Trigger Point Grid Foam Roller

I'm thinking about buying a foam roller, and having never used one before I have no idea about whats available / good / terrible.  The reason I am looking at the Trigger Point ones is that I have a voucher for sweatshop and these are the style that they sell there. 

Just wondering if anyone has used one and if so what they though of it?

If the grid thing is a gimmick then I'm sure I will find plenty other things to spend my voucher on and I can just buy a cheaper roller online!!

There's been a lot of discussion about this over on the Paris thread, with plenty of people swearing by (and at) the grid roller. It takes a bit of getting used to (especially when you find knots in your muscles that you didn't even know you had) but I've found regular use has pretty much fixed a problem I was having with my hip. I haven't used a foam roller, but I think the added firmness will mean it lasts longer and is probably more effective overall.

Look for references to the Orange Roller Of Doom....

I love mine.  It's brutal but it does the job.

yer_maj wrote (see)

It's brutal but it does the job.

That's pretty much the gist of about forty pages of chat.

I have a red roller of doom. Purchased from an eBay sports kit vendor for £20. Despite being just half the price of the Grid rollers I'm sure it's not causing me only half the pain! I'd agree 1000% with the 'brutal but effective' assessment - in three weeks it sorted out a longstanding calf problem that I'd been struggling with for 7+ years. It also made my eyes water and the rest of me break out in a cold sweat. My dog snarls and bristles at it when I use it as she knows it's causing me pain. Which is almost funny enough to take my mind off the horror of it all...

Runs with dogs - my cat goes for my OROD every time I use it too - very funny!

I have a basic foam one, the famed Grid, and now even the one with the big teeth I haven't really tried yet.  Always seem to end up with something from the VLM expo. 

I'm having a bit of a TfL issue since the marathon, and I am pretty sure the grid, or even the basic roller, make it worse.  Could this be right?

Just ordered a OROD, will hopefully have it next week. However, wouldn't exactly say that I'm looking forward to using it!

Any tips on how to use it effectively on the calfs?

Sportsshoes.com have 'em for £35 quid and there is currently a code giving 10% off and free deliver. On top of that if you go through TopCashback you can get 10% cashback too.

Should work out to be well under £30.

Sean G with my very sensitive calf muscles I got them used to the roller by starting gently and building up, otherwise they would seize.  You can go deeper progressively in long strokes, then start to hold at points of tightness i.e. pain, eventually use the weight of your other leg on top for more pressure.

Reikirabit...thanks for the info.

Sean what's the code?

I cancelled the blue one and orderd the grid orange one. You can get 10% cashback from topcashback and it's 37 quid with free delivery.

Code expired weeks ago.

I used the code and topcashback. However, they ultimatley knocked back the cash back .  Still got it for about £31.50 though.

The blues one is too soft, I have black firmer one and it's like a block of granite! Really changed my running, I never get hip/ITB soreness anymore and helps to ease of tight calves (which can cause all sorts of injuries). For 15 pound you can't argue. Just expect a little 'discomfort' when you hit a tender spot

We have a black one too - we've discovered that it's wise to be very careful how you line yourself up on it to do your ITB.  If you use the "finger tip" nodules it's extra ouchy but if you use the wider 'heel of the hand' bands it's more bearable and much more comparable to how a masseuse would release your ITB. 

Pretty sure they do your upper body good too! Ours gets used all the time!

Enjoy

Put 'foam roller' into a You Tube search and there are loads of instructional videos on there. For example...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJLxruO3su0