.

Alternate between these two spots for 90 seconds, then repeat on the right side for 90 seconds.

Upper Back Foam Roll

5 Foam Rolling Moves For Everyone!

How to Use a Foam Roller for Your Upper Back - Experience Life

Lie faceup with the roller under the bottom of your shoulder blades, knees bent and feet planted on the floor.

Interlace your fingers and place your hands behind your head, relaxing your neck.

Engage your core and raise your hips up off the floor.

Using your feet, slowly roll your body up and down so the roller moves from the bottom of your shoulder blades to the base of your neck, as shown.

Continue for 90 seconds.

In Conclusion:

Foam rollers are an affordable and accessible way to gift yourself some pre-workout mobility and flexibility or post-workout myofascial release, increase blood flow to repair muscles, and reduce soreness.

When you learn how to foam roll properly, you’re not only providing your body with an easy form of self-massage to soothe achy muscles, you’re also improving circulation, speeding up recovery, and feeling better overall during your next workout and in your daily activities as well!

So, get to it – let’s roll!