Mobilize Your Spine with a Foam Roller Video Tutorial
Using a Foam Roller to Help Mobilize Your Spine
Overview
The foam roller is a really great tool that you can use on your own at home to help loosen up the back and mobilize it, stretch out some of those muscles. All you need is, of course, the foam roller.
Level
Beginner to moderate
Targets
Mobility
Step by Step Instructions
- Sit on the floor and place a foam roller at the base of your spine (tailbone area); sit tall.
- (Beginner stretch) Keep your butt on the ground, place your elbows on the roller, and lean back to open the chest/back.
- If stiffness is higher in the back, slide the roller up under the mid/upper back (butt stays down) and lean back again.
- Keep a neutral head/neck; you may support your head with your hands. Don’t tuck the chin too far—aim for neutral.
- Return upright, reposition the roller as needed, and repeat the gentle lean-backs for a comfortable stretch.
- (Advanced rolling) Move the roller back to the tailbone/base of spine; lean onto your elbows.
- Lift your hips off the floor; either cross arms over chest or lightly support the neck.
- Roll your back over the foam roller slowly back and forth to mobilize the spine; pause briefly over any stiff spots.
- For an extra stretch, set your butt down and lean back as far as comfortable (elbows in, head neutral); hold a few seconds, then come back up.
- Lift hips again and continue rolling, traveling from upper shoulders toward lower back; walk your feet to move along the roller.
- Maintain smooth, controlled motion and a neutral head/neck throughout; use your core to control the movement.
- Finish by lowering your hips and sitting up; use this as a sup
plementary at-home back mobilization.
[Video Transcript]
The foam roller is a really great tool that you can use on your own at home to help loosen up the back and mobilize it, stretch out some of those muscles. All you need is, of course, the foam roller.
Start by putting this foam roller at the base of your spine. You’re going to want to sit up nice and tall and straight. It goes around the tailbone area. You can start, for beginners, by having your elbows on the foam roller and just leaning back, just giving yourself a nice stretch this way. Now, if you feel like you’re a little bit more stiff in the middle part of your back or maybe the upper part of your back, just move that foam roller up and just keep your butt on the ground. You can just lie back. Sometimes I like to hold my head, keeping a nice neutral head posture, as much as I can, and lean back as far as you can go. Some of us are going to be really flexible and lean back far, but some of us can just lean back this way.
Then if you would like, come back up, move that foam roller back a little bit more. Again, just give yourself a nice stretch. Keep your elbows in. You don’t want to tuck your chin too far into your chest because you don’t want to take that curve out. You just want a nice neutral head posture.
Now, for a little bit more advanced foam rolling, come back up, bring that foam roller right to the base of your spine or the tailbone area. Again, just start by leaning back. You can lean back on your elbows. This time, you’re going to pick up your hips, and then I like to have my arms either crossed across my chest like this. Sometimes I like to give my neck a little support like that. All you need to do is just move back and forth over the foam roller like this. Again, this is designed to loosen up the back. It’s a really great mobilization exercise. If I find an area where it feels a little bit more stiff than other areas, I just lean back over it slightly.
Now, if you really want to get a good stretch and you’re flexible enough, you can put your bum on the ground and you can lean back as far as you can. Keep those elbows in and hold that stretch until maybe for a few seconds. Just until you feel things loosen up. Bring your head back up, bring your hips up off of the ground, and just start moving a little bit more maybe towards the top of the neck. Sorry, the top of the shoulders and maybe down towards the low back. You’re going to have to move your feet if you’re doing this. In order to do it this way, you’re going to have to have a strong core. Maybe you can look at some of the core exercise videos as well.
That’s how to keep your back moving, everything mobilized while you’re at home. Of course, the best way my opinion is to get on the wobble chair, and do your spine molding. But this is a really great supplementary exercise as well.
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