When I was training for marathons, I bought The Stick at the expo of one of the
races. It is a massage tool. I was told that no matter how hard you
roll it, it wouldn’t harm your muscles, and it is true for me. But, don’t roll it on the bones; it
does hurt. There are many types,
but I have a Sprinter Stick pictured below.
I use it on my quadriceps, hamstrings, calves, IT bands, hips, buttocks, and wherever it’s sore. It’s a good tool to loosen up the muscle (tibialis anterior) right outside of the shinbone (tibia).
I’ve had really good results. When muscles feel tired especially after a long run, I use
it, and it seems I get less sore later.
Of course, it doesn’t feel anything like getting a massage, but to
relieve tightness and soreness, it is a quick fix. I would recommend this to anybody including teenagers who
are active in sports.
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| Thera Cane |
These tools are for massaging trigger points. The Thera Cane was mentioned in The Trigger Point Therapy Workbook by Clair Davies, but it’s probably because the Body Back Buddy wasn’t
available back then. After some
research, I bought Body Back Buddy recently just because it has more knobs. I never used a Thera Cane, so I can’t
say which is better. It works fine
as I know where my trigger points are, but I’m still learning how to maneuver
it as it is cumbersome and a little heavy. A Thera
Cane may be easier to use.
I bought this especially to treat trigger points in my
shoulder blades. As a massage
therapist, I use arms all the time, so I get trigger points in the middle of
the shoulder blades (infraspinatus). I know the benefits of massage, so I
try to self-massage every day.
Even if you can’t afford to get a massage as often as you
would like, you can use these tools to take care of yourself. Happy Massaging!