Science Saturday: Foam Rolling

Today we will go over a few things to know about foam rolling!

First off, when and why should we foam roam? Foam rolling can be done as a pre workout ritual and post workout, but how you go about it should be different. When you foam roll before a workout you should stick to 5-10 quick passes on the muscle and not too much pressure. You are not trying to dig in deep on those "trigger points", the quick passes are meant to warm up the muscle and get them ready to move. Post workout, or a recovery day, focus more on deep pressure and really focusing on those trigger points, the points you are experiencing the most muscle tightness or soreness. Keep in mind, it is going to be uncomfortable like stretching, but it should never be unbearable and you should never roll over joints!

But what is exactly going on while we are foam rolling and whats happening to our muscles? Our muscles want to be relaxed and soft like a raw piece of meat. When we cook that meat, in our case workout, the muscle becomes more firm and our range of motion is hindered. When we foam roll, we are technically tenderizing our muscles to get them to relax and restore healthy blood flow to improve recovery and restore range of motion...because we all know we tend to not move as well when we are sore!

If you have ever had a deep tissue massage you may experience soreness the following day and depending on how hard you rolled out you may feel the same type or soreness. So be sure to drink enough water and eat healthy foods to assist in flushing out waste throughout your body.

Watch out for next Science Saturday when we discuss more on proper ways to foam roll with help from Apex Physical Therapy!