How to Maximize Your Off-Season
Are you ready for that big race that’s right around the corner? Chances are, you don’t have any races or big events within the next few weeks to months. Welcome…
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| How Foam Rolling the ITB Works |
| If you’ve ever tried foam rolling your iliotibial band (IT Band), you’ve probably learned that it hurts like hell And maybe you’ve even heard that foam rolling the ITB doesn’t do anything “To hell with it then! It hurts” – You think Well hold on…not so fast. There are conflicting ideas floating around regarding the ITB and what foam rolling it actually doesThe confusion comes from people thinking that foam rolling the ITB is changing the elasticity of the ITB ITSELF Now THAT is not entirely true. You can’t generate enough force with your body weight on a foam roller to meaningfully change the ELASTICITY of the ITB But what you ARE DOING, is breaking up fascial adhesions that yank and tug on the ITB and surrounding muscles as your leg moves |
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| In the image above, you can see a miscellaneous bunch of tissue. Those white streaks represent fascial adhesions There are many different reasons these adhesions develop but that’s not the point of this email Just focus on the idea that these little guys can effect how well your muscles move within your body Preventing the muscles from smoothly guiding and sliding in line with each other Breaking up these guys is possible using a foam roller And foam rolling the ITB, is a great way to improve the freedom of movement of that crucial band of tissue The act of foam rolling also has great benefits in improving overall body coordination (as you roll yourself around on the ground) and can have an immensely positive effect on local pain desensitization; thus decreasing pain So grab your foam roller before or after your next run, and give your muscles some love for about 5 minutes Happy Runnin |
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