Theme: I FeelÂ
Acknowledging our need for connections
Chapter 3: Pleasure & Pain (ie: Foam Rollers)
It might seem odd that the last two chapters on sensuality and sexuality didn’t have anything to do with being with other people, especially in a section that talks about our need for connections. The process of awakening each of your chakras, slowly, …and methodically, …is an opportunity to listen to your own body, not anything else. Breathe. What do you feel? What feels good? What hurts right now? What connections have you maintained this last year? How were they important to you? What connections or priorities have you lost hold of in the last year? Which of those lost connections make your gut feel heavy when you think of them, and which ones have made you feel lighter? What is something small that you might like to change this week?
Connections
If you’ve never heard of a foam roller, it’s pretty much a giant hard pool noodle that you roll yourself over to loosen up soft tissue adhesion and apply pressure to your fascia; that’s the connective tissue that surrounds all your muscles, bones, organs, and blood vessels all over your body. Our muscles are always in a constant process of breakdown and repair. They’re supposed to do that. They atrophy if we don’t give them something to do, and they can’t repair after hard work if we don’t feed them protein and fresh water. But exercising our muscles also causes the surrounding fascia to thicken to protect them while they’re mending, which is that sore, stiff feeling you might get the day after a good workout. Myofascial release (especially with foam rollers) stretches the fascia back out to increase your circulation, improve mobility, and decrease that next-day soreness.
Some Tips:
Don’t press on an area that actually hurts or is injured. This should all feel like a hearty massage, not torture. Go slow, like rolling out cookie dough. It should take about 10-15 seconds to go from the base of the muscle to the end. Massage muscle groups, not bones. You’re not trying to pop a vertebrae here. And maintain good posture. You’ll want to keep you back nice and straight (when doing any exercise really) by tightening your abs, and keep your shoulders rolled back and locked into their sockets where they belong.
You know what time it is: stretchy time! Typically I’m too cheap to actually buy gym equipment if I can find something around the house to serve the same purpose, but one foam roller and maybe a yoga ball offer you a lot more stretching opportunities for the $20 or so they cost you. Below are some different foam roller stretches that hurt…so…good.Â
Jet Tries 