Issue 100

April 2013

Foam rollers are a breakthrough in fitness training. If you’ve not got one yet, what are you waiting for?

PAUL MCVEIGH

Sports scientist, TUF 14 cast member and full-time coach – each issue he presents his best training tips

With the world being filled with shake weights, vibration platforms, old Taebo DVDs and fat burners, it’s probably not surprising that I tend to become quite excited when the fitness community offers us something that’s not about as much use as an inflatable dart board.

The introduction of the foam roller is one of the fitness communities home runs. Every gym seems to have a few and everybody seems to be embracing the benefits of self-myofascial release (SMR). The idea behind SMR is a simple one. Massage and other soft tissue modalities make you feel better but can be expensive. 

The foam roller lets you get a degree of the benefits, more often and very cheaply, although working with a skilled physiotherapist, soft tissue worker or sports massage therapist is the far superior option.

Many people feel foam rolling is almost like a form of stretching. They see the roller as a kind of rolling pin spreading out the muscle, increasing its length. In reality SMR has much more of a neural effect than a mechanical one. 

As tissues become over used or under used, they tend to develop adhesions between the muscle fibers often creating a trigger point. This ‘knot’ causes the muscle to become over active and have a greater level of tension even at rest. Obviously having a muscle that is ‘on’ when it’s should not be is going to mess with your movement. 

Over active hip flexors are very common in those who have jobs involving being seated for prolonged periods. If you were actively trying to decrease an athletes performance in practically any combat sports you would prescribe them a healthy dose of jacked up hip flexors. It can also be a contributing factor in back pain that has not been caused by a traumatic event.

Have you ever got off an eight hour flight and tried to walk properly? It was probably quite the challenge. Now imagine trying to do something athletic like throw a head kick, or blast through on a double leg. Sounds crazy but that’s what many guys are doing when they turn up to train with movement problems coming from over active muscles. SMR gives you a way to fight back and restore lost movement capacity by improving the quality of your muscle tissue. 

The foam roller, when used properly, can break up trigger points and therefore reduce the level of tension in the muscle. This allows the joint to move better and corrects up any affected movement patterns.

Common areas that tend to pick up adhesions and can be attacked with a foam roller are:

If your prone to carrying a lacrosse ball around with you can target a few other areas more effectively than with a roller alone. A good idea is to get yourself a roller and mess around with it. If you find something that hurts and it’s not a bony prominence then chances are good that you should give it some attention.

The problem with the whole foam rolling deal is in the implementation. Most people in commercial gyms or in my own gym before I have shouted at them tend to use the foam roller as if they are trying to set their leg aflame. They fly up and down the roller spending microseconds on the actual knotted area and doing practically nothing to address the tension in the muscle.

To get the most from your SMR routine here’s what to do:

1 Go glacier moving down a mountain slow along the roller/ball

2 If you find a spot that is especially sensitive hang out on it until it stops hurting

3 Try moving the joint while on the sore spot; e.g. flexing the knee to target a trigger point in the quad.

4 Reinforce your newly acquired ninja like movement skills with mobility drills for the targeted area. If you focused of your hips do some squat and lunge variations.

Following the protocol above will make your SMR work much more effective. You will move better, be resistant to injury and your performance will not suffer because a pesky muscle is not doing what it’s supposed to.