The Benefits of Foam Rolling

Note to self. Arm day is a 2.5 hour workout. The gym closes at 9 pm. So maybe don’t get there at 6:30 pm on arm day? Unless you want to have to scramble to finish before they lock the doors.

Which is exactly what Chad and I did on Tuesday. We literally walked out the door from the gym at 8:55. Which means not only was the last superset extra hard because I only got about 15 seconds to rest between each set, but we also didn’t have time to foam roll afterward.

Oh, yeah! Foam rolling. I was going to talk about that the other day before I got reminded about the importance of eating, wasn’t I? Well, no time like the present!

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A variety of foam rollers

No doubt you’ve seen things like these at the gym or maybe in the exercise section of your local Target or Walmart and wondered what they were for.

These are foam rollers, and they’re great for loosening up your muscles both before and after a workout. Which not only helps keep you from being insanely sore after a workout, but along with a cardio warmup helps keeps you from pulling a muscle.

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Foam rolling my hip and IT band

Foam rolling is exactly what it sounds like. Place the roller on the floor, lay on it, then roll back and forth. This works the muscles much like getting a massage to loosen them up.

When I first started lifting, I was convinced my trainer was having me foam roll because he needed a good laugh. Anyone who knows me knows what a massive klutz I am. My lack of coordination is legendary. So you can imagine about how well it went for me with the foam roller in the beginning. I kept falling off, the roller kept sliding out from under me – seriously, it must have looked like a comedy routine. 😀

But eventually I got the hang of it, and now it’s second nature. I focus on my quads, glutes, IT bands, lower back, upper back, and lats. In layman’s terms, the back, front, and sides of my thighs, and my upper back, lower back, and the upper sides of my torso. I use a handheld roller for my shins and calves, just because I find it easier. Chad does his calves on the foam roller, though, so it can be done.

I also focus on anything that hurts. And I’m not going to lie to you – when you first start foam rolling, it’s going to hurt. A lot. Especially if your muscles are tight. But the more you work them and loosen them up, the less they’ll hurt. Not only while foam rolling or after working out, but in general.

For example, I’ve had trouble with one of my hips for years, so I spent a lot of time focusing on that. I’d lay on my hip on the roller for as long as I could bear it, then slowly roll back and forth over a gradually longer area. After a few months, things finally loosened up, and I don’t have problems with that hip anymore. Which is good, because you need flexible hips to go deep for squats.
I did the same when I started having knee pain, and now for my forearms, which are really feeling it with this current arm day workout. 😉

Originally we only foam rolled before lifting, but based on a recommendation from Adam, one of the trainers at our gym, we’ve started foam rolling afterward, too. We’ve also added a couple of post-workout stretches using the foam rollers, but this post is getting kinda long, so I’ll save that for another day.

FitNotes Workout – Tuesday 8th September 2015

** Running (Indoor Track) **
– 0.5 mi in 05:36

** Shoulder Press **
– 50.0 lbs x 4 reps
– 50.0 lbs x 4 reps
– 50.0 lbs x 4 reps
– 50.0 lbs x 4 reps
– 50.0 lbs x 4 reps
– 50.0 lbs x 4 reps
– 50.0 lbs x 4 reps
– 50.0 lbs x 4 reps

** Arnold Dumbbell Press ** (Arm Day SS1)
– 20.0 lbs x 6 reps
– 20.0 lbs x 6 reps
– 20.0 lbs x 6 reps
– 20.0 lbs x 6 reps

** Bent Over Reverse Fly ** (Arm Day SS1)
– 10.0 lbs x 10 reps
– 10.0 lbs x 10 reps
– 10.0 lbs x 10 reps
– 10.0 lbs x 10 reps

** Bench Press **
– 70.0 lbs x 6 reps
– 70.0 lbs x 6 reps
– 75.0 lbs x 6 reps
– 75.0 lbs x 6 reps
– 80.0 lbs x 6 reps [PR]

** Assisted Pull Up ** (Arm Day SS2)
– 100.0 lbs x 10 reps
– 100.0 lbs x 12 reps
– 100.0 lbs x 13 reps

** Bent Over Row ** (Arm Day SS2)
– 15.0 lbs x 10 reps [Listed last week as 10 lbs, but that can’t be right. S/b 15.]
– 15.0 lbs x 10 reps
– 15.0 lbs x 10 reps
– 15.0 lbs x 10 reps
– 15.0 lbs x 10 reps

** Run The Rack **
– 50.0 lbs x 2 reps
– 40.0 lbs x 4 reps
– 30.0 lbs x 6 reps
– 20.0 lbs x 8 reps

** Alternating Dumbbell Curl (Seated) ** (Arm Day SS3)
– 15.0 lbs x 6 reps
– 15.0 lbs x 6 reps
– 15.0 lbs x 6 reps
– 15.0 lbs x 6 reps

** Dumbbell Concentration Curl ** (Arm Day SS3)
– 15.0 lbs x 6 reps
– 15.0 lbs x 6 reps
– 15.0 lbs x 6 reps
– 15.0 lbs x 6 reps

** Close Grip Barbell Bench Press **
– 70.0 lbs x 6 reps
– 70.0 lbs x 6 reps
– 70.0 lbs x 6 reps
– 70.0 lbs x 6 reps

** EZ-Bar Skullcrusher ** (Arm Day SS4)
– 30.0 lbs x 10 reps
– 30.0 lbs x 10 reps
– 30.0 lbs x 10 reps
– 30.0 lbs x 10 reps
– 30.0 lbs x 10 reps

** Tricep Press Down ** (Arm Day SS4)
– 65.0 lbs x 10 reps
– 65.0 lbs x 10 reps
– 65.0 lbs x 10 reps
– 65.0 lbs x 10 reps
– 65.0 lbs x 10 reps

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