It’s dark outside, so there is no cooking and no running, yesterday was a recovery day, so I put together this little foam roller how to and tips post and dorky video for you, hope you enjoy!

Why use a foam roller?

Most athletes will tell you their foam roller is their best friend and worst enemy.  You love to hate and hate to love your foam roller.  Why?  Well, most will tell you that it makes them feel great and stand behind the benefits listed below, but if not done regularly, it might make you make sounds only heard in hospitals and dentist offices.  It’s totally worth it though and it’s not just for athletes!

• Self Myofascial Release is a technique used to break up possible trigger points and adhesions in muscles.  
• Trigger points are tight areas of muscles caused by excess stress that cause pain in the area or radiating pain to other regions of the body.  
• May reduce delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) and decrease recovery time in between exercise bouts.  
• May improve range of motion and flexibility (which decreases pain). 

I listed some studies below, but keep in mind that most studies haven’t been able to determine anything conclusive about the benefits of foam rollers.  The lack of clarity is most likely because it’s hard to design a study that would get consistent results.  Everybody responds to different techniques and different exercises different, and once they’ve been exposed they develop adaptation which makes it hard to measure against themselves as a control group.

When to foam roll?

• Pre-workout/run to loosen muscles.  
• Post workout/run to help muscles recover and prevent adhesions from occurring.  
• Recovery days
• Lightly every day when you are just getting back into things.  

How often to foam roll?

• 2x/ week to 1x/day depending on need and tolerance.  

A few tips for foam rolling:

• Roll each muscle group for about 1 minute.
• Pause on areas of the tightness for 30 seconds to a minute.  
• If it’s painful focus on areas around the pain but not directly on it.  
• Don’t overdo it!  You’re not trying to do deep tissue massage; you’re not rolling out a piece of dough.  Yours just trying to break up adhesions. 
• Keep good posture while you foam roll.   

When or what shouldn’t I foam roll?

• If there is an area that repeated feels worse after foam rolling then just don’t do it.  I always try to roll out my quads, but it makes me feel terrible the next couple days, achy and super tight, much worse than I started.  Finally, my chiropractor said, “then stop rolling it.” Duh dumb dumb.
• If you’ve been rolling out your muscles and you’re not getting better.  When I first got injured I foam rolled every single day, and it wasn’t helping, I should have sought help a lot sooner than I did.
• Don’t foam roll on points that are extremely painful, roll a couple of inches away from the area.
• As I said in the video, the low back is pretty controversial.  Although it’s helped me, I recommend you roll your QL (lower back muscles) only under the supervision of a certified personal trainer and medical professional.  

 

Dorky Video:

 

 

Videos are SOOO awkward, and I didn’t realize how sniffly I was!  Oh well, a youtube video was bound to happen sooner or later!!!  Visit my YouTube channel to see me embarrass myself and learn to use a foam roller!  While you are there I would love it if you subscribed!

Check it out here –>

Hungry Hobby YouTube Channel – Foam Roller Video 

Check out my favorites page to see the foam rollers I use.

Also, check out:

• Foam Roller Ap Review 
• Foam Roller – Increase Your Mobility 

My foam roller recommendations:

 

Thoughts?

Angry foam roller or nice?

Pre workout, post workout, or recovery days best?

You love or hate your foam roller?

 

References:

Pearcey, G. E., Bradbury-Squires, D. J., Kawamoto, J. E., Drinkwater, E. J., Behm, D. G., & Button, D. C. (2015). Foam rolling for delayed-onset muscle soreness and recovery of dynamic performance measures. Journal of athletic training, 50(1), 5-13.

Behara, B., & Jacobson, B. H. (2015). The acute effects of deep tissue foam rolling and dynamic stretching on muscular strength, power, and flexibility in division I linemen. Journal of orthopaedic trauma.

Peacock, C. A., Krein, D. D., Antonio, J., Sanders, G. J., Silver, T. A., & Colas, M. (2015). Comparing Acute Bouts of Sagittal Plane Progression Foam Rolling vs. Frontal Plane Progression Foam Rolling. Journal of strength and conditioning research/National Strength & Conditioning Association.

 
 

52 Healthy Habits E-Course

Did you miss this series or wish you could repeat it?  No problem!  I’ve put all the posts together in an e-course that directly corresponds with the healthy habits series!  By focusing on one healthy habit per week you’ll be able to master the skills needed to successfully improve your health, increase your energy, and drop those unwanted pounds.  The best part is, you’ll do it while barely even realizing it.  These 52 habits are the habits I review with almost every single Hungry Hobby RD client.  These habits are the backbone of getting off the diet train and getting the results you wanted!  What are you waiting for??????

The e-course will provide supportive information such as tips and tricks to help you ingrain each healthy habit as part of your permanent lifestyle.

Cost of the automated series is $26 dollars (just 50 cents per week) for the whole year, which helps me cover the cost of automating the emails through my server. Thanks!

 

( Want to really plan to succeed and save money? What To Eat? Meal Plan subscriptions also come with this E-Course as part of the subscription! They also come with a supportive facebook group and a ton more goodies, check them out!)

 

52 HEALTHY HABITS IN 52 WEEKS SERIES:

The 52 Healthy Habits Series is about ditching the diet mindset and making small changes to improve health overall naturally leading to a healthy body composition, increased energy and improved health. Please follow along and check out the past weeks!

• Week 52: Healthy Habits Wrap Up
• Week 51: Nightly Reflection
• Week 50: Limit Harmful Chemicals
• Week 49: Find Your Tribe
• Week 48: Cultivating Positivity
• Week 47: Healthy Thanksgiving Tips
• Week 46: Check In
• Week 45: Mobility – Foam Rolling
• Week 44: HIIT Training
• Week 43: LISS or Steady State Cardio
• Week 42: Limit Alcohol
• Week 41: Eat White, Wait What?
• Week 40: Eat Blue & Purple
• Week 39: Eat Green
• Week 38: Eat Yellow/Orange
• Week 37: Eat Red
• Week 36: Learn Which Foods to Purchase Organic
• Week 35: Read the Ingredient List!
• Week 34: Focus.
• Week 33: Chew Your Food!
• Week 32: Meditation
• Week 31: Gratitude Journaling
• Week 30: Plan & Revamp Dessert- 20 Healthy Ideas
• Week 29: Two fistfuls of veggies per meal
• Week 28: Get In Veggies At Breakfast
• Week 27: Healthy Veggie Snacks
• Week 26: Nourishing Fats for the Gut (Healthy Digestion Part 4)
• Week 25: Keeping Regular – The Other Fiber (Healthy Digestion Part 3)
• Week 24: Feed The Probiotics With Prebiotic Fiber (Healthy Digestion Part 2)
• Week 23: Amazing Health Benefits of Probiotics (Healthy Digestion Part 1)
• Week 22: Check In
• Week 21: What You Will Learn From Recording Your Meals (Intuitive Eating Series Part 4)
• Week 20: Eat Until 80% Full (Hara Hachi Bu) (Intuitive Eating Series Part 3)
• Week 19: Limit Distractions While Eating (Intuitive Eating Series Part 2)
• Week 18: Gaging Your Hunger Cues (Intuitive Eating Series Part 1)
• Week 17: 10,000 Steps Per Day
• Week 16: Assess Your Caffeine Intake
• Week 15: Decrease Sugar Intake
• Week 14: Healthy Coffee Creamers (upgrade yours)
• Week 13: 3 Month Check In
• Week 12: Sleep Enough & Sleep Better
• Week 11: Schedule Your Workouts
• Week 10: Pack A Healthy Lunch (5 Ways to Create Endless Combinations)
• Week 9: Prioritizing Protein
• Week 8: How and What to Meal Prep
• Week 7: Create & Stick To Your Healthy Meal Plan
• Week 6: Get Enough Omega-3’s (Fight Inflammation)
• Week 5: What Is A Healthy Fat & How To Get Enough (Include Healthy Fats)
• Week 4: How to Spot A Healthy Carbohydrate (Upgrade Your Carbs)
• Week 3: Tips to Increase Veggie Intake (Eat Veggies)
• Week 2: 15 Healthy On the Go Breakfast Ideas (Eat BF Challenge)
• Week 1: Tips to Drink More Water