GoFit Massage Bar, Roller; Rumbleroller

(See photos and star ratings below.)

Self-Massage a Good Way to Work out the Kinks

My daughter is finishing up her degree in Kinesiology and applying for graduate school to earn her doctorate in physical therapy. She is also a hard-core athlete. She runs cross-country, does triathlons, races crits, time trials and road races and, like the rest of us, she definitely gets sore muscles and overuse injuries.

Even though she stretches multiple times a day, she can’t always get rid of all of her trigger points (knots in muscles). One problem area for her is having tight IT bands.

Solution! For her last brithday, I bought her “The Stick” muscle therapy bar. She uses this religiously and recently let me borrow it when my calves were tight and sore. She showed me some stretches to do as well. This really helped me — that is, until she asked for her Stick back.

Thinking that this might be something good to test, I started searching the Internet for muscle therapy solutions. What I found is that there are actually 2 solutions that work hand-in-hand: muscle therapy bars, and foam rollers.

The basic idea of these recovery aids is to provide deep tissue self-massage before and after exercising. Used correctly, these work the same way as professional physical therapy sessions; you need to apply enough pressure so that it hurts. This will massage the deep tissue, allowing you to recovery more quickly, as well as minimizing injuries.

Other benefits include decreased muscle tension and pain, stimulation of circulation and elimination of trigger points (knots) in muscles. The other important point is to continue stretching.

While on a recent vacation, I had no access to a bicycle (my main sport), so I decided to cross-train instead. I started by jogging 5 miles a day. Normally, after 3 days of cross-training off the bike, I would be so sore that I could barely move my legs. So I thought this would be the perfect scenario to test out these muscle massage bars and foam rollers.

During my light warmup stretch, I would use one of the massage bars for 60 seconds on my calves, quadriceps, hamstrings, and glutes. After each jog, I would stretch these muscle groups again, followed by 60 seconds of deep tissue massage, pressing firmly until it hurt. The results amazed me: I was never sore!

How Do They Work?

Just under the skin, there is soft connective tissue called fascia. This fascia wraps around muscles, bones, nerves and blood vessels. When muscles are not used much, the fascia and the underlying muscle tissue can adhere to each other, restrict muscle movement and cause pain. When muscles are (over-) used, trigger points/knots and scar tissue can occur.

Massage bars and rollers stretch muscles and tendons and break down soft tissue adhesions and scar tissue. By using these self-massage aids, you can target and break up these trigger points and, at the same time, increase blood flow and circulation to soft tissue. This improves the body’s flexibility and the range of motion of muscles.

Regardless of which type you choose, to use them correctly you need to press down hard enough so you just about cry. Just rolling back and forth lightly will not do much for you.

Differences Between Bars and Rollers

There are some differences between muscle massage bars/sticks and foam rollers to keep in mind.

MASSAGE BARS

• Use hands and arm strength to push bar into muscle.
• The superior muscle tissue is mainly affected, some deep tissue as well.
• Different lengths and flexing resistances available.
• Small enough to take with you while traveling.

FOAM ROLLERS

• Use bodyweight for pressure.
• Superior and deep muscle tissue affected due to body-weight moving roller instead of only arm strength.
• Different lengths as well as different firmness available.
• Due to larger size, more for home-based usage.

What Are The Advantages and Disadvantages?

Each type also has its advantages and disadvantages.

MASSAGE BAR ADVANTAGES

• Easy to use
• For muscle groups with easier access.
• Portable

MASSAGE BAR DISADVANTAGES

• Not as effective for “hard to reach” areas such as IT Bands, Deep Calf (Soleus), Adductors, Deep Glute muscles (i.e., Piriformis), Lower back. 

FOAM ROLLER ADVANTAGES

• Very effective for areas that are harder to reach or need more pressure applied, such as IT Bands, Deep Calf (Soleus), Adductors, Deep Glute muscles, Lower back.  

FOAM ROLLER DISADVANTAGES

• Harder to use
• Most usage requires  you to hold yourself up by your arms, pushing your body back and forth against the roller

Recommended Massage Bar

GoFit Massage Bar The GoFit uses ergonomic handles attached to a steel rod, all rotating on ball bearings. The handles move independently of each other, as well as independent of the roller segment. This massage bar utilizes a single section of small bumps that massage the deep tissue. When pressing hard, this bar tended to flatten out the muscle and trigger points. It worked very well for me.   

Foam Rollers: Two Recommendations

To massage areas that are more difficult to reach due to lack of leverage, or accessing a muscle that is deeper within the tissue (i.e. Piriformis), the foam roller is the only way to go. Basically, you use bodyweight over the affected area on top of the roller, rolling it back and forth.

GoFit Roller  Made of a hard PVC tube covered with a soft foam wrap, this roller is for beginner/intermediate users. The foam is fairly soft and does not “dig” into the deep tissue too aggressively.

There is enough textured pattern on the foam to make it an effective solution for superior or deep tissue massaging.  

RumbleRoller If you want to bump it up to higher level, the Rumbleroller is for advanced users who can tolerate more pain — as the soft knobbies dig much deeper into the soft tissue. Knots are easily massaged out, and there are a number of areas you can work on, including quadriceps, adductors, abductors, IT bands, deep glutes, hamstrings, calves, lower back, upper back, shoulders, neck, feet and even forearms.

This roller comes in two sizes, but the longer length roller can also be used for back stabilization and alignment (lying supine on roller). Rumbleroller makes for a very effective solution and is my favorite foam roller.

Conclusion

If you are active and train, you risk overtraining, which can lead to tight, sore muscles. Training can also lead to knots, as well as scar tissue, in muscles. This is why a massage regimen is so important. But professional massages can get expensive, which makes high quality self-massage a good option.

The bars and rollers tested hit the trigger points differently, and you’lllikely have a personal preference based on how they are used, what your pain tolerance is, whether you’re looking for a portable solution, etc. If cost alone is an issue, get the massage bar first. If cost is not an issue, there’s merit in having both a bar and a roller.

March 2014

Coach Rick Schultz is an avid cyclist who trains, races and coaches in Southern California. Rick is an engineer by trade, and in addition to being a coach, he’s a bike fitter and prolific product reviewer. He’s the author of Stretching & Core Strengthening for the Cyclist and Bike Fit 101: Your Toolset for a Great Bike Fit in the RBR eBookstore. Check his product reviews website, www.biketestreviews.com, and his coaching site, www.bikefitnesscoaching.com. Click to read Rick’s full bio.