Foam Rollers for Back Pain

By Bruce Cohn
Boston Globe, November 4, 2004
 
Over the last few months we’ve examined the common causes of back pain and at-home remedies for some of these pitfalls. Today we will look at flexibility and the use of foam rollers to alleviate muscle tightness.

There can be no doubt that the ability to achieve a full range of motion at a joint is important for moving efficiently and without pain. Today’s sedentary lifestyle often puts our muscles in a shortened position (feel the hamstrings in the back of your thigh as you sit) impacting both muscle strength and joint position. The difficulty comes in finding the best way to stretch.

There used to be universal agreement that passive stretching—moving into a position and holding it for 15 to 30 seconds—was the safest way to improve flexibility and avoid injury. Research has questioned that assertion noting that such stretching doesn’t change the structure or length of a muscle. Current thinking looks to the “hold and relax” techniques of stretching which are best learned in a physical therapy setting.

Moreover, simple stretching does little to address muscle imbalances, improve joint flexibility or create more efficient movement patterns. (A future column will present a series of yoga postures that can be practiced at home that do speak to these issues.) And stretching does little to relieve the knots formed in muscles that trigger pain. That is where foam rollers enter the picture.

Lightweight cylinders comprised of polyethylene, foam rollers are ideal for self-massage. While not as effective as a deep tissue massage from a professional, they are a credible at-home alternative. Foam rollers can be ordered online and cut to your specifications. (I prefer the six inch thick rollers which I buy in three foot lengths and cut in half.) For the past year I have had my athletes use them at the conclusion of their training sessions following a routine similar to the one described below.

Iliotibial Band (Outer Thigh) Massage:

Lie on your right side with the roller paced under your hip. Bend your left leg and place it over and in front of your right. (You can increase the pressure of the massage by placing the left leg on top of the right.) Bend your right elbow and gently roll from your hip to your knee and back six times. Repeat on the other side.

Piriformis (Buttocks) Massage:
Sit on the roller with your right knee bent and your left leg crossed over your right. Place your palms on the floor behind you and shift your body weight onto your right butt cheek. Roll up and down the length of your butt six times and repeat on the other side.

Hamstring Massage:
Sit on the roller with it placed at the junction of your right upper thigh and the lower portion of your buttocks and extend your right leg. Your left leg is bent and to the side of the roller or sitting on top of the right leg if you wish to apply more pressure. Your hands remain behind you as in the piriformis exercise. Roll up and down the length of your posterior thigh (from butt fold to knee) six times. Repeat on the other side. Play with turning your foot inwards and outwards to emphasize the medial and lateral fibers of the hamstring as you roll.

Calf Massage:
Using the same body position as the hamstring stretch, place the roller just below your right knee. Roll from knee to ankle and back six times and repeat on the other side. As with the previous exercise, inverting and everting your foot allows you to massage different fibers of the calf compartment.

Quadriceps Massage:
Lie on your stomach with the roller placed under the top of your thigh. Your left leg is either bent to the side or resting on top of the extended right leg. Your hands are to the side of the roller with elbows bent as you roll the length of the thigh to your knee and back six times. Once again, you can change your foot position to emphasize different fibers of the muscle. Repeat on the other side.

Iliopsoas (Hip Flexor) Massage:
Using the same body position, lie on the roller with it resting just above your right hip bone. Roll from here up to your bottom-most rib and back six times. Repeat on the other side.

Hip Adductor (Inner Thigh) Massage:
Lie on your left side with the roller parallel to the front side of your body. Bend your right knee towards your chest and place that knee and foot on the roller. Push the roller forward with your right knee allowing it to glide towards your groin and back to the knee for six repetitions. Repeat on the other side.

Low to Mid-Back Massage:
Lie on your back with your knees bent and place the roller in the small of your back. Cross each arm to the opposite shoulder and tuck your chin to your chest. Your feet should be fifteen to eighteen inches away from your buttocks. Roll from your lower to your mid-back (just below your shoulder blades) and back again six times making sure to not raise your chin off your chest.

This simple routine can be done before and after exercise as well as at night to relieve accumulated tension in your muscles. You will be stretching and practicing good movement patterns while you break up knots that have formed in your muscles. So let the good times roll.

Bruce Cohn is the Strength and Conditioning Coach at the Middlesex School in Concord. He runs FIT-TO-GO Total Sports Conditioning and is a nationally certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist. Bruce can be reached at 781-316-0061 or brucegym@rcn.com.