5 Foam Rolling Mistakes To Avoid

02/08/15 17:07

5 Foam Rolling Mistakes To Avoid

By Christine Yu for Life by DailyBurn
These days, foam rollers are everywhere -- the gym, your physical therapist's office,
your living room and even your suitcase. After all, foam rolling has emerged as the
darling of the fitness world and the cure-all for many different aches.
Essentially, foam rolling is a form of self-myofascial release, or self-massage, that gets
rid of adhesions in your muscles and connective tissue. These adhesions can create
points of weakness or susceptibility in the tissue, according to Chris Howard,
C.S.C.S. and LMT at Cressey Performance. If the muscle isn't contracting uniformly
from end-to-end, it could lead to injury and pain. Foam rolling also increases blood
flow to your muscles and creates better mobility, helping with recovery and improving
performance.
Sounds great, right? Yes, foam rolling offers tremendous potential to relieve pain and
help you move better -- if used the right way. If not, you risk irritating, and possibly
injuring, your body further.
Here's a breakdown of five common mistakes people often make when using the foam
roller.
Mistake #1: You roll directly where you feel pain. When we feel pain, our first
inclination is to massage that spot directly. However, this might be a big mistake.
Areas of pain are the victims that result from tension imbalances in other areas of
the body, says Sue Hitzmann, MS, CST, NMT, manual therapist, creator and author
of The MELT Method.
Let's take the IT band, for example. Foam rolling is a commonly prescribed remedy
for iliotibial band syndrome (ITBS). While religiously rolling out your IT band might
feel good, "the idea that you are going to relax or release the IT band is a
misconception," Hitzmann says. The phrase roll out your IT band itself makes it
sound like you are rolling out a piece of dough, but your IT band is anything but
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5 Foam Rolling Mistakes To Avoid

02/08/15 17:07

pliable. It's a remarkably strong piece of connective tissue, and research has shown
that it cannot be released or manipulated by manual techniques such as foam rolling.
"If you iron out areas of inflammation, you can increase inflammation. And if you are
in pain, your body will be too stressed to repair itself," says Hitzmann.
The fix: Go indirect before direct. If you find a spot that's sensitive, it's a cue to ease
away from that area by a few inches. Take time and work a more localized region
around areas that feel sore before using larger, sweeping motions, suggests
Hitzmann. For the IT band, work on the primary muscles that attach to the IT band
first -- specifically the gluteus maximus (the largest muscle in the buttocks) and the
tensor fasciae latae (a muscle that runs along the outer edge of the hip).
Mistake #2: You roll too fast. While it might feel great to roll back and forth on a
foam roller quickly, you're not actually eliminating any adhesions that way. You need
to give your brain enough time to tell your muscles to relax, says Monica Vazquez,
NASM certified personal trainer and USA Track and Field Running Coach.
The fix: Go slower so that the superficial layers and muscles have time to adapt and
manage the compression. Feel where the tender spots are with the roller, and use
short, slow rolls over that spot. There's no reason to beat up the whole muscle if
there are only a few sensitive areas, Howard says.
Mistake #3: You spend too much time on those knots. We're often told that if
you feel a knot, spend time working that spot with the foam roller. However, some
people will spend five to 10 minutes or more on the same area and attempt to place
their entire body weight onto the foam roller. If you place sustained pressure on one
body part, you might actually hit a nerve or damage the tissue, which can cause
bruising, according to Vazquez.
The fix: Spend 20 seconds on each tender spot then move on, Vazquez
recommends. You can also manage how much body weight you use. For example,
when working your IT band, plant the foot of your leg on the floor to take some of the
weight off the roller.

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Mistake #4: You have bad posture. Wait, what does your posture have to do with
foam rolling? A lot. You have to hold your body in certain positions over the roller,
says Howard, and that requires a lot of strength. When rolling out the IT band, you
are supporting your upper body weight with one arm. When you roll out the quads,
you are essentially holding a plank position. If you don't pay attention to your form or
posture, you may exacerbate pre-existing postural deviations and cause more harm.
The fix: Work with an experienced personal trainer, physical therapist or coach who
can show you proper form and technique. Or, consider setting up your smartphone to
videotape yourself while foam rolling, suggests Howard. That way, you can see what
you are doing right and what you are doing wrong, like sagging in the hips or
contorting the spine.
Mistake #5: You use the foam roller on your lower back. "The thing that
makes me cringe is when people foam roll their lower back. You should never ever do
that," say Vazquez. Hitzmann agrees. Your spine will freak out and all the spinal
muscles will contract and protect the spine.
The fix: According to Vazquez, you can use the foam roller on your upper back
because the shoulder blades and muscles protect the spine. Once you hit the end of
the rib cage, stop. If you want to release your lower back, try child's pose or foam roll
the muscles that connect to your lower back -- the piriformis (a muscle located deep
within the glutes), hip flexors and rectus femoris (one of the main muscles in your
quads).
Most importantly, understand what the origin of your pain is before you start. Know
what you are trying to achieve through foam rolling and how to do it properly. And
don't forget to stick with it. "To get the benefits of self-massage, it's repeated exposure
that's most important," says Howard. "You have to show up and put in the work."
More from Life by DailyBurn:
The March Madness Workout Bracket
5 Stretches You Could Be Doing More Effectively
The Prehab Warm-Up: Your New Secret Weapon
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