Why Foam Rolling & Stretching Won’t Fix Your Pain

Last week, a buddy of mine, also a physical therapist, reached out with severe neck and lower back pain.

He'd been ramping up his lifting routine, pushing through minor aches until they became unbearable, forcing him to stop working out.

He had a bunch of questions:

• “How’s my technique?”

• “What stretches should I do?”

• “Should I foam roll?” 

After discussing his training plan, it was clear he was overdoing it. He went from lifting casually once or twice a week to 4 intense lifts every week. I stopped him and said:

1. You’re asking the wrong questions.

2. Your training plan is the problem, and you’re going to get hurt if we don’t fix it.

He thought he needed “more mobility,” but his body was overstressed due to the sudden increase in training volume, which was the real cause of his pain.

Sure, stretches and mobility exercises might feel good, but they don’t fix the actual problem.

The real problem was training errors like:

• doing too much too, soon after doing too little, for too long.

• always pushing to the max.

• not listening to his body.

His rapid increase in intensity without proper recovery is what caused his flare-up.

So I advised him to use RPE (Rate of Perceived Exertion) to regulate workout intensity based on how he felt each day.

By using RPE, a measure of difficulty on a scale from 0-10, you can adjust your workout intensity based on how you feel that day.

Using RPE:

• If you feel great, push harder.

• If you feel off, take it easy.

For example:

• Monday: Feel great? Hard workout, 8/10 RPE.

• Wednesday: So-so? Moderate workout, 7/10 RPE.

• Friday: Great again? Hard workout, 8/10 RPE, hit a new PR.

• Saturday: Super sore? Easy workout to recover, 6/10 RPE.

This is a simple way to adjust training based on recovery and how you feel. This will help you build capacity and adapt to new training volumes without getting beat up.

Since this tweak, he’s been doing great—training pain-free within a week!

Here’s What This Means for You:

The biggest mistakes leading to aches, pains, and injuries are:

• Not because you need to stretch more.

• Not because you didn’t foam roll enough.

• Not because you’re “out of alignment.”

• No because you need “more mobility.”

It’s actually:

• Doing too much, too soon.

• Doing too little, for too long.

• Not allowing for recovery.

• Always pushing to the max.

Getting out of pain requires more than stretches and mobility exercises. It also involves a good training plan, adequate recovery, and listening to your body's signals.

Struggling with pain and want to discuss how we can work together to help you get you get back to pain-free workouts?

If you’re in the Columbus, OH area: click here to schedule a free phone consult with my team. We’ll ask you a few questions and see if we’re a good fit to help.

If you're outside of Columbus, OH: that's exactly why I created my virtual pain & mobility coaching program. Click here to schedule a free consult with me!

Keep moving,

Dr. Matt Longfellow, PT, DPT, SCS, SFG-II