The Benefits of Foam Rolling for Everybody
If your New Year’s resolution includes losing weight and getting fit, you are probably wondering how to make your fitness dreams a reality. Whether you plan to pursue those fitness goals at the local gym or work out on your own, there are many reasons to include foam rolling in your exercise regime. Foam rolling has several important benefits, including the fact that a foam roller can be used for every type of body.
Whether you are young or old, in shape or out, male or female, you can benefit greatly from foam rolling. Whether you use the foam rollers at the gym or invest in your own set, engaging in foam rolling before and every workout will provide a host of benefits. Here are just a few of the many benefits adding foam rolling to your workout routine can provide.
Who Can Benefit from Foam Rolling?
One of the best things about foam rolling is that almost anyone can do it. Foam rolling is the perfect choice for those just starting to work out. The foam roller gently kneads the muscles and makes every workout more comfortable and less likely to cause injury.
Foam rolling is also the perfect choice for the weekend warrior. If you sit at a desk all week and hit the gym hard on the weekends, you need to take special care to avoid injury. Warming up and cooling down with a foam roller can reduce the risk of injury by getting your muscles in shape for the difficult workout to come.
Foam rolling is also perfect for the serious athlete, or the amateur trying to take their performance to the next level. The benefits of foam rolling are extensive and hard to duplicate, ranging from injury prevention and faster rehab to improved muscle tone and enhanced flexibility. No matter who you are or what your fitness goals are, adding foam rolling to your workout routine can help you.
Foam Rolling is Great for Injury Rehab
Nothing will derail your fitness goals faster than a sports injury. If you pull a muscle or hurt yourself working out, you may not be able to exercise for weeks or even months.
When that happens, your number one goal is to get back to your regular workout routine as soon as possible. You want to get back to the gym, but you do not want to aggravate the injury or retard the healing process.
Foam rolling is the perfect way to heal your sports injuries and speed up the rehab process. Many physical therapists and sports rehab specialists regularly use foam rollers in their practices. Foam rollers can be used to gently massage your muscles and deep tissue, speeding the healing process and helping you get back to the gym more quickly.
Foam Rolling Improves Flexibility
When you first start working out, you may find that your muscles are tight and inflexible from lack of use. That lack of flexibility can make working out more difficult and even lead to injury, but foam rolling can help here as well.
Regular foam rolling will improve your flexibility and make every workout easier and more effective than the last. Using a foam roller as part of your warm-up and cool-down routine is a great way to increase your flexibility and build your core muscles. That is probably why so many yoga studios incorporate foam rolling into their classes – the improvements in flexibility can make those tough yoga postures easier to hold and more effective.
Foam Rolling Can Improve Athletic Performance
If your fitness goals for the new year extend beyond the usual weight loss, foam rolling can help you here as well. Foam rolling has been shown to improve athletic performance, and both amateur and professional athletes regularly include it in their workout routines.
Foam rolling is a great way to build muscle mass, especially in those all-important core muscle groups. If you want to get those rock-hard six-pack abs, adding a foam roller to your weight bench and other exercise equipment is a great way to do it. If you compete in soccer and other athletic endeavors, foam rolling can help you build the core muscles you need to be a better and more successful player.
As you can see, foam rolling has several important benefits, and it should be an integral part of your workout routine. Whether you are new to working out and just trying to keep those New Year’s resolutions or an experienced athlete trying to improve your performance and build more lean muscle, warming up and cooling down with a foam roller will be a smart move.
Athletes, personal trainers, and others have known about foam rollers for many years now, but the general public is just now catching on. If you have not seen foam rolling at your gym yet, chances are you will soon. More and more people are discovering the awesome and extensive benefits of foam rolling for fitness, athletic performance, injury prevention, rehab, and enhanced flexibility. Now is the time to join the foam-rolling revolution.
