Got some tight hammies?! Tight hamstrings follow the same fascial or connective tissue chain as the calves and hamstrings.
In this episode of Fix Your Plantar Fasciitis, we’ll get into some self- massage techniques for the hips and hamstrings. Lately I’ve been loving this wooden roller as it has ridges that kind of squeeze the hamstrings and calves as you roll. You can also use that groove to kind of separate out the different muscle lines. Another favorite is cupping the IT band and that will help with another fascial line that can be an accomplice in plantar fasciitis.
We then get into some fascial stretches, which are a little different than muscle stretches. An instructor at a training I once took put it beautifully…a muscle stretch is just pulling the muscle the opposite way it contracts, a fascial stretch would be like if you’re wearing jeans or a wetsuit—there would be more pull on the fabric. Since plantar fasciitis is inflammation of the fascia, we’re going to hone in on some deep fascial stretches you can do at the hips.
Lastly, we’ll do some neuromuscular re-activation to make sure the right muscles are kicking on in the right motions. I find that a piece of plantar fasciitis is that the glute max is not working properly and the calves and hamstrings are trying extra hard.
Next episode we’ll get into how to release and properly work the calves. You can subscribe on the channel page to be notified of new episodes!
