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Foam rolling has gained immense popularity lately and there are many reasons for the same. This technique is not only meant for professional athletes or sportspersons but benefits everyone. Foam rolling is very similar to a massage. In this article, we will be talking about foam rolling exercises and the benefits of foam rolling. Before we get into these details, let us understand the basics of what a foam roller is, what foam rolling does and what kind of benefits you can expect from this technique.
A foam roller is a tool for self-myofascial release or SMR. This SMR tool helps in releasing tension and increasing the mobility and flexibility of muscles, fascia and connective tissues. Foam rollers are usually cylindrical in shape and their length varies from 1 to 4 feet while the diameter of these can be anywhere between 5 to 10 inches.
If you’re wondering about when you should be foam rolling or how often you can do these exercises, here is the answer for you. Foam rolling exercises can be done every day and you can do them for the muscle groups that you have workout out. Foam rolling before working out will help increase blood flow and reduce muscle tension. Post work out foam rolling will reduce muscle stiffness and soreness. You can also try foam rolling before sleep time to get relief from any pains and aches that make sleeping uncomfortable. For example, you can choose the technique of foam rolling for knee pain. When foam rolling, you should avoid any known injuries.
Foam rolling helps you by reducing soreness and stiffness, breaking up adhesions, decreasing tissue tension, increasing blood flow and improving your range of movement. This in turn leads to better flexibility and increased speed. Foam rollers work by reducing the tightness of the myofascia. This is the connecting tissue surrounding the muscles, the tightness of which reduces flexibility.
In the upcoming sections of this article, we will be looking at the benefits of foam rolling and some exercises that you can do to improve flexibility and reduce soreness.
The following topics about foam rolling will be discussed in detail in the upcoming sections of this article.
Foam rolling is not just a good way to warm up your muscles before your workout session but it is also a great method that aids recovery. Let us take an in-depth look at the benefits that foam rolling offers.
Other than these, foam rolling also helps in reducing stress.
Let us now look at the various exercises for different muscle groups like foam rolling for knee pain, back pain, etc. to help you know how you can get the best out of your foam rolling sessions.
1. Hip Flexors
2. Calves
3. Shoulders
4. Upper Back
5. Hamstrings
We have now reached the conclusion of this guide on foam roller exercises and their benefits. In this article, we have discussed foam rolling as a technique for better flexibility and for reducing soreness, stiffness and aches. From the discussion above we can conclude that:
In the previous sections of this article on foam rolling, we have discussed various aspects of this type of exercise and how you can benefit from the same. Other than these, you might have some more questions regarding these exercises and their advantages. In this section, we have answered some of the common questions related to foam rolling exercises to help solve your doubts and queries.
In this article, we have looked at the benefits of foam rolling but you might also want to know if foam rolling actually helps. The short and sweet answer to this is that yes, foam rolling helps. This type of method is not just helpful for athletes and physically active people but also for anyone who is feeling pain or soreness or stiffness in their muscles. Foam rolling has benefits very similar to massages.
Yes, foam roller exercises help cellulite as well. This is one of the benefits of these exercises. We have discussed above that foam rolling helps in smoothening the fat underneath the skin, eliminating lumpy areas and loosening fascia. All this leads to the reduced visibility of cellulite. It also improves lymphatic drainage in cellulite-prone areas.
Yes, foam rolling increases flexibility. We have looked at improved flexibility as one of the benefits of foam roller exercises. Along with increasing flexibility, foam rolling also improves muscular performance. Foam rolling releases the tightness of myofascia. This is caused by a sedentary lifestyle or injury or repeated regular movement or even surgery. Tight myofascia is known to reduce flexibility.
The correct order for your to follow should be your workout routine followed by foam rolling and ending with some stretching. You should ensure that you foam roll all the muscle groups that you have worked on.
Three major foam roller exercises that can help your glutes and hips are:
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