I took advantage of my low-key weekend to finally work on Foam Rolling 101. I know I promised this several weeks ago so thank you for your patience. My schedule has been just a little crazy lately.

Before we launch into the how to, let’s talk about what foam rollers are, where you can get them and the benefits of foam rolling.

This is a foam roller. They are cylinder shaped pieces of foam that are pretty firm. Foam rollers can be purchased online or in most major sports retailers like Dick’s Sporting Goods. I’m pretty sure that most Target stores now carry foam rollers. You can also probably find them on the fitness floor at your gym if you want to add it to your gym routine or try one out before bringing it home.

Foam rolling is basically like giving yourself a deep tissue massage. You work different areas of your body looking for tense spots so that you can break up scar tissue which will increase mobility and decrease potential for injury (and help heal current injuries). While foam rolling is beneficial for everyone,  it is something that should be part of every runner’s routine. It does wonders for the tightness that running can create in the legs…especially troublesome IT bands that cause hip and knee pain.

In the past, I primarily focused on foam rolling my lower body but recently I have discovered the benefits of foam rolling the upper body in order to achieve more openness in my yoga practice. I have especially been working on my lats in order to increase the range of motion in my shoulders.

Ideally, you should foam roll several times a week (more is better here). Spend about 30 seconds in each of the exercises outlined in the videos and increase that time for areas where you experience tightness and pain. I want to point out that foam rolling will not always feel good. First, it’s a bit of a workout to roll yourself around like that and support your body weight. Second, you will realllllyyy feel it when you hit those tight spots where scar tissue has built up. Just breathe through it and keep rolling!

Please let me know if you have any other questions! This is my first real video debut on the blog – I think it’s a great way to share knowledge. I hope you find these video tutorials beneficial. I would love your feedback.

Foam Rolling 101 for the Lower Body

Foam Rolling 101 for the Upper Body