Part 5 -Foam Rolling Quads!

This edition of the Foam Rolling Series, Foam Rolling Quads is  for all our active patients out there, including our walkers, runners and gardeners! We hope you’re all enjoying the last of the summer sunshine. Well done to all of our patients who completed the Run for the Kids on the weekend and Good Luck to all of those participating in the 50km or 100km Oxfam Trail Walk this weekend! We’re sure all your training and hard work will pay off as you raise money and awareness for such important causes.

For any of you who have been doing some running or hiking lately or getting out in the garden over the long weekend you may be experiencing some tightness or discomfort in your Quadriceps Muscles. Your Quadriceps Muscles are your thigh muscles, between your hip and your knee, and they are very hard working muscles.

Whether it’s squatting up and down in the garden, running in the park or hiking up a hill, your Quadriceps Muscles work to power you through these activities and so it’s no wonder we often find ourselves wanting to massage our thigh muscles at the end of a long day.

This is where Foam Rolling Quads comes in handy! Your Quadriceps are a group of 4 muscles and so, when foam rolling this area, it’s important to work through all the separate bands of muscle.

Foam Rolling

• Start by kneeling on the floor with your Foam Roller across ways in front of you resting up against your thighs.
• Lean over the Foam Roller and place your hands on the floor with your thighs resting onto the roller, as if you are about to do a push up.
• Alternatively you can be on your elbows in a plank position.
• Rock your body forwards and backwards working your Quadriceps along the Roller.
• Remember to stick to the meaty part of the muscle- no boney areas, you will feel some discomfort so take deep breaths and perhaps a break if needed.
• To avoid any discomfort in your lower back, ensure that you keep your pelvis lifted- don’t let it sag to the floor (this also gives you a bonus abdominal muscle workout!)

You have now released the main Quadriceps Muscle, the middle band called the Rectus Femoris, now we need to release the inner and outer bands of muscle.

• Staying in the same position on the Roller, simply rotate your hips so that both feet point to the left.
• You will now have your right outer thigh and left inner thigh resting on the Foam Roller.
• From here you repeat the forward and backwards rolling as previous, if you prefer you can lift one leg and concentrate on one leg at a time.

Fascial release

This technique helps to release not only the muscle itself but also the fascia surrounding the muscle. Fascia is like a glad wrap which covers the muscle and releasing the fascia can help improve the way the muscle functions.

• For an extra fascial release on your Quadriceps Muscles you can hold the pressure on one particular tight area and then slowly bend one knee and straighten it and then bend the other knee and straighten it.
• Repeat this movement slowly on each side 5-10 times.

If you think that perhaps your quadriceps might need some extra attention after gardening, running or completing the Oxfam Trail Walk, feel free to call the clinic or go online and make a booking!