Hi folks,
FitOldDog's travel training kit always includes a band for lat work and a tennis ball to release certain tight muscle groups.
If you are an endurance athlete there will always be one tight muscle or another, those are just the breaks. But there are still only 24 hours in a day, and lots of other things to do than release, stretch, lengthen or whatever you do to relax tight (and thus weak or strained) muscles or muscle groups. Some muscles release easily, such as the psoas, whilst others, including forearm, rotator cuff and hamstring muscles can take months to fix - it is best not to strain these guys in the first place. Certain muscle groups are amenable to releasing with a roller or a tennis ball, which is why I take a tennis ball to bed with me, and I always have one in my travel bag.
When I have a tight calf muscle, glute, or even certain muscles around my shoulder girdle, such as my left injured infraspinatus, which will be a work of love for life, I rest the tight spot on my tennis ball. Moving gently around you’ll soon find those tight fibers, which can be just a fine strand a few millimeters thick, then GENTLY use gravity. Rest the weight of your body on the spot, leave it to release at it’s own pace, which will cause the tennis ball to sink in, and as they say, ‘Bob’s your uncle!’
That’s how I do it anyway. One word of advice, don’t overdo it, and never ever apply the tennis ball to your Quadratus lumborum muscles as they can act like scalded cats.
-k @FitOldDog
Today’s workout:
Easy run and fly home from Spain. Ironman Lake Placid training will start ramping up on Monday.
Important Note: These posts do not provide medical advice. You should always consult your physician before undertaking or significantly modifying an exercise program.
Copyright © 2010 Kevin T. Morgan aka FitOldDog, Old Dogs in Training, LLC.
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Safe travels!
Thanks Becky, I’m home with Deb again and it is good to be back, but it was also a good thing to have gone over there, and I enjoyed seeing my sister and her son, and having time to process Mom dying (had a good 96 years minus 3 weeks, and was well cared for during the later years, thanks to my sister Marian). -kevin
Where did you take that photo of the tennis ball? I don’t recognise those tiles.
Deb’s kitchen. You do think about the weirdest details. How is your product coming along. I enjoyed the visit, now back trying to catch up with everything. -kevin
A tennis ball attached to your back also stops snoring.
So does insomnia
And they both can ruin your tennis game. -kevin