Meathead Mondays: SMR (Self Myofascial Release) 101
From foam rolling to massage guns, in this week’s episode I’ll review the following:
What is SMR?
What do we think it does?
What does the research say?
How to do it?
My recommendations.
You can always watch the video at the end of my post if you don’t feel like reading!
What is SMR?
Self Myofascial Release is a technique used by many to supposedly expedite recovery, increase sport performance and decrease injury.
There are many “devices” that can be used to perform SMR. These include: foam rollers, balls of different sizes/ hardness levels (i.e. lacrosse balls or tennis balls), massage sticks or other handheld rollers, and vibration & percussion devices like massage guns.
What do we think SMR does?
The NASM textbook on corrective exercise claims that SMR allows clients to “achieve the desired effect of soft tissue mobilization, reestablish neuromuscular efficiency in the body & avoid injury.”
What does the research support?
SMR techniques have not been able to conclusively provide chronic improvements in range of motion (ROM) or performance, or injury prevention.
Both recent works by Hughs & Ramer (2019) and Laimi et al, (2018) show only moderate and acute effects on pain levels. What does that mean? It means it might make you feel better temporarily (10-60 minutes)
In another study by De Souza et al (2019), the authors reported acute positive effects in ankle and hip ROM observed on 14 healthy, adult males. However, there are significant limitations to this study: 1. The study was only conducted on men. 2. The population size only allowed for 30% power, to reach 80% they would need 63 participants.
How to SMR?
When performing SMR, follow these guidelines.
Frequency: Daily, either before or after exercise.
Duration: Short (5-10 min), focusing on “trigger points” for 30/90 seconds depending on intensity & pain tolerance.
Who should avoid SMR: Check with your doctor first if you have or suffer from any contagious skin conditions, open wounds, advanced diabetes, organ failure, or bleeding disorders.
My recommendations
I would recommend SMR in general as part of a general warm-up, especially if clients are feeling “tightness” in a way that causes discomfort. I do not believe in including this in my cleints’ programming because I don’t believe it’s worth the time to focus on something without proven benefits. I also try to keep my clients’ workouts to the bare minimum- I know they don’t have time to be spending on things that may/may not work.
Just because I’m completing this certification as part of my graduate program, doesn’t remove me from thinking critically and remaining up to date on the most recent research.
As always, you can check out a complete list of all my research references by following this link.
Until next time!
-Antonia, CPT & RYT
Coach, Trainer & Your #1 Fan
Owner & Head Coach | A1 Fit Coaching