As you may know, we are big fans of the Trigger Point Therapy Workbook by Clair Davies. Joe Weir and I were talking about one “humble” but very popular tool for trigger-point self-therapy and for self-massage in general, as is discussed here:
Tennis Ball Massage for Myofascial Pain Syndrome
You can find a great deal of information on trigger points on that site, btw. Both Joe and I know how useful it is but we were also discussing it’s limitations.
The thing is most people use a tennis ball on the floor. They roll around on it to target the thighs and glute medius..things like that. While I have done this quite a few times myself there are a few problems/limitations:
1. If you weigh a lot the tennis ball will collapse.
So, you can use a lacrosse ball or you can purchase a self-massage ball of some kind, which are available in different degrees of firmness. This could be useful because if you are new too to self-massage something like a lacrosse ball may be too hard for you.
The website I just linked mentions a “Kong” pet toy as a massage tool. Which may work also but I would think this would be awkward since they are not perfectly round. But whatever the case:
2. Lying on a ball and rolling around on it is very difficult because you can’t adjust the pressure that well. With all your body weight pressing down on a tender spot centered on a ball you will be concentrating more on getting some of your weight off than you will on getting the ball in the right spot.
Tags: massage, myofascial, self-massage, tennis ball, trigger point therapy
