In this economy, a massage therapy session is sometimes out of the question. Try these leg openings as your substitute for your therapist. These opening exercises will help to break up all those tight connections between the muscles, making you feel looser, freer, and more mobile. If you hit a spot on the legs or back that is super tight, don’t concentrate on the spot for too long. Just roll over it a few times for a few consecutive days. When it’s feeling less tight, you can take more time and hold on the spot and breathe. To really feel a significant difference, these opening exercises need to be done at least every other day. It will not hurt to do them more often. Just listen to your body. Again, if your body is telling you to stop, then it’s time to get off.
Exercise: HAMSTRING ROLL ON THE FOAM ROLLER
• Place your foam roller perpendicular to your mat.
• Sit on the roller with the sitz bones just hanging off, the legs long and hovering over the floor, and the hands behind you with the knuckles or palms on the mat and the arms long.
• Taking deep inhales and exhales, start to roll the roller down and up along the back of the upper leg 6 to 8 times.
• Notice how this is also an arm workout.
• As you roll back and forth over the hamstring, keep the arms long and pushing away from the floor.
If this is not feeling too intense, you can add on.
• In the same position, just cross the right ankle over the left and start to roll down and up on the left hamstring. This will put more weight onto that left leg and will intensify it quite a bit!
• Do 6 to 8 rolls and then change sides.
• If you feel the arms giving out or the shoulders starting to travel into the ears take a break in between legs.
Exercise: CALF MASSAGE ON THE FOAM ROLLER
This is a great massage for both calf muscles, the deeper soleus and the more superficial gastronimeus. These muscles get very tight from walking, running, cycling, and tennis. It is important for alignment and overall flexibility to keep these muscles as open as possible.
• Place the foam roller perpendicular to your mat.
• Place the back of the ankles on the foam roller with the feet hanging above the floor and the hands behind you with the knuckles or palms on the mat and the arms long.
• Taking deep inhales and exhales, start to roll the roller up and down along the back of the lower leg.
• Again notice the work and stability in the arms.
• As you roll back and forth over the calf muscles, keep the arms long and pushing away from the floor.
If this is not too intense, add on!
• In the same position, just cross the right ankle over the left and start to roll up and down on the calf muscles.
• Again, this will put more weight on the left calf and intensify it!
• Do 6 to 8 rolls and then change sides.
• Again, if you feel your arms giving out, take a break between legs.
Exercise: QUADRICEPS MASSAGE ON THE FOAM ROLLER
• Place the foam roller perpendicular to your mat.
• Facing the mat (eyes and chest toward the mat), place the roller right above the knees.
• The forearms and elbows should be on the mat with the fingers laced.
• You want to keep your shoulder blades wide and the forearms pressing into the mat as you roll back and forth.
• Start to roll up and down on the front of the upper leg.
• Do not go over the knee joint!
• Do 6 to 8 rolls.
If this doesn’t feel too intense, you can add on.
• Cross the right ankle over the left and lean to the left side a bit as you roll back and forth.
• This helps to put the weight into the left side and gives you a deeper opening on that side.
• Do 6 to 8 rolls and then change sides.
• If you feel your arms and upper back giving out, rest between legs.
Exercise: IT BAND MASSAGE ON THE FOAM ROLLER
IT stands for iliotibial band. This band of connective tissue is on the outside of the upper leg from the hip to the knee. It has a number of attachments to nearby muscles such as the hamstrings and the quadriceps. The outside of the leg (the lateral side) and the IT band in particular can and is tight on most people. This next massage technique with your foam roller is essential in keeping this area open. Be warned that the first 3 to 6 times you do this it may feel extremely painful. That’s actually a sign that you need this. However, if it is that painful, just do a couple of rolls but keep doing them every day for at least the next 6 to 8 days.
The more you do, the less painful it will become because it is opening and lengthening this area.
• Place your foam roller perpendicular to your mat.
• Face the left side of your mat, placing the side of the right hip on the roller.
• The left leg is crossed over with the left knee bent and the left foot on the floor.
• The hands or forearms are on the mat in front of your roller.
• Take deep inhales and exhales as you move through the exercise.
• Start to walk forward with your hands or forearms allowing the roller to travel down the leg toward the knee. (Do not allow it to roll over the knee.)
• Slowly walk the hands or forearms back, allowing the roller to travel back toward the hip.
• Depending on tightness, you can do 2 to 8 rolls. If it is extremely painful, do only 2 rolls.
• Change sides
Enjoy these exercise tips, and let us know what you think!
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