Forums >Health and Nutrition>Self-Masochism with foam roller= unsightly bruising?
tomatolover
I've been rolling my IT bands on rumble rollers (perhaps with a little to much enthusiasm) for the last few weeks in an effort of curbing the inevitable issues I have with said IT bands. Last week I noticed I had some bruising on my right leg & chalked it up to random clumsiness. This week, however, I noticed the bruising on my left leg, a leg which i had starting rolling with some determination after a not-so-smart speed work session on tuesday.
It's definitely the roller that's doing it and what I want to know is this: am i alone with this issue? I still have the soft foam roller, but i moved to the roller with nubs on account of my foam roller taking on a super squished state & quite frankly, not hurting enough.
Anyone else with this issue & things you did/can do/wish you knew to prevent?
Maybe you could try a different roller and see if the bruising stops? Try maybe a semi stiff rubber ball (~3") against the wall. You might be able to find one at the dollar store or toy store.
You don't technically have to roll the ITB. You could use other massage tools as well, like a theracane or knob tool, etc.
A coach recently explained that the main reason for IT Band soreness from speed workouts is over striding. I'd try and correct that before I aggravate this further rather than try and fix with a different roller.
...It's definitely the roller that's doing it and what I want to know is this: am i alone with this issue? I still have the soft foam roller, but i moved to the roller with nubs on account of my foam roller taking on a super squished state & quite frankly, not hurting enough. Anyone else with this issue & things you did/can do/wish you knew to prevent?
...It's definitely the roller that's doing it and what I want to know is this: am i alone with this issue? I still have the soft foam roller, but i moved to the roller with nubs on account of my foam roller taking on a super squished state & quite frankly, not hurting enough.
Come to think of it your massage technique may be contributing to the problem. How to do you perform it? It is preferred that you use a slow motion, as opposed to static pressure, for precisely the bruising issue. Also you mentioned masochism, but try not to exceed 7 on the pain scale.
Massage therapy can be uncomfortable, but you don't get increasing therapeutic benefit with increasing discomfort. At some point, you're just beating on yourself without a significantly greater return on investment.
What else are you doing to curb the "inevitable issues"? From what I've read and experienced, rolling alone is not enough. Hip strength, pelvic tilt, Q-angle, ...
"I want you to pray as if everything depends on it, but I want you to prepare yourself as if everything depends on you."
-- Dick LeBeau
I lay on the floor with the roller under my ITB area and roll pretty much from above the knee to my upper thigh. I do keep it moving, only pausing somewhat on hotspots. Aside from my hands to support me, pretty much all my weight is on the the rolled leg, as I lift my other leg to direct more pressure to the rolled leg.
I switch back and forth from foam to knobby though, quite frankly, the foam doesn't feel like it's releasing anything anymore.
Massage therapy can be uncomfortable, but you don't get increasing therapeutic benefit with increasing discomfort. At some point, you're just beating on yourself without a significantly greater return on investment. What else are you doing to curb the "inevitable issues"? From what I've read and experienced, rolling alone is not enough. Hip strength, pelvic tilt, Q-angle, ...
My ITband is my running issue that I've had return again and again every time my milage ramps up and/or I do a distance race (HM/marathon). It put me out of running for almost 3 months after my first and only marathon last october. I've seen a PT who gave me lots and lots of core activities that I do on a regular basis as well as hip strengtheners
As for the pelvic tilt, after a chi-running class a couple of years ago, I consciously tilt my pelvis in an effort to keep my feet below my body. I've never heard of q angle, however.
I know that foam rolling alone isn't going to fix me, and that I've got some kinda physiological thing going on with either weakness somewhere or bad form.
One of the things I've considered is getting the "Dartfish" running analysis. There's a chiro in the area who does a video analysis of your running and tells you what's going on/wrong with your form. Its pricey, but if I can fix the main physiological issue, I think it would be worth it.