How to Use Foam Rollers to Help Your Physical Therapy (Videos)
Foam rollers have become a staple in many homes, from athletes to individuals just trying to loosen up their muscles to feel better. They have come into popularity in the past 20 years, helping people self-manage their pain, recovery, and mobility. These cylinders of foam are versatile and can be used by rolling your body weight back and forth over the device to massage muscles. They can be used for many things including spinal mobilization too.
There are a wide variety of foam rollers on the market, often leaving consumers wondering which product is best for achieving their goals. Different sizes, widths, and textures of rollers make choosing the best foam roller for you even more confusing. Below, we will outline a few common ways to use a foam roller to help you feel better as well as a few products that really help with sensations of muscle tightness and back stiffness.
What are Foam Rollers?
Foam rollers are cylinders of foam that are used to massage muscles. Individuals can use different positions to choose how much weight is put into the massage and vary intensity. But it’s no surprise that all foam rollers are not created equally. Some are made to be stiffer, while others are made of a more soft and squishy material. This variety is beneficial due to different tolerances for each user, or even different sensitivities across your body.
These days variety is even greater than just different materials. You can also choose a foam roller that has different textures, grooves to accommodate different body parts or to gain better leverage, vibration features, and rollers of different diameters. Some devices are better targeted at mobilizing the spine as opposed to massaging a hamstring muscle. This difference usually comes down to diameter, specific grooves for different body parts, and firmness. All of the options lead to many people purchasing the wrong foam roller, or one that just isn’t the best option for their needs.
Common Misconception of Foam Rollers
Many people view foam rollers and massage as a way to tenderize their body and “break up” adhesions between the soft tissues of their bodies. Fortunately, this is not quite how it works and the process does not need to be as forceful as it can sometimes look. Your body’s tissues are more resilient and stronger than they may seem, and a foam roller is not strong enough to “break” anything up. While this does not render them ineffective, it is important to know that they do not work through sheer force.
How is a Foam Roller Beneficial to Your Body?
What foam rolling lacks in mechanical “breaking up” of tissues, it makes up for in neurological inhibition of muscles. It’s just the fancy way of saying ‘it gets your muscles to relax a bit.’ There are nerves in your muscles and fascia (the covering surrounding your muscles) that are pressure sensors. These pressure sensors send a “relax” signal to your brain and spinal cord when they are massaged, resulting in decreased muscle tension, or at least the feeling of it.
Foam rollers are also used as a fulcrum for spinal mobilization. If you want to make your spine bend a certain way, giving yourself something to bend over is very helpful. There are some more specific devices such as the Chirp Wheel that work directly on spine mobility even though a standard foam roller can perform very well.
How To Use a Foam Roller To Reduce Muscle Fatigue or Pain
Using a foam roller to help with muscle fatigue or pain will be slightly different for everyone. From my experience, some patients benefit from very light pressure with soft tissue mobilization, while others consistently ask for more weight to be applied for maximum pressure. This all comes down to what you like and knowing your body. There is no guaranteed benefit from using more force with soft tissue mobilization. The most important factor is that you can relax during the process. If you feel yourself tensing your muscles because the foam rolling is uncomfortable, it will be challenging to achieve a beneficial outcome. As an added benefit, foam rolling after strenuous exercise may help reduce muscle soreness and tenderness in the days following your routine. While the duration of foam rolling required is up for debate, I find that patients benefit from two to three minutes on a specific muscle group.
What are the Most Common Body Parts to Use Foam Rollers on?
Hamstring muscles
Quads
Calf muscles
Lats (loosen tight shoulders)
Thoracic spine extensions
Foam Roller Products
There are so many foam roller products to choose from. Below are a few popular versions you will likely come across in your search for the best foam roller.
Luxfit Foam Roller ($12.95 - $32.23)
The Classic. This foam roller is as basic as it gets, and I see that as a benefit. Foam rollers do not need to be anything fancy to get the job done well. This device is sturdy and will last a long time. It is not the softest or the hardest of the bunch, but will be the correct density and feel for most people.
Chirp Wheels ($29.99 – $129.99)
These devices are very specific to spine mobilization and phenomenally designed for the task. If you are looking to mobilize your spine into extension (bending backwards), this is the device for you. While you can use a standard foam roller for a similar effect, the groove and specific sizes for different parts of the spine set this type of roller apart from the others.
TriggerPoint Grid ($33.98 – $65.99)
What makes this foam roller special is the soft covering on a very hard cylinder. This means that it will have the sturdiness to allow for deep foam rolling while the padded outer layer can feel, initially, less uncomfortable. This roller will have a more intense effect than a classic foam roller.
Rumble Roller ($19.95 – $64.95)
This is the monster truck of foam rollers. If you enjoy the feeling of a very deep and hard massage, this may be for you, but it is definitely not for the faint of heart. I believe that an individual must be able to relax enough to allow the foam roller to actually have an effect on their muscles. Success with this type of device is not common.
MOBILITAS Mobility Peanut ($20)
This is the best device for mobilizing the neck but has limited uses otherwise. You can also use it to mobilize the mid-back, but I find it too intense for this application.
Hyperice Vyper ($149 – $199)
Foam rollers with vibration may have some added benefit for increased muscle flexibility when compared to normal foam rolling. This may have something to do with the neurological effects of vibration allowing for better muscle relaxation. While this is a phenomenal product, it is a true outlier in terms of price. It is hard to say that the benefits are proportional to price increase compared to the other foam rollers we mention above..
How We Use Foam rollers at Summit Physical Therapy
At Summit Physical Therapy, we use a variety of foam rollers in a variety of ways. Each patient is thoroughly examined and evaluated to determine a specific plan, addressing their diagnosis. Based on the diagnosis and their specific needs, foam rollers may be helpful in achieving specific goals. The main benefit is to give our patients the power to achieve carryover from session to session. This process becomes very helpful when combined with our therapist’s hands-on techniques.
Massage/Soft tissue Mobilization
A foam roller can allow a patient to perform a variation of the same massage techniques a therapist would perform. If these techniques have a positive impact on pain, this can be a great tool for pain management in the early phases of rehab. This can be beneficial to new patients looking to prolong the effects achieved during treatment
Spinal Mobilization and Manipulation
The effects of most hands-on techniques that physical therapists and other medical professionals perform only last for a short period of time. This is especially true with spinal mobilization and manipulation. Performing self mobilization or range of motion exercise can make these effects longer lasting and have carryover to daily life. A foam roller can be a great tool for spine mobilization and rom exercise
A leverage point for many stretches and strengthening exercises
From shoulder stretches to knee strengthening exercises, foam rollers are a versatile way to exercise specific joints. Foam rollers are a great tool for stretching shoulders especially after an operation
Reduce Soreness After Exercise
Strength training can be an important part of physical therapy. Foam rolling is often used to reduce soreness after exercise
Are you experiencing pain or discomfort? If so, starting the road to recovery is simple. Request an appointment, or call our office at 908-598-9009 and our staff member will schedule your first appointment.
Sources
Pearcey GE, Bradbury-Squires DJ, Kawamoto JE, Drinkwater EJ, Behm DG, Button DC. Foam rolling for delayed-onset muscle soreness and recovery of dynamic performance measures. J Athl Train. 2015;50(1):5-13. doi:10.4085/1062-6050-50.1.01
Lim JH, Park CB. The immediate effects of foam roller with vibration on hamstring flexibility and jump performance in healthy adults. J Exerc Rehabil. 2019;15(1):50-54. Published 2019 Feb 25. doi:10.12965/jer.1836560.280