Notably, they can be used as a method of self-myofascial release SMR , which is meant to help relax certain tissues. Foam rollers are generally used before or after working out. Here are the criteria we considered:. This product comes in bright, fun colors and includes access to free online instructional videos from fitness experts at TriggerPoint.
When folded down, this fully collapsable roller is only 1. It also weighs only 1. Note that some customers reported their rollers collapsing on them during use.
Many customers felt it was a steal given the rigorous arm and leg work it allows. This even distribution of pressure may help prevent bruising. It also comes with a 1-year warranty. One of the benefits of this half roller is the ease of cleaning its closed foam. This range of pressures means that this product can take the place of several types of rollers. The manufacturer encourages using a rocking motion instead of a rolling motion to maximize intensity.
It offers a total of three vibration settings. Foam rolling may offer benefits to people with sore muscles, or it can also be used to help you relax. It may even help to reduce pain associated with….
So, go ahead and buy a foam roller online for your loved ones and yourself. Explore Plus. Fitness Accessories. Foam Rollers. Min Deal of the Day. Lowest Price in 15 days. Did you find what you were looking for? Yes No. The physical therapist, the massage therapist, and Amy then spent at least an hour with each product, using it on themselves and discussing its merits and demerits with colleagues.
We considered each roller for:. We also reviewed each roller for its best attributes, any shortcomings, and overall usefulness, both individually and then as a group. For an update to this guide, Amy again consulted massage therapist Polina Savelieva to help evaluate four vibrating foam rollers.
And finally, in our most recent round of testing, Ingrid assessed 12 additional rollers across our chosen categories using the same criteria listed above:. The Black Axis Firm Foam Roller is the same size 36 inches and density firm as our top pick, but it costs a bit more and hails from a well-known company. Orthopedic Physical Therapy Products OPTP has been an industry leader in providing quality products for use in professional settings for more than 30 years.
This roller lives up to those high expectations, delivering reliable compression for large and medium muscle groups alike. Foam rolling hurts—or at least it can be pretty darn uncomfortable, especially for a novice or anyone recovering from an injury.
Made of polyethylene foam—which, unlike EPP, is frothed with air rather than compressed—it provides a softer texture. This type of foam, however, is also likely to compress and warp with long-term use because the air is eventually pressed out.
The full inch length gives it more versatility than shorter rollers for large-muscle-group work mid-back, for example and also provides support for the tailbone and a neutral spine position. It can be tricky to achieve deeper SMR with a smooth foam roller. Nubs, knobs, and ridges can help reach stubborn knots or areas that warrant deeper manipulation. We kept coming back to the TriggerPoint Rush Roller : A inch roller textured with a diamond-shaped pattern of ridges, which the company says contributes to a shearing effect essentially oppositely directed parallel forces acting on a muscle.
We found that it works particularly well as a supplement to a smooth roller, when we want a deeper, more precise focus on knots in calves, glutes, or hamstrings—though the Rush would also serve those who simply want more intensity in their daily rolling routine. Made with a layer of ethylene-vinyl acetate EVA , a closed-cell foam, over a hollow plastic core, the Rush is less aggressively textured than other deep-tissue rollers we tried. We felt a difference after using it in comparison with other textured rollers, mostly because we were able to use it longer.
Many brands of the 6-inch-diameter rollers—including our top pick —come in shorter lengths, typically 12 and 18 inches, that are somewhat easier to travel with.
We also tried a couple of rollers designed for travel , but neither won us over completely. Its small diameter allows for more targeted trigger-point work, yet the length is generous for most parts of the body.
Vibrating foam rollers equipped with battery-powered motors take things up a notch—at souped-up prices. The effects of adding vibration to SMR remain largely unstudied. Best added that if people enjoy the vibrating sensation, they may be more inclined to foam roll for longer and more often, potentially boosting the therapeutic effects of the self-massage.
Massage therapist Polina Savelieva and Amy reviewed four top-rated, best-selling models: the Hyperice Vyper 2. For our update, we tried the Therabody Wave Roller. We used each one as a foam roller first no vibration , then rolled with each on its lowest and highest power settings, evaluating the sensation and intensity.
The vibrating foam rollers we tested cost at least double the price of our top pick and are all fairly loud. If you plan to use a vibrating foam roller at home, you may have to time your rolling so as to avoid disturbing others. With those caveats in mind, Amy preferred the longer, more expensive, and slightly louder VulkRoll Vibrating Foam Roller. Ultimately, though, we think most people would be better served by spending less than a third of the cost of either model on our top pick.
See more details on all five vibrating foam rollers we tried. Now that you have this thing at home, what the heck do you do with it? The other basic concept to understand: When you hold yourself atop the roller, the more gravity you can create on a muscle, the more intense the work. An example: When rolling out your hamstrings backs of the thighs , you can put both legs on top at once, which is less intense because the pressure is distributed across two legs. Or, you can do one leg and hold your free foot off the floor entirely getting more intense , or even cross that free leg on top of the worked-on leg to add more weight and pressure most intense.
A typical method to ensure you hit all the major muscle groups is to go from the bottom up: Start with your calves, then your hamstrings, then your glutes sitting on top of the roller with one ankle crossed over the opposite knee to target one cheek at a time , then flip over to get your quads, then do the sides of your hips to get the tensor fasciae latae TFL , then lie across the roller at your middle back to get your shoulders.
And for runners, the Guardian published an excellent tutorial listing six specific foam-roller stretches. Caring for your foam roller need not be difficult. Jon Graff, marketing director at SPRI at the time of our interview, shared the following advice: Store your large roller upright, somewhere not in direct sunlight some foams may degrade from UV light. After use, rub the roller with a damp sponge or antibacterial wipes, and clean it with a cloth dipped in soapy water followed by a good rinse every once in a while.
Foam rollers are often made of polymers like expanded polypropylene EPP and polyethylene foam.
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