Exercises Everyone Should Do: Foam Rolling

Hello, everyone! My goal for today is to make everyone feel better. I like a challenge, though, so all I’m going to use is a foam tube. How am I going to do that? I’ll tell you about how wonderful you’ll feel after using one of these things! I didn’t say I wouldn’t need your help a little.

First, lets talk about what this thing is. It’s called a foam roller and it’s exactly how I described it: a tube made of foam. What do you do with it? Well, that’s where the fun begins! To put it simply, you lay on it and roll. (To see the full sequence I’ll be talking about, just check out the video.)

If you’ve never used one of these things, this may sound strange, but give me a moment and let me tell you what this does. First, though, a quick anatomy lesson.

As I’m sure you know, our top layer of tissue is skin and under that, we have muscle. In between is something called fascia. Fascia is a layer of connective tissue that surrounds our muscles and literally runs from the top of our head to the soles of our feet. When everything is working well, our skin, fascia and muscles slide easily against each other, but during the course of life we develop restrictions and knots that prevent that from happening. These are the spots that are sensitive to the touch and feel so good when someone massages them out for us. 

That’s essentially what foam rolling does: massages those spots out. As this happens we begin to feel better, move better, and gain flexibility! Sounds great, huh? Of course there is a slight catch. The first few times you do this it might feel a bit uncomfortable. Maybe very uncomfortable. Trust me, though, it will get better. If you do this for even a week, you will notice a pretty big difference and in a few weeks the difference will be huge. 

I show all my clients a basic sequence that covers the whole body and takes about 5-7 minutes. Check out the video to see it. Rollers usually run about $25 and to buy one online, just go to my site here and click on the Perform Better banner on the bottom of the page. They’re not too hard to find. They come in a few different styles. The white ones are the softest and the black ones are more solid. Initially, the white ones are probably fine, but they do tend to wear out quicker. 

Remember to consult a doctor before starting any exercise program and if you have any questions about foam rolling or anything else, just drop me a line.

Mitch Rothbardt, CPT, PN Lean Eating Coach

510-754-7113

MitchRFitness@gmail.com

MitchRFitness.com

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