by Rick Schultz
Rating: 
MSRP: $34.95
Source: RumbleRoller Website, Amazon, Sports & Running stores
Supplied by: RumbleRoller
Summary: Travel-sized Beastie Bar. Two models, original (soft) & Xtra firm
HOT:
Same as the proven Beastie Bar, but without handles.
Small, portable size makes it easy to take with you when travelling.
Easy to use and effective for loosening tight muscles.
NOT:
Not many negatives. Some might think $34.95 is a little too high price?
Beastie Bar
Beastie Peanut: As Tested
Background
RumbleRoller is known for their great rollers. Their first product was the RumbleRoller, a full-sized 31” textured foam roller. From there, multiple sizes and levels of firmness followed. Next, they introduced the Beastie Bar, a small roller with handles. These were also offered in either a soft or xtra-firm model. This worked well for travel. Now they have introduced the “Peanut,” a beastie bar without any handles at all. It’s perfect for taking along on a trip without using up a lot of your luggage space.
PT Tested, PT Approved
I stopped by my daughter’s physical therapy studio recently and dropped off the new Peanut when she was working with a professional surfer. (Her studio already has each model of the large RumbleRollers.) She was about to toss the Peanut into her bag when her client saw it and said, “Let me see that.” He immediately placed the Peanut under his calf and started rolling and said it worked great. Then he said “Per Amy, I’m supposed to work on my glute medius.” He started rolling his glutes when she said “I’m not taking a picture of that – haha!”
Since he was already on his back, he placed the Peanut on his suboccipitals (neck muscles near the base of the skull) and started moving his neck slowly. He said “surfers get sore necks from looking up while paddling so this thing hits the sweet spot. This feels GREAT!”
As with any roller, it is best to roll very slowly and deliberately over the trigger point and/or scar tissue. Never roll on bones, joints, nerves, blood vessels, or the spine. Fast rolling can actually be detrimental. Find the trigger point, then hold roller over that point, or go very slowly back and forth.
Some areas of stress that the Peanut works well with are the calves, hamstrings, thighs, arms, upper back, hip flexors (cyclists), suboccipitals (pictured below) and especially the Glutes.
What makes the Peanut so effective are two features, (a) the ‘balls’ can slide closer together or further apart and (b) the ‘spikes’ which make for a more effective and deeper massage and therefore deeper relief. The ‘spikes’ can get right into and target scar tissue. Working out these ‘knots’ has never been easier.
Summary
With the introduction of the Peanut, RumbleRoller continues to create more high-quality products for the athletic community.
As mentioned earlier, the Peanut comes in two models – original (softer) and Xtra Firm (green). The Peanut is also waterproof, bacteria resistant and easy to clean. All Beastie products are made in the USA.
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