Does Foam Rolling Improve Recovery?

Foam rolling is a staple in recovery routines for athletes, strength coaches, and therapists. It’s marketed as a tool for reducing muscle soreness, increasing flexibility, and improving performance.

But how much of that is backed by science?

The study investigated whether hamstring foam rolling improves knee muscle contractile properties and flexibility after soccer-specific activity.

Does foam rolling of the hamstrings improve knee muscle contractility and extensibility in soccer players following a sports-specific load?

Study: The immediate effects of foam rolling of the hamstrings muscle group on the contractile properties of the knee muscles in football players​

What did the researchers do?

Study Overview

• 20 male professional soccer players performed a Yo-Yo Intermittent Recovery Test (a high-intensity endurance test).
• Following the test, the experimental group performed 5 x 45s of foam rolling on hamstrings while the control group rested.
• Contractile properties of key muscles (biceps femoris, rectus femoris, vastus medialis, vastus lateralis) were measured via tensiomyography (TMG).

Outcome Measures

• Muscle contractility markers: delay time (Td), contraction time (Tc), maximum muscle displacement (Dm).
• Active and passive hamstring flexibility.

What were the results?

No significant changes were found between groups after foam rolling:

• Contractile properties (Td, Tc, Dm) of knee muscles remained unchanged (p > 0.05).
• No improvement in hamstring flexibility after foam rolling.
• No observed differences in active or passive knee extensibility.

What does this mean?

• Foam rolling does not improve muscle contractile properties in soccer players following a high-intensity test.
• Hamstring flexibility remains unchanged after foam rolling.
• Foam rolling may not be an effective recovery tool for muscle contractility or extensibility post-exercise.

Limitations

• Only short-term acute effects were measured.
• A small sample size was used with only 20 soccer players.
• Tensiomyography limitations as muscle contractility is complex and influenced by multiple factors.

Coach's Takeaway

• Foam rolling may not improve muscle contractility or flexibility after soccer-specific loading.
• Don't rely solely on foam rolling for recovery—other strategies (mobility drills, active recovery) may be more beneficial.
• Foam rolling might still have subjective benefits (perceived relaxation, reduced soreness), but its physiological effects are limited.