How does vibration foam rolling massage affect plantar extensors muscle exsplosive strength properties? Pilot study

Authors

Borisavljevic Aleksandar, Sports Academy

Abstract

Implementation of classical foam rolling as a technique of self massage has been reported to induce different changes in muscle properties but still many confounding effects exist in current literature in terms of its beneficial use. Recent development of a foam roller (FRv) with vibration has found its way to end users in many forms of exercise practice. Combination of two types of treatment in one tool creates an even bigger gap between the use of that tool on one end and a clear scientific justification for its use on the other. Better and clearer scientific understanding is needed for these innovations before they become a safe, useful and standard tool in everyday exercise practice. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the acute effects of a single short session of vibrating foam rolling on muscle strength contractile properties, specifically, explosive strength (ExS) properties such as maximal rate of force development (RFDmax), time for RFDmax (tRFDmax) and RFDFmax during maximal voluntary isometric contraction. Healthy twenty-three recreationally active male subjects with no prior injuries who were familiar with foam rolling participated in this study (Mean ± SD, Age - 25 ± 5.1 yrs., BH - 185.3 ± 6.3 cm, BM - 81.8 ± 8.0 kg). After baseline strength measurements subjects completed a specific FRv warmup and performed pretest protocol: low frequency vibration (29Hz) foam rolling treatment of the calf muscles of each leg for 15 seconds and three ExS posttests. All three posttests were separated by 5 minutes rest intervals analyzing RFDmax, tRFDmax and RFDFmax. Statistically significant changes were found for RFDmax and tRFDmax. No significant changes were found for RFDFmax. These findings suggest that vibration foam rolling is not a safe technique of self-administered massage in recreational exercise practice since it induced negative changes in here examined muscle explosive strength variables in terms of pre-workout activity or as a pre-competition procedure. Caution is advised when implementing this type of procedure.

Keywords

foam roller, vibrating foam roller, RFDmax, tRFDmax, RFDFmax.

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