5 Foam Roller Exercises You Can Try To Promote Weight Loss In 2024

Losing weight is the ultimate goal of many people who start exercising. While there are many ways to work out, not all have to be extremely strenuous. You can use a simple foam roller to perform easy exercises at home.

Does foam rolling burn calories? Fetch the foam roller or purchase one to start performing easy exercises. The moment you begin engaging in active foam rolling, you can see results. Your body responds to the change in pace and technique. Not only does your metabolism activate, but you also end up burning more calories in the process.

If you find foam rolling intriguing, then stick around to learn more about its benefits. In addition, you can learn five easy foam rolling exercises to lose weight.

Foam Roller Exercises To Lose Weight

There are no shortcuts to losing weight and achieving that lean upper body. But, using a medium or high-density foam roller, you can perform easy exercises that stimulate blood circulation and relax your muscle fibers. Here are 5 easy exercises to do during the recovery process.

Sleek Arms Roll

Your upper arm can have lots of muscle tension after an intense session at the gym. One way to ease the tension and tone the area is through workout foam rolling.

How to do: 

1. Begin by lying on your right side with the foam roller under your armpit.
2. Keep your legs straight and stacked on top of each other.
3. Place your left hand on the floor in front of you for stability.
4. Roll the foam roller up and down your arm, targeting the triceps.
5. Perform the exercise for the desired number of repetitions on each side.

Tips:

• Keep your upper body stable and avoid excessive swinging during the exercise.
• Maintain a slow and controlled pace to maximize tricep engagement.
• Pay attention to any discomfort or pain, and stop the exercise if you experience it.

Optimal Sets and Reps: 3 sets of 10-12 reps per side.

Hip Roll

The Hip Roll is a dynamic core exercise that involves hip lifting and controlled side-to-side rolling, targeting your oblique muscles for improved core strength and stability.

How to do: 

1. Lie on the right side of your body to do this easy exercise
2. Place the foam roller under your right hip while supporting yourself with your right elbow.
3. Place your right leg extended
4. Place your bent left knee over your right leg for additional support. Straighten your right arm, lift your torso, and roll your body up and down 10 to 12 times before switching to the other side.

Tips:

• Start with a slow, controlled movement to avoid straining your lower back.
• Keep your core engaged throughout to maintain stability and balance.
• Ensure proper hip alignment during the exercise to prevent discomfort.

Optimal Sets and Reps: Aim for 3 sets of 12-15 repetitions per side.

Butt Roll

After working out your upper arm and hips, it’s time to exercise your butt. Start by sitting on the floor, then place the foam roller underneath your butt. Support yourself by bracing your arms behind you and extending your legs on the floor.

Roll the foam roller back and forth underneath your butt for maximum relief. Not only does your butt get to relax, but you ease tension in your arms, right and left leg, and back.

How to do: 

1. Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat.
2. Lift your hips, roll toward your shoulders, and return to start.
3. Engage glutes and maintain controlled movements.
4. Repeat for desired reps, targeting glute muscles.

Tips:

• Keep your glutes engaged and core tight throughout the movement to maximize muscle activation.
• Maintain a slow, controlled pace and avoid excessive rolling to target your glute muscles effectively.
• Ensure your head and neck remain relaxed during the exercise to avoid unnecessary tension.

Optimal Sets and Reps: 3 sets of 12-15 reps per side.

Back Roll

Next, you can help more blood^[1] flow all over your back using the foam roller. Lie on the floor and rest your hands on the back of your head. Place the foam rolling underneath your back and tighten your back. Then you can start moving the roller up and down your back while your knees bent.

Making slowly roll back and forth on your back will help with any back pain. Ensure place the foam roller horizontally reaches your lower back area before moving it to your shoulder blades.

How to do: 

1. Sit on the floor with your legs extended and a foam roller behind you.
2. Lie back on the foam roller, resting your hands on the back of your head.
3. Roll backward, tucking your chin, and engaging your core.
4. Roll back up to the starting position, using controlled motion.
5. Perform for the desired number of reps to engage your core and improve flexibility.

Tips:

• Maintain steady control throughout the movement to engage core muscles effectively and avoid strain.
• Focus on breathing rhythmically to support core engagement and relaxation during the exercise.
• Start with a foam roller of appropriate density and gradually increase intensity as your flexibility and core strength improve.

Optimal Sets and Reps: 3 sets of back rolls exercise 10-12 repetitions.

Quads Roll

After the back, you can prevent injury by stretching your quads. Start by lying flat on your stomach and place the foam roller under your hips. 

How to do: 

1. Lie facedown with a foam roller under your thighs.
2. Use your arms to roll the foam roller along your quads.
3. Roll from the hips to just above the knees.
4. Maintain steady, controlled movements.
5. Perform desired reps, focusing on quads for muscle relief.

Tips:

• Apply gentle pressure at first and gradually increase to avoid discomfort.
• Keep your core engaged and maintain a controlled rolling motion.
• Focus on any tender or tight spots in your quads and spend extra time rolling over those areas to release tension.

Optimal Sets and Reps: Perform 2-3 sets of 10-15 rolls per leg.

After the back, you can prevent injury by stretching your quads. Start by lying flat on your stomach and place the foam roller under your hips. Raise yourself with your arms while the lower part of your body remains in contact with the foam roller.

Move the foam roller up and down your hips from the knee to the lower part of your stomach. Repeat this 10 to 12 times for maximum results.

How Foam Roller Exercise For Weight Loss Works

Perhaps you got foam rollers with other exercise equipment a long time ago. But, you’ve never taken an interest in learning how it can help you burn fat and achieve your body goals. Well, this is the time to understand the foam rolling and start using it.

Foam rolling is an easy workout that can be pretty beneficial to your body. When you begin performing the different exercises, you experience muscle stimulation.^[2] They also help in improving blood circulation. Your body manages to relax and become much more flexible.

It might sound like hype. How can such exercises using such a simple tool help you with sore muscles? Well, scientific evidence^[3] the benefits of roller for weight loss. Using a foam roller enables you to achieve a lean body.

However, all this depends on the effort you make in the weight loss process. It’s a continuous effort to keep your metabolic rate going. Foam rolling exercises have numerous benefits. Keep reading and get to learn them before proceeding to different easy exercises you can start doing.

Benefits Of Foam Rolling For Weight Loss

Foam rollers roll are workout tools you can use to exercise your body. It comes in handy, especially when you have muscle group soreness or want to improve your body tone. There are different simple exercises you can do that benefit your body immensely and increase tone.

Read on and get to learn the different health and wellness benefits you can achieve.

Relax Muscle Soreness

One of the side effects of strenuous workout routines is muscle soreness. The exercises cause inflammation in the muscles in different parts of the body. If you don’t find ways to ease this, it can limit your performance for the rest of the day or week.

Using a foam roller, you can ease the pain you feel in your body. The right time to engage in these exercises using the simple tool is after an intense workout. Get on with it since this is the best way to curb muscle soreness^[4] before it’s evident in your body.

In addition, you have a much more beneficial recovery time. This is because your body joints get to stretch and ease any muscle tension building up in those parts. Though much more research is needed to learn how foam rolling helps alleviate muscle pain, it’s a great way to recover after an intense workout session.

Improve Body Flexibility

Having a flexible body is quite crucial as you strive to lose weight. A foam roller is good for stretching as it helps you relax and become more flexible. By stretching your muscles and joints, you can achieve a wide range of motion and perform better. It’s what is known as self-myofascial.

A wide range of motion is vital for several reasons. But, the most important one is that muscles in each area of your body perform at their peak. There’s proper mobility in every part of your body, reducing the chances of feeling pain or being inhibited.

More so, body flexibility^[5] makes it easier to achieve more benefits from your workout routine. You can push yourself more without straining the body and burn more calories.

Reduces The Appearance Of Cellulite

One of the biggest trends today is using foam rolling to reduce the appearance of cellulite. There are so many experts discussing how this benefit is causing many people to purchase a foam roller. But before understanding how this works, it’s best to start with defining what cellulite is.

In the human body, the skin and muscles are separated by a layer of fat. You get cellulite when the skin on your body gets pulled down to the muscle area. This is because the tissue bands at that time caused an uneven appearance.

Cellulite happens with age as the skin loses its elasticity. Foam rolling comes in at this point to help reduce the appearance of cellulite on different parts of your body. However, this is a temporary solution that softens the fat underneath the skin. In turn, the bumpy areas on your skin aren’t as visible.

Achieve Maximum Relaxation

Relaxation is quite crucial for your health and well-being. When your body is tense or anxious, it’s hard to relax. Thankfully, there are different exercises you can do to relax your body and mind. Using a foam roller, you can break the muscle intensity^[6] into different parts.

The outcome is a much calmer demeanor. It’s best to do this after intense exercises as a way for your body to recover. You can rest easier since you’re stretching different parts like your legs, upper back, and joints. Additionally, you can engage in active breathing with each foam rolling exercise to relax your mind.

Break Up Lactic Acid

Intense exercise routines like being on the treadmill for more than half an hour may cause lactic acid to build up. This is mainly evident in the muscles of your body as the lymphatic system becomes active. The buildup isn’t a good thing since this is what causes your muscles and joints to start aching after some time.

That’s why you have to find different ways to break up the lactic acid^[7] immediately. Luckily, this is achievable using a foam roller and some easy exercises. These congested areas in your body get to relax as you keep your legs extended and arch your back.

After reading about the different health benefits^[8] of foam rolling, you can proceed to the easy exercises. In this article, there are 5 simple ones you can do after your workout routine.

Summing Up

Recovery is quite crucial after an intense workout as you strive to burn fat. You can use a foam roller to lose weight and gain a lean body^[9]. Foam rolling exercises are simple to do and have numerous benefits to your body listed in this article.

Understand the 5 easy foam roller exercises and start incorporating them into your routine today to lose weight.