Foam Rolling For Beginners: How To Foam Roll After A Workout

Did you know you can relieve muscle tension and enhance recovery with just one tool? Learn about the amazing benefits of foam rolling for beginners as which muscles to foam roll after your workout.

Though I've been a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist for twelve years now, it wasn't until about seven years ago that I started foam rolling.

In fact, the only reason I did start was because I was learning to run and it was terrible (learn about these practical running tips if it doesn't come naturally to you!).

My shin splints were so bad that I started foam rolling in desperation... and learned a lot.

So, before you dive into everything foam rolling, use these tips on which muscles to foam roll if you're brand new.

Hint: there are some areas you should AVOID foam rolling too!

Want to know more about foam rolling? This book helped me break it down a ton: The Complete Guide To Foam Rolling (Kyle Stull)

Benefits Of Foam Rolling

Foam rolling is a form of SMR (self-myofascial release) that uses, you guessed it: a foam roller.

Foam rolling releases tension in the fascia which is a casing of connective tissues around everything.

Since your fascia and muscle work together, it helps keep the system running as a whole unit.

This means that foam rolling will work best as a well-rounded approach with things like proper warm-ups, mobility, and stretching (even something like a handheld massager- check out Hypervolt review).

However, what most people don't know is that it's not so much about rolling as it is about trigger pointing.

Using a foam roller consistently can help:

• enhance muscle recovery
• reduce soreness
• reduced injury risk
• improve range of motion
• reduce inflammation
• improved blood flow

To be honest, most of the benefits above are because using a foam roller helps improve blood flow, especially in tight areas.

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How To Use Foam Rollers

Foam rolling can help reduce injury by keeping your muscles and connective tissue mobile and reducing tight areas. It helps reduce tension within the body and keeps the fascia healthy.

However, foam rolling is far more about trigger points and using a slow roll than it is about anything else.

Once you choose your muscle group, you’ve got to move slowly over it. It's not a race to see how fast you can get through it.

How to do it:

1. Place the muscle group you wish to roll onto the foam roller
2. Very slowly roll through the muscle
3. When you come to a tight spot, a spot that's uncomfortable, hold there for thirty to sixty seconds taking deep breaths
4. Once that spot is done, continue to move through the muscle. Repeat the step above for any other hard areas

You can adjust the pressure on the point by adjusting your bodyweight.

After holding for thirty seconds, continue through the muscle. Stop at any other trigger points you find, and repeat the hold.

Choosing A Foam Roller

There are a lot of foam rollers on the market now.

Though most people will recommend to start with a soft foam roller as a beginner, I'll advise you not to waste your money. Though they're great in theory, you won't get a big bang for your buck as often they're too soft compared to ones body weight.

Instead, start with a medium density foam roller or a high one and just adjust how much of your weight you put onto it.

I prefer the larger ones in 36 inches so that I have enough room for everything.

From there, you can get high-density ones that seem more like a deep-tissue massage. But that's very much so preference.

Which Muscle Groups To Use A Foam Roller On

Don't make the mistake of thinking that you should use a foam roller on every and any muscle groups! Be strategic as to what you're trying to achieve.

General wellness? Better squats? Posture? Running?

Below are common muscles you can use a foam roller with when you noticed you're tight or trying to improve range of motion in the joint nearby.

Using A Foam Roller For Lower Body Muscles

You can roll the lower body muscles below a right after a workout or a couple times per week (in addition to your mobility work!).

Remember, find a tight spot and hold on that spot for 30-60 seconds.

Calves

You can slowly roll your calves after any leg workout but especially if you’re a runner.

Unknown tight calves are a common running issue that needs to be fixed (they pull on the knee and thus cause knee pain)

Quadriceps & Hip Flexors

These can be rolled pretty frequently regardless of your workout as they often carry too much strain.

Obviously, roll them on a workout day. However, often quadriceps are used too much because other muscles are weak.

Rolling out the quads can help other muscles learn to do their jobs

Hamstrings

For most people hamstrings do not need to be rolled. If you’ve directly worked them that day and want to increase blood flow to them- roll them.

Otherwise, there are better muscles to spend time on.

Glutes

There are a lot of components of your glutes and a lot of ways to roll them. Most people’s glutes tend to be weak.

Mine, however, tend to stay contracted so for me, rolling them is beneficial. Since glute muscles play such a pivotal roll in posture (read why your back hurts) and benefits of glute training, it’s worth figuring out if they need some help.

• how glutes relieve postpartum back pain
• how to engage the glutes
• underbutt workout for lower glutes

Don't Make This Mistake

Most people are commonly told to roll their IT band. It's tight, that's why it's so painful.. right?

WRONG.

Your IT band isn't a muscle (it's a band of tissue that runs down the outer thigh) and thus, doesn't need to be rolled.

Upper Body Foam Roller Exercises

When it comes to the upper body, foam rolling is a great help in posture, opening up the chest, and being able to take a breath.

However, it should go without saying that you don't need to roll your neck (cervical vertebrae).

Chest

One I recommend rolling for nearly everyone.

Our chest muscles are often very tight due to poor posture and giving them some help can make a world of difference.

Thoracic Spine

Most people struggle with movement in their thoracic spine (the area on your back by your shoulder blades).

Foam rolling your upper back and working on thoracic mobility drills specifically will help gain some movement there.

Lats

The bigger muscles down the sides of your back.

More often than not our lats are both tight and weak. Personally, I've found a lot of posture relief from using a foam roller on the lats after a workout

Foam Rolling For Runners

When it comes to running, unless you're doing some funky stuff with your upper body, you'll mostly want to focus on using a foam roller for the lower body muscles and connective tissue to help improve mobility.

In my experience, the most common areas to target post-run are:

• Calves
• Adductors

When it comes to foam rolling the quadricpes (front of the legs), it may be beneficial.

However, I find it's better to focus on stretching them with longer holds than it is to foam roll them.

Other Helpful Fitness Tips For Beginners

• Beginner strength training tips
• Fitness tips for moms
• Pillars of weight loss
• How to get better at push ups when you're a beginner
• Beginner HIIT workout
• SMASH Fit For Life workout plan

Frequently Asked Questions About Foam Rolling

Learning how to use a foam roller is a bit more time-consuming than simply pressing your body into a hard roller and quickly moving up and down in pain.

It’s also more effective.

In my own experience, you can use a foam roller every day and see a lot of benefits- depending on what you choose to roll.

This doesn’t mean that you need to use a foam roller on your entire body daily, but you can group your muscles and rotate through them.

Like any other goal, consistency is key.