One of the most beneficial tools in the gym would have to be the foam roller! The key to healthy, hydrated muscles relies on muscle therapy before and after workouts, and the foam roller can help you achieve maximum performance when used correctly. Every time I visit the gym, I noticed that the majority of people don’t know how to use the foam roller correctly, which isn’t their fault. Rolling out your muscles may help relieve some of the tension, but it won’t release those deep knots that you may feel after your training. So what’s the correct way to use a foam roller?

Rolling the foam over your muscles back and forth may seem like the right way of doing it, but it’s not! Trigger points, or knots, require gentle pressure to the specific tender spot to relieve the tension that you may be experiencing. Start by rolling the foam roller over the muscle until you find the most tender spot. Once found, hold the foam roller on the knot for a minimum of 30 seconds. This will increase the Golgi tendon organ activity and decrease muscle spindle activity, thus triggering the autogenic inhibition response. You can hold it on the knot for as long as you need, but always remember to hold it for at least 30 seconds!

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Now the foam roller is one of many tools you can use for muscle therapy, for example, did you know you can easily use a rock for self-myofascial release? One day I was walking on the beach, and I came across a bundle of rocks that have washed up on the shore, big and small, and I noticed that a lot of them were smooth, and perfectly shaped to use for my muscle trigger points. Despite the weird looks I was getting from people, I didn’t hesitate collecting the these free therapy tools that nature provided me. And using these rocks couldn’t be easier! I found it best using these rocks for my chest and arms areas for those really deep knots that are difficult to get to. Gentle pressure to those spots for at least 30 seconds feels amazing, and will help heal your muscles much faster!

Another fantastic tool used by many is the lacrosse massage ball. But after doing some research, I found that these simple rubber balls can be expensive, and there really isn’t anything special about them. After doing some research, I concluded that the tennis ball has the same density as those lacrosse massage balls, and it costs 3 times less! Any sport store will carry a variety of tennis balls with different firmness levels, so the choosing is up to you, but I recommend getting the basic all-court version for it has the right amount of firmness and density. Again, great for the chest when you have those deep nasty knots, and the arm area.

Get creative, try different things, the world offers so many tools that can easily be in your backyard, or inside your very own home!