Making Friends With Your Foam Roller Is Easier Than You Think

Another year, another lingering injury. I’ve been experiencing some pain by my left hip after running, enough that I mentioned it to my doctor at my last annual physical. She recommended that I “make friends with my foam roller.” Sounds easy enough, right?

Thing is, I’ve had a foam roller for years and barely used it at all. Now and again I’ll see an article or social media post suggesting it’s a useful runner’s tool, but my rare attempts at foam rolling have been half-hearted and unsatisfying. Even now, when determined to try it, I found knowing where to start tough. I mean yeah, there are plenty of resources out there, but…

HASN’T THE INTERNET COVERED FOAM ROLLING ALREADY?

As a card-carrying Officially Diagnosed ADHD kid, I find doing new things can sometimes be a challenge. Synthesizing a bunch of unfamiliar information can be daunting, even overwhelming. And above all, I HATE IT when I search for information and am met with an onslaught of instructional videos. I don’t want to watch a video! Watching a video take SO LONG and half the time it’s not even the right video! Give me words! I can scan words! I can reread words! Please just give me written instructions!!!

That it was I aim to do here: write down what I’ve gathered and offer it as a springboard for your own foam roller journey. And don’t worry – if you in fact prefer video, I have a recommendation for that too… but only one, because choice fatigue ain’t it.

A VERY IMPORTANT FOAM ROLLER DISCLAIMER

Obviously I am not a doctor, physiotherapist, sports masseuse, or any other type of medical professional that has any sort of right or certification to actively tell you what to do. What I am about to describe amounts to so many anecdotes and personal experiences. Proceed at your own risk.

However, what I initially found particularly challenging about using a foam roller was that even the pros place a lot of the onus upon the user. “Find the spot” is the rallying cry of just about all of them. They give you the base exercise, but it’s up to you to determine how to modify it to best address your pain points.

The good news is that once you’ve got the framework down, foam rolling becomes surprisingly intuitive. At least that’s what I’ve come to find.

TO FOAM ROLL OR NOT TO FOAM ROLL

That is, if you choose to foam roll at all. I began my foam roller journey by polling my Instagram followers for their best tips on its usage. A remarkably high percentage responded with something to the effect of “Don’t.” Even this Runner’s World article suggests that the science is murky. (Hmmm; where have I heard that before?)

Still, I’m inclined to give advice from my doctor a shot despite what Runstagram tells me. 😅 So I waded into Google and YouTube to discover what I could. As indicated above, I increasingly found that a lot of foam rolling technique is up to me. To that end, here are some of my top foam roller tips.

HOW I LEARNED TO STOP WORRYING & LOVE THE FOAM ROLLER

Don’t think in 2D. My first and biggest mistake was thinking of the foam roller as an exclusively longitudinal tool. I rolled it up and down my leg, did not like it, and gave up. But the foam roller can also be used latitudinally as well as to pinpoint and micromassage precise locations. Any way you can move your body, in all directions, is fair game.

Think holistically. The muscle you think you need to target might not be the (only) muscle you need to target. This can be interpreted in two ways: one, that muscles are so layered it might be harder than you realize to know exactly what’s hurting and two, the interconnected nature of our bodies means that some pains are actually caused by issues in other areas. Try a a full-body foam rolling experience – at least to start – and go from there.

Find your trigger points. Every resource I’ve investigated at some point tells you to stop when you find it. “It” may be described as tightness, or soreness, or tenderness depending on the issue. You’ll know it when you find it. Lean in… but only after reading my next point.

Know the difference between good hurt and bad pain. Make like John Cougar Mellencamp and make it hurt so good… but as soon as you feel pain, stop!!! This is hard to effectively explain, but I feel like we all just sort of inherently know the difference. Trust yourself. Or at any rate, when in doubt, knock it off.

Work your opposites. You may not want to continue foam rolling EVERYTHING once you’ve located those trigger points. If nothing else, though, make sure you work those opposite sides where relevant. For example, if your left inner thigh is the culprit, work the right too. Part of this is maintaining balance, but you may also find while working the right that you continue to feel a stretch or sensation on the left.

Be careful and move slowly. As a corollary to the above, give yourself time to register every sensation and don’t rush. Otherwise you may run headfirst into pain and make things worse.

Wiggle, bend, and extend. Feel free to move your body as you foam roll. This may include holding in one spot while you wiggle back and forth, bending your joints, or stretching outward. If it feels good, go for it. Well, good-bad. You get it.

Breath. What can I say – some cliches are rooted in truth. When the going gets a little rough, deep and steady breathing can carry you through the discomfort. (But not pain, remember? We already established a hard no on pain.)

Be patient. I don’t like this one either! Alas, healing doesn’t happen overnight. Give your foam rolling a couple weeks before you determine its efficacy. It might not ultimately be for you… but you might just need time before you feel the positive effects.

ADMITTEDLY IT HELPS TO HAVE A VISUAL

I know, I know; I said I don’t like video. However, I have to admit that learning an exercise is a visual medium when you’re first starting out. And while I stand by my statement that the foam roller can become intuitive, an instructional video can be an excellent way to walk before you, ahem, run.

The tricky part is knowing where to start. Typing “foam rolling” into YouTube will yield a plethora of results – and if you’d rather do your own research, go for it!

But if the thought of slogging through all those options gives you the heebie-jeebies, fear not. I have one suggestion and one suggestion only: Caroline Jordan. She has an entire playlist dedicated to foam rolling exercises, from full-body to targeting trouble spots. If you’re not sure where to begin, give her a go.

Should you, like me, prefer the written word but still need some photos for guidance, the Runner’s World article I mention above also has a series of foam roller exercises you can try, with both pictures and written descriptions.

ENJOY YOUR FOAM ROLLER JOURNEY

Believe it or not, I have come to embrace the foam roller as an enjoyable addition to my running recovery and rehabilitation suite. For me it is a cross between a stretching accessory and self-massage tool.

Yet the true beauty of the foam roller is that it can be whatever you want to to be. As long as you’re not hurting yourself, you can use it any ol’ way you want. You may find in time you no longer need an instructional video, and busting it out while watching TV or meditating is a surprisingly relaxing and productive way to spend a pocket of time.

Or… just don’t. 😅

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