Are Vibrating Foam Rollers Worth It? My Injury Rehab Struggles

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So I found myself asking the question ‘are vibrating foam rollers worth it?‘

I recently injured my right quadricep muscle at the gym, an injury caused by me not warming correctly before starting my leg-day workout, I know, it was very stupid of me.

After a meeting with a physiotherapist, it was recommended that in order to recover faster I should start rolling with a foam roller. Luckily, I had one at home that I’ve had for years but to be honest, it was not in the greatest condition. I need to upgrade my foam roller.

After browsing the many basic foam rollers on Amazon, I saw vibrating foam rollers on offer which made me wonder ‘are vibrating foam rollers worth it?’ or should I just stick to a cheap basic foam roller?

So I decided to do a little bit of research.

Table of Contents

• What are vibrating foam rollers?
• How do vibrating foam rollers work?
• Does foam rolling mean my injuries will heal faster?
• What Are The Different Types Of Vibrating Foam Rollers?
• Which Vibrating Foam Roller is the Go-to brand?
• Which one did I decide to go for?

What are vibrating foam rollers?

Vibrating foam rollers are basically the same as normal foam rollers, except they vibrate at different speeds. You can either turn the vibration on or off depending on your preference and just like regular foam rollers, you simply massage your muscles with it.

How do vibrating foam rollers work?

A lot of people might think that vibrating foam rollers will somehow stimulate your muscles to contract and relax as it rolls over them, but this is actually not the case.

Vibrating foam rollers work by shaking tissue fluid inside the muscle around so you can break up any knots or lactic acid. This process is a lot quicker than using a regular foam roller.

Does foam rolling mean my injuries will heal faster?

I asked myself whether a vibrating foam roller would speed up the recovery of my muscle injury. So firstly, it’s important to know that even though using a vibrating foam roller can help relax your muscles and decrease pain, it doesn’t guarantee to make your injuries heal faster. The recovery process is different for everyone depending on several factors.

The vibrating foam roller will help you recover faster by removing the buildup of lactic acid that causes increased tissue compression and pain.

What Are The Different Types Of Vibrating Foam Rollers?

I’ve seen a few different types of vibrating foam rollers, those with a basic vibrating function are easy to come by, but some come with a heat and massage element, and some even come with smart features that enable you to connect to an app on your smartphone. Like the Therabody and the JaxJox, but for me these are a bit gimmicky, why do I really need a vibrating foam roller to connect to an app?

I also looked at a roller that provides heat and massage, it’s called the Lifepro and it is understandably quite a bit more pricey than anything else I saw as it has so many functions over a basic vibrating foam roller, it also comes bundled with a heated massage gun too which in my opinion is a pretty cool addition.

Which Vibrating Foam Roller is the Go-to brand?

There are numerous vibrating foam rollers around on the market, which can make it hard to gauge which brand manufactures the most value for money. One of the first brands to come on the market with a foam roller was Hyperice who manufacture the Hyper 2.0 (Stuart Patrick did a review on the Hyperice Vyper foam roller). But since Hyperice released this model, many cheaper models have come out that promise the same thing which makes you question whether paying the extra for the Hyperice is worth it. Models like the URBNFit really give the Hyperice a competition in the vibrating foam roller category.

Which one did I decide to go for?

In the end after much deliberation, I decided to go for the Body Bolt Vibrating Foam Roller, why?

• Firstly, the price was reasonable, as this is something I’m new to i didnt want to spend too much. If I like the effect of foam rolling then I’ll maybe give this one to my partner or a family member and then go for an upgrade later on.
• I needed one that was small enough to fit in my gym bag and lightweight too. The Body Bolt fit this requirement really well. I dont need my gym bag to be too heavy, and I also may want to travel abroad with this foam roller in my luggage, so I need something that doesnt make my luggage too heavy or take up too much space.
• Good functionality, durability and battery life. Reading through the reviews I was pleased with the 4 vibration massage settings and also the high durability of the materials used, because I dont want this to look worn out after two years, like my non-vibrating foam roller.

Author

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