How to Warm-up – A New Look at Foam Rolling
How to Warm-up – A New Look at Foam Rolling
Today we’re going to look at a new way of foam rolling. If you have AMPED, you already know why you should be foam rolling, but if you don’t, you might want to read on.
In my last article, we talked about the importance of the quality and extensibility of the soft-tissues (tendons, ligaments, muscles, fascia) in our body. Slow deliberate foam rolling is one way to improve these qualities, especially if you’ve been hanging out in bad postures all day or you have some lingering injuries. Poor soft-tissue quality and limited movement is a recipe for injury.
“Movement is lubrication.” – Steve Maxwell
This new technique will provide you with some progression to your foam rolling and allow you to introduce more movement (or flow) along with your soft-tissue work. This is key as a pre-workout or pre-sporting event prep to improve your movement and performance.
The Med Ball Flow
I’ve spoken about this technique a few years ago in this video. If you want to see me with hair, check out the first video I made for this technique.
As a progression, we replace the conventional foam roller with a hard medicine ball. The med ball allows for more flowing movements and the opportunity to transition between muscle groups easier than the foam roller. Also, rolling on the foam roller is typically done in long strokes traveling up and down the length of the muscles. With the med ball we can flow three-dimensionally around the extremities and along any pattern. In fact, you are only limited by your own imagination.
Throw Away Your Foam Roller?
Should you just throw away your foam roller and stick to the medicine ball? Absolutely not! Use every tool available to you; the stick, lacrosse balls, foam rollers, medicine balls or even the end of a barbell.
Next Level Soft-Tissue Work
The revolution is not in the tool, but in the movement. Soft-tissue work that is done with the body in motion, and not in a locked position as with conventional foam rolling, will free up your movement potential and take your warm-up to the next level.
By Smitty on February 14th, 2012
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I’ve been using this very technique for 4+ years with my high school athletes before we had foam rollers. Many times I go back to the ball for the different “comformities” the ball offers to the roller. Good stuff!
Awesome!
Awesome! Love the fluidity. Very affective.
Thanks Smitty.
Thanks!
Awesome info.
Thanks brother.
Awesome info.
Smitty – I can’t find it on your website, but I was wondering if you had an affiliate program. I recommend Amped and now Power to everyone who asks me anything that even remotely might be covered with those 2 products so was curious about using an affiliate link. If not no big deal, and I’ll still recommend it out to everyone.
Thanks for all the quality info,
DC
Great video, really helped me understand the flow aspect of warming up.