Fun with SMR

When we can’t get as many massages as we’d like (and really, does anyone get that many?), we can get some of the benefits from doing self-myofascial release (SMR).  This is all that stuff that people do with foam rollers, various kinds of balls, and, my favorite, the Daiso store duck hook.  Here are my five favorite SMR exercises.

1.     The duck.  This is basically a hook with a handle that fits over the shoulder.  The head of the duck rests more or less on that place where we put our thumbs when we rub someone else’s shoulders.  The handle ends up at chest level on the front of our body and pulling down creates pressure.  Almost all of us have tight upper trapezius muscles and this helps.  The Daiso tool costs $1.50, so it is cheap enough to have one at the desk, in the car, and anywhere else we end up sitting for any length of time.

2.     The ball under the behind.  The various small balls that can be used for SMR have different hardnesses.  The softer the ball, the gentler the release.  Many people who start out with SMR might want to choose a tennis ball.  A kid’s pinkie ball is a little firmer.  Yoga Tune-Up Balls are the next level of firm and come in handy sets of two in a mesh bag.  Lacrosse balls are the firmest (although if you do this while driving, the softness of the car seat will mitigate this a bit).  To do the exercise, sit down with the ball under one cheek on a relatively firm surface (i.e., the couch is not a good place for this, but a kitchen chair is great.).  I know when someone has found the right spot because they make a face.  It should be the good kind of pain, though, and it should lessen over time.

3.     The chest opening on the foam roller.  To do this one, we lie with the foam roller supporting our spine from our behinds to the back of our heads (note:  some foam rollers are not long enough for this—choose carefully!).  We can bend our knees to put our feet flat on the floor for stability.  We stretch our arms out to the sides until our hands touch the floor on either side.  This should provide a nice big stretch across the chest.  Leaving the hands on the ground and leaning to one side or the other will stretch the opposite side a little more.

4.     Floor angels.  This one builds on the previous exercise.  Lying on the floor with the roller along our spines, we take our hands into prayer position at our breastbones.  We move the hands up across our faces and over our heads, then open them out like we are making a snow angel all the way down to our hips.  The hands come back together and move up to the breastbone again.  Repeat five times and then go the other direction.  This will loosen up all the muscles around our shoulder blades and is great after a day stuck in a chair or a long drive.

5.     Rolling across the back.  I like two ways of doing this.  When I want a quick fix, I use the foam roller perpendicular to my spine and roll from my sacrum to my neck, stopping at any particularly tender spot to work it out.  If I have more time, I take the Yoga Tune-Up balls in the mesh bag and put one on either side of my spine for some deeper, more directed work.

We all need to do some things to make our bodies feel good.  Go play!