Foam rolling using proper technique

What I want to talk to you about today, is how to do foam rolling exercises without causing any pain. This is comical experto me because everywhere I look, I see people who don't like to foam roll due to the pain they experience. I just don't understand that. How does that make sense? The body is not designed to hurt you when it is doing something intended for your benefit.

So think about this analogy: I decide to walk up to you and punch you in the face repeatedly. You thank me because I am doing something great for you. This is the analogy that goes through my head when someone tells me they feel pain during foam rolling, yet continue anyway. You are experiencing pain because you are doing something wrong and your body is telling you to stop. So when you do stop, it is no surprise that it will feel better.

Do you wonder why your body continues to get tighter in that particular area? It is because it's building more and more protection against you. Your foam rolling never progresses because you keep doing it in a way that's forcing your body to protect itself. Consequently, you have to come up with more cunning ways to foam roll to get your system to work better. Instead of doing it in a way where your body wants to protect that area, try doing it so it promotes positive feedback within your body.

A body that wants to work more has benefits. Due to this feeling your body gets, it will bind up a bit better and in a different way as well. The binding that occurs in the muscles is easily removed and is not so stubborn. As soon as you start working with your body, it's going to cooperate with you and become more pliable.

So if you find yourself in pain when you are doing a foam rolling exercise, please stop. Otherwise, you will be doing a horrible service to yourself. You need to stop doing this to yourself because you're only going to hurt yourself for the long term.

Your body will change because it's an adaptive device, yet it's not always going to change for the good, in the long term. It is key that you stop foam rolling techniques when they hurt you. You have to do it the right way before you continue performing these particular exercises. So I'm going to give you three tips on how to do this.

The first tip is the following: foam rolling is all about the slow pace.

Secondly, foam rolling is about angle and weight load. You have to understand that your body needs to move. Depending on the area, you will need to have your weight load someplace else, so you can actually have the proper weight load needed for that area. For example, if you're on your quad, the opposite leg needs to hold that weight load.

Lastly, you need to find out what your body is saying, how it's saying it, and what areas it needs to focus on. You shouldn't just be foam rolling all over the place, because this is when your body will want to protect itself. You need to find out when your body is comfortable during foam rolling. So the best word to go by is discomfort, not pain. You can work your way from there without going into this pain zone. So find out what your body is saying and go to that place, but only to the place of discomfort.

Once you pass that discomfort zone, if anyone goes to hit you, you're going to protect yourself. Think about that. Your body is going to do the same thing against you. The body guarantees protection from anything external that is coming inside. Yet when you introduce pain into the body, that is going to promote 100% protection. Stop the foam rolling that is causing you pain. Follow those three steps I gave you and all my other foam rolling videos that teach you how to do it properly.