My Top 10 Benefits of Foam Rolling
“A simple way to improve your form using foam!”
The Benefits of Foam Rolling After any sort of physical activity, especially a good workout session, the muscles tend to contract and tighten up. If these muscles don’t release fully, it can lead to knots and adhesions being formed which can be painful. There is a simple solution to prevent or even treat such a condition, and that is using a thick foam tube. The benefits of foam rolling not only include loosening up the tight muscles but in effect, it improves the overall muscle functioning and helps you achieve better & faster results.
How Does Foam Rolling Work?
Foam rolling is practised using a thick foam to perform self-massage over different body parts. The deep compression experienced through such massage helps to loosen up the tight muscles through myofascial release.
Confused? Merely think of fascia as a plastic wrap that runs under our skin, all across the body. The connective tissue is linked to our muscles and even the nerves and organs, basically holding us together. And the fascia takes a heavy load when we experience physical stress, such as during a workout session. My article What Is Foam Rolling talks more in-depth about how foam rolling enables self-myofascial release.
So Here Are My Top 10 Benefits Of Foam Rolling
A foam roller is an easy-to-use equipment to perform the self-myofascial release. Foam rolling has proven to improve physical fitness and achieve faster results. Pro-athletes, weightlifters, etc., have long reaped the benefits of foam rolling by incorporating it as part of the pre and post-workout routine. So let’s take a look at what some of those benefits are.
Benefits Of Foam Rolling #1: Eliminates Cellulite
Ever notice those lumpy, dimpled little flesh on your thighs, buttocks or stomach? Those are cellulite, i.e., fat deposits that get pushed through the fascia. Cellulite is an unsightly appearance that affects millions of people. The good news is that there is a simple solution to make them go away – foam rolling! The fat gets smoothened out by breaking up the fascia using a foam roller. Thus, getting rid of the cellulite and giving you clearer skin!
Benefits Of Foam Rolling #2: Pumps Up The Blood Flow
Foam rolling helps stretch the muscles and break the fascia by applying pressure over time. This process helps squeeze out the old blood, thus causing fresh new blood to flow. New blood means fresh oxygen and other nutrients, such as glycogen, which are highly beneficial for the muscles. These help the muscles recover faster, flush out waste products, and perform optimally. The more consistently you practise foam rolling, the better the blood circulation gets and the better the muscle function.
Benefits Of Foam Rolling #3: Enables Smoother Movements
Including foam rolling in the pre-workout routine as part of dynamic warm-ups helps avoid painful muscle pulling or damage. This is because foam rolling increases the blood circulation to the muscles, which means they are completely hydrated, thereby reducing friction between the forces as they move past one another during the workout. The smoother the movement between muscles, your training will be more effective.
Benefits Of Foam Rolling #4: Increases The Range of Motion
Many advantages are linked to the muscles being better hydrated due to pre-workout foam rolling. An improved range of motion is one more. A broader range of motion also means that your body will utilize many more muscles during the workout. An enhanced range of motion while using all Three Planes Of Motion during your exercise is vital to a practical workout. The improved range of motion also reduces the chances of injury during training. This also takes us to yet another advantage of foam rolling – flexibility.
Benefits Of Foam Rolling #5: Gives You Better Flexibility
Regular workouts can cause the muscles to stiffen up. This reduces your range of motion and increases the chances of an injury, so most good trainers advise you to do static stretching after your workout. This helps to loosen those stiff muscles. As studies and research into the science of physical fitness increased, we found an even better alternative to aid in flexing and releasing the tension in those muscles: using a foam roller after a workout session. An International Journal of Sports Physical Therapy study revealed an almost immediate effect of massaging the hamstring muscles with a foam roller, producing better sit-and-reach results.
Benefits Of Foam Rolling #6: Reduces The Risk Of Injury
As we have seen from the benefits mentioned above of foam rolling, this self-myofascial release technique boosts blood circulation keeping the muscles well hydrated, increasing the range of motion and improving flexibility. Additionally, all of these benefits significantly reduce any risk of injury. Reduced friction between muscle movements and better flexibility prevents faulty body movements, thus reducing the chances of an injury. But the benefits of foam rolling do not end there. If you get injured, then regular use of foam rolling helps significantly cut down on the recovery time. Read on to find out more.
Benefits Of Foam Rolling #7: Cuts Down Recovery Time
After a good workout session, the muscles tend to feel sore and stiff. This post-workout duration is when using a foam roller to perform self-myofascial release can be highly helpful. Using a foam roller increases blood circulation to the massaged areas. The new blood brings fresh oxygen and nutrients, which help wash away the lactic acid that gets collected in the muscles during a workout. Additionally, the faster the muscles receive oxygen and other nutrients, the quicker they can repair all the wear and tear, thus leading to more rapid recovery.
Benefits Of Foam Rolling #8: Increases Your Metabolism
A proper diet and regular exercise help to improve your metabolism. But, as you may have guessed, using a foam roller can boost your metabolism even further. Using a foam roller increases our heart rate and causes us to breathe deeper. As mentioned, it also pumps blood circulation, improving oxygen supply and other essential nutrients. All of these factors help not only in building leaner and stronger muscles but also in increasing the body’s metabolism rate.
Benefits Of Foam Rolling #9: Helps To Ease Your Stress
Besides all the physical benefits mentioned above, foam rolling has therapeutic advantages. When the body is experiencing high-stress levels, as in the case after an intense workout, the back and neck areas tend to tense up. Applying foam rolling techniques during such times can help to relax those muscles, thus releasing tension from those areas. Even a short foam rolling session will make you feel fresher and rejuvenated. Using a system like the Stress Bucket Model can also help to manage better and keep in check your stress levels.
Benefits Of Foam Rolling #10: Gets You Faster Results
The cumulative effect of all the benefits of foam rolling mentioned above will enable you to reach your physical fitness goal much faster. Improved metabolism, range of motion, flexibility and reduced the risk of injury. It also aids in recovery time and helps prevent overtraining. This is why many professional athletes and bodybuilders have long used the foam roller. (It’s very cheap as well) So don’t waste time if you have a date to reach specific fitness goals. Get yourself rolling on a foam roller today!
Recommened Foam Rollers
If you notice the benefits mentioned above of foam rolling. The foam roller is an instrumental piece of equipment for both pre and post-workout routines. When used before a workout, it is a great tool to start your dynamic warm-up with. The foam roller gets our blood pumping, loosens and lubricates the muscles and joints, and generally prepares your body for the workout. Post-workout, on the other hand, aids in the cooldown and recovery process.
LifePro Foam Rollers are by far the best foam rollers out there. They have added vibration settings that help the relaxing of the muscles. The vibrations enable a deep tissue massage and increase myofascial release. This equals a faster recovery time from your training.
Conclusion
Ideally, you should try and make foam rolling a regular part of both your pre and post-workout. For one, the foam roller is super cheap. All it needs is a one time purchase that costs less than a single massage session. Another important fact is that foam rolling hardly takes any time. Even 5 minutes on the roller has been proven to be very useful. But, of course, if there really is a time crunch, then I’d opt for a quick pre-workout foam rolling session.
If you’ve already accustomed yourself to using the foam roller, then I’m sure you have already noticed the benefits. Share this article with your peers to help spread this useful knowledge. Or use the comment section below to enlighten others of your own personal experience of the benefits of foam rolling. In case, you’re in Phuket and still haven’t tried the foam roller yet, get in contact with me, and I’ll help you reap the benefits of foam rolling.
Krix Luther
Author/CEO
Krix Luther is a Health and Fitness Specialist and one of Asia’s leading Personal Trainers. He is an Ex Professional Muay Thai fighter and Avid Free Diver. At the same time, he is very active, has a passion for gaming, and has his own Twitch stream. You can contact him via his Instagram if you have any questions.