When Foam Rolling Just Won’t Cut It
Posted on Mar 9th, 2010 by Tony GentilcoreCollectively, Eric, Brian, and myself have always stressed the importance of establishing a network of professionals that you can refer out to when needed. While we generally have our bases covered from the “making people bad-asses” side of things; it almost becomes a necessity to be able to refer out when it comes to soft tissue work.
Sure, we can show people how to foam roll, or how to use ordinary things like a tennis/lacrosse ball to help improve their tissue quality, and usually, that’s all people need in order to see vast improvements. In some cases, however, they can be fairly limited and only go so far.
Personally, foam rollers just don’t do it for me anymore and I’ve graduated to rolling on live grenades. As such, whether it’s finding a great physical therapist, chiropractor, or massage therapist, if you really want to make a difference with tissue quality, nothing beats someone manually getting their hands on you.
As it is, every Monday afternoon, Nate Tiplady from Patient First Chiropractic & Physical Therapy, located in Waltham, MA, comes in with his Graston tools and works on many of our clients, as well as the CP staff.
For those unaware, the Graston Technique is a unique system that uses small, metal tools to help break up scar tissue and adhesions that prevent fluid movement of muscles, tendons, ligaments, as well as other surrounding tissue.
For a quick primer, click HERE for a slideshow that goes into more detail.
It’s not pleasant. Actually, it can downright suck. And it’s sometimes comical to hear the things that come out of people’s mouths when Nate is treating them- sort of like that scene from The 40 Year Old Virgin when Steve Carell’s character goes in to get his chest hair waxed.
Nevertheless, the results speak for themselves, and it’s pretty amazing the marked difference people see in only a matter of a few sessions. What’s more, sometimes you walk away with a sweet bruise on your leg, like I did yesterday:
My bad if your computer just crashed.
Articles You Might Also Like:
Comments ( 9 )
Lauren added these pithy words on Mar 9th, 2010 at 12:28 pm |Graston is a life saver for me - to the point where I looked into purchasing a set for home use (decided that was a bad idea). And, too, I keep having to chuck foam rollers for getting too soft and squishy. Do you know if the foam roller from trigger point is any better? http://store.tptherapy.com/product_p/tpt-grd.htm I love their massage ball.
Len Gilmore added these pithy words on Mar 9th, 2010 at 4:20 pm |Tony,
I’ve never seen any discussion as to what would make Graston the more appropriate choice in a given situation than ART, or vice versa. Usually the stock answer is a safe and less-than-informative “they both work, just get some done”. But this tends to evade the primary question, namely what makes one the “better” choice for certain situations.
The other reason I am curious is because I have had ART performed on me, but never Graston. And not once have I ended up with any significant “war wounds”/bruising. But with people raving about Graston, there’s go to be more than a little something to it, even if bruising like that would be apt to raise an arched eyebrow in the uninitiated.
If you have any thoughts on what the right “situational” choice for soft tissue therapy is in different types of situations, it would be great to hear them. Of course, this can also extend beyond just Graston and ART. I don’t doubt the efficacy of any given modality, I am merely curious which ones may be the most appropriate and effective within a given context.
Michelle added these pithy words on Mar 9th, 2010 at 5:24 pm |um…yikes.
I got The Stick, at the behest of my massage therapist, and like it so far. More intense than a foam roller, but no bruises.
Pete added these pithy words on Mar 9th, 2010 at 5:43 pm |@Lauren: I’ve taken to using the tube piece from the indo board at my gym (I’m always looking for ways to put the crappy stuff to good use.) It’s a little grippier than pvc pipe, so you don’t slip as much if you’re sweating or rolling over clothing.
Ron Shaktar added these pithy words on Mar 9th, 2010 at 6:43 pm |Hey, Tony.
When you have Nate come into the facility, do you guys pay him for a certain amount of his time, and then he will work on anyone in need of it, or does he come in and then people pay him individually? I’ve been wondering about how this might work, as I’d like to make arrangements with a local professional to come into my facility from time to time.
I’m also wondering how often you, Eric, and Brian find yourself getting some work like this done, as you guys are clearly on the “not jacked up” end of the spectrum but certainly can benefit from a performance standpoint, given that the ability to train more intensely (coupled with a demanding coaching schedule) can leave you with areas that would benefit from some focused work.
Nick added these pithy words on Mar 10th, 2010 at 7:18 am |First off Tony, the guns are looking a bit small in that pic. Obviously your t-shirt is waaaay too big, a smaller a t-shirt and the guns turn into cannons.
Secondly, the greatest thing about being an osteopathy student is the free treatments at any time :)
Thirdly, in place of grenades, what would you recommend as a the next step after a foam roller? PVC or something more hardcore? I’m all for hardcore. I did hammer curls and semi-supinated chins in the same workout, talk about brachioradialis development. That is hardcore.
Eric Cressey added these pithy words on Mar 10th, 2010 at 8:18 am |Len,
As a general rule of thumb, Graston tends to be better for more “diffuse” soft tissue restrictions, whereas ART would be more focal in nature (e.g., the musculotendinous junction). It would be very hard to ART an entire adductor or ITB, but the Graston tools allow one to cover a lot of surface area efficiently. Graston’s also good for saving the manual therapist’s hands over time as well, and many folks like the feedback that the tools give with respect to tissue quality.
That said, there are just some places (e.g., subscapularis) that only a thumb can get to - and that thumb may also be useful for pinning down a structure as the individual getting treated goes through an active range of motion.
Hope this helps!
Tony Gentilcore added these pithy words on Mar 10th, 2010 at 10:30 am |Who the hell is this Eric Cressey guy?????
Kathy Ekdahl added these pithy words on Mar 10th, 2010 at 10:14 pm |I would marry Nate Tiplady if it weren’t for the fact I am already married. I had my first ART/Graston session with Nate Monday-and when I got off the table- it was like I was reborn. :)
I had no idea how screwed up my hips had gotten. I have been making the rounds of PT’s MT’s, chiros, trying to find the answer to my back/hip and lateral thigh pain. Found it! Despite the agony, I’m going back next week. I may propose.
Syndicate Tony with 
Tony Gentilcore is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) and Certified Personal Trainer (CPT) through the National Strength and Conditioning Association. Currently residing in the greater Boston area and co-founder of