The foam roller - a runner's best friend

 

Tomorrow I am flying to the US on a short trip. It is a ridiculously short trip; I will be on American soil less than 48 hours! Due to the shortness of the trip and tight connections, I am traveling with only hand luggage. And thanks to the extreme shortness of the stay, I don't need to take much with me, so I have space for the most important thing: the foam roller!

If you don't have a foam roller, you simply MUST get one. It is the ultimate health care equipment for a runner. I try to roll every day; it is a great way of massaging sore muscles and stiff bands. Now with my ITBS injury, I should be rolling several times a day. That's why traveling without it was not an option this time. I was worried that it would be a bit too big for the hand luggage, but it fits! And one can even use the hollow inside to store fragile items...

I was not at all so enthusiastic about a foam roller before I owned one. It was recommended to me by my trainer Ketil (as everything else) but it took me a few weeks before I was finally convinced to get one (now that I know how perfectly every single one of his recommendations works, I never think twice). He observed that I seemed stiff on the backside of my legs, close to my ankles. When I started rolling, I experienced indeed a lot of pain in exactly that area! Once you start rolling, you will discover many painful and stiff areas of your body that you did not know were in need of help.

If you want to try it, get one with textured surface for deeper and tougher massaging.