How to use a foamroller
The foamroller has been used in elite sports for a long time. Since a few years you also see the foamroller more and more often with the recreational athlete. This is a good development because it can prevent overload injuries. Using the foam roller for a few minutes a day helps improve mobility and reduce muscle pain.
What is a foamroller?
A foamroller is a tool that can be used for massage but also for strength and stability training. They are available in all shapes and sizes. I would personally recommend using those from Triggerpoint or Nike. Both are not too soft, but they put the right pressure on your muscles.
How should you use a foam roller?
The use of this massage tool is very easy, choose a muscle group that feels stiff or tired after running. Roll with these muscle(s) for about 30-60 seconds per muscle group and repeat this between 3 and 5 times. This way you can treat your muscles yourself in a short time. By doing this every day you keep the rolled muscles supple and are recovered faster for the next workout.
You can also use the roller as a tool for strength and stability training. There are many different exercises. By putting your feet on the roller while you are planking, you create an instability that makes the exercise more difficult, and you can also do push ups where you put your hands on the foam roller.
What should you not do while using the foam roller?
Make sure that you only use the pressure of your body weight during use. The moment you put too much pressure on your muscles, they can actually start to contract as a protective reaction to your body. If this happens it will be counterproductive and the muscles will be less relaxed afterwards.
What you should avoid are the tendon attachments on the bones, for example the Achilles tendon on the heel. This can cause irritations to these attachments.
Interested in other ways to prevent injuries?
Do you want to know more about how you can prevent injuries yourself? Or do you want to have an injury treated? Then contact us!