The Mighty Foam Roller

I haven't used one but I feel like I'm the only one of my runner/triathlete friends not on the bandwagon! They heap laudation on that little thing.

Ummm.... is this a joke?

Seriously, I'm not sure.

RT

When I studied dance in college, I discovered the foam roller. There were 1 or 2 rollers in every studio for dancers to use. It really is an amazing tool! A great way to massage sore muscles. Where can I get one?

My mother uses one and swears by it. I just use tennis balls (a tip I also picked up in dance class) -- they're great for grinding out painful spots in your feet or your back. If you put two on either side of your spine and roll them down the length of your back as you press them into the floor, it will be like having a deep tissue massage.

My husband has one of these - has for years - swears it helps with his core strength and back flexibility. I dunno.

I've got a roller. It's used most when my back is sore, in the muscles, typically the day after heavy deadlifting or rowing. Sometimes it comes in handy for chest and abdomen, or legs and calves.

Bizarre. This is one of those things you wish you were the one to patent. The prototype section must read:

Take foam pool toy, cut into fourths. Sell each 1/4" for $20.

I first bought one to help with my ITB syndrome and it helped IMMENSELY. I agree with the "more you feel it, the more you need it," bit of advice. It hurt like a bitch, I'm not going to lie, but the relief I experienced after using it made it totally worth it. It took care of my ITB syndrome within a couple days, and now I use it for other parts of my body. If you exercise at all, buy one! (I got mine at Target.)

I used one once under the supervision of a fitness trainer (not my current trainer) and was in pain for about 3-4 days. Not sure if I did it right or not. The trainer said I would be uncomfortable, but it was serious pain. I will have to give it another try.

I have to say, it made me giggle. I've never seen one before (apart from those foam things in swimming pools.) Is this a US thing??

Ali

I've never used a foam roller, but I do use a tennis-ball filled sock to massage my feet when my plantar fasciitis acts up. I think if your expectations are realistic (ie, using the roller to massage your muscles, not to get rid of cellulite, etc.), this could be a very helpful tool.

When I had carpal tunnel syndrome, my occupational therapist gave me one of these and it was amazing. Once I stopped misusing my wrists, I relied on my shoulders more and they would be very tense and sore at the end of the day. I used to get this knot right behind my shoulder blade and rolling on the foam thingy was the only way I've ever found to get rid of it. It was an essential part of my therapy in building flexibility in my shoulders.

I thought my trainer was joking when he suggested I use this after my work out (I had muscle spams in my back). He had me converted to the foam roller within minutes! It's now a regular part of my cool down regime and it truly is amazing.

Thanks Mike!
I keep meaning to try one of these things but I'm such a creature of habit you practically need to bonk me over the head with something new to get me to give it a go.

This post is a nice little head-bonk. Since I have ITB syndrome too (self-diagnosed, of course) I think I'll give it a whirl.

My trainer introduced this to me last week. I am a runner and he explained that runners in particular can benefit from using this along their IT bands. Runners have a tendancy to have very tight IT bands (they stretch from the outside of your knee to the hip). They are very difficult to target and stretch, but tight bands can lead to turning out at the hips and lower back pain- the roller helps fight this by loosening them up.

Very tender and painful at first but after a few reps it got better. Very similar to a massage.

Oh man, my coach dared me to use it on my ITband yesterday after I laughed at him wincing while doing it. Oh my goodness, it hurt so bad. He told me to get off it before I hurt myself, as I have be lucky enough to never have IT band problems.
I know a lot of people who use this and swear by it.

This is a great idea. Will try it the next time at the gym. Should be nice for relieving backaches and sore muscles. I use the gym ball for the same purpose.

I started using a foam roller about 1 month ago because I had a tremendous amount of myofascial pain in both my legs. It's absolutely the best way to stretch and regain mobility, especially in your legs. It definitely felt like someone was taking a jackhammer to my legs at first but I just stuck a towel in my mouth and fought through the pain. It is very true that the more it hurts, the more you need it. After 1 month I have virtually no trigger points and my range of motion is better than its ever been. The inital pain also went away after about 7 days. I recommend doing each body part with trigger points about 5 minutes a day, it will make the trigger points disappear. A kinetic stick also works but isn't quite as good as the foam roller. As a trainer of mine said "the foam roller doesn't lie"

I was introduced to the foam roller in my Exercise Group Fitness class. I am an exercise science major. We tried different exercises in class and I was in so much pain, but afterwards I felt like I had an amazing full body massage. So I got online and bought one for me and one for my mom for christmas. I use mine all the time. It also is a great way to crack your back. It really has become my best friend in college since I work out alot. I definatley recommend it.

This thing is a big piece of crap. It actually hurt my back when I was done with it. I'm a professional llama rider and after a hard day's work I need tension release in my muscles, but this thing is like getting attacked by an alpaca when you aren't watching.

I use a frozen water bottle to roll my sore feet. The ice takes the pain away, so it is soothing

Thanks:D

From working in a high end health club for many years, I have seen many elite trainers use this tool with a lot of success.

Although I am in fairly good shape, I have had this nagging hip pain for over 20 years. I've gone to various doctors who could not tell me what was wrong or what to do about it. Physical therapy did not help either. It was depressing because any form of activity was beginning to aggravate my hip. I was only 52, and yet even shopping with my daughters was becoming difficult. Recently I started working with a trainer primarily for strength training and as part of the program he recommended using a foam roller. In less than 2 months my hip pain had vanished. It has truly changed my life! My hip pain is completely gone.

Seriously, this simpe device had radically improved a plantar fascitis problem and a sore hip. The best part is now that I have been using it for 8 months religiously, I only need to spend about 3-5 minutes a day to keep up. I take it now with me even when I travel.

I'm a physical therapist and personal trainer and have seen so many people benefit from the foam roller.

But I will say that even though it's a great tool, it can't replace the skill of a good manual therapist. Use the foam roller on your own, but also go to see a body worker (physical therapist or massage therapist).

I just started using a roller for IT to see if it will help outer knee pain when hiking, working on ladders and after standing and walking long periods on concrete floors. Hope it works.

I had knots and pain in upper back/neck. A trick I read about was to roll a lacross ball around the upper back against a wall. Really helped target trigger points between shoulder blades.

Since my job is really stressful i thought it would be good idea to get one to relive my tension. First day i got it i almost cried my back was that tight. It was soar for like 2 weeks. 2 weeks of pain and now im back to a healthy back. Oh yea its also nice on your leg muscles after a long run.. love this thing!