Guest Blogger: Rebecca Lingerfelt, DPT
The foam roller is a great tool for all types of people to relieve muscle tightness and tenderness. You can now buy foam rollers at any medical supply store or website and most sporting goods stores. Foam rollers are a way for you to massage painful or tight muscles by yourself. There are many different types and various uses.
Most foam rollers are three feet long with a six inch diameter, and they are made from from soft density to firm density foam, and even PVC pipe. There are also foam rollers that are twelve inches long or foam roller semi-circles. You can use your foam roller to stretch your calves, quadriceps, hamstrings, iliotibial band, low back, or upper back. The benefit of using a foam roller is to use your body weight on the roll to break up tight muscle or scar tissue by rolling back and forth over a tender area. For more information on the mechanics, please read our earlier blog about Myofascial Release. Because it is a way to massage soft tissue, it is important that the muscles are properly warmed up before using the foam roller. Foam rollers can also be used as an unstable surface to create a more advanced strengthening program. Below is a basic list of stretches and strengthening uses with the foam roller. I encourage you to look online for even more ideas of using your foam roller. Be creative!
