This week I went to a popular sporting goods store and purchased a 'foam roller'.
The therapeutic purposes for a foam roller is to release the lactic acid and other metabolic wastes built up in the somatic system. It is commonly used in outpatient rehabilitation settings.

I completed my first 15 minute 'foam roller workout' and I haven't felt detox symptoms like this in a long time, if ever.

Has anyone ever sought out a masseuse, deep tissue massages, or foam roller, for therapeutic purposes?

This therapeutic concept is bringing about many questions I have about other detoxing techniques including: juice fast, water fast, and other modalities to allow the body to detox.

I'm wondering, if juice/water fasting + some form of physical manipulation [myofascial release] or light kinestetic activity [rebounding] achieves more thorough detoxification.

Common sense would say yes, but lets talk about it.

newhoove,

Well, I suppose so. Consider that the subcutaneous membranes hold toxins just like the deep tissues, a comprehensive approach is probably the best.

Thanks for posting this, because I have wondered about kinetic massage, etc., methods, after seeing some of them done on lymphedemic cancer patients, but never pursued inquiry for myself. Hope you get some interesting responses

Hmm. I'll be thinking about this next time I get a massage. Very interesting. Makes me wonder a bit more about dry brushing as well. That's surface, not deeper tissue, but still...

I was lucky to have found a large diameter swim noodle at my K-mart some years ago. It has the same density as the ones you find at the chiropractors and they are cheaper by a long shot. I also cut mine up and had several of differing lengths to use. All for under $6 if I remember.

It worked my sciatic pain out and it was a feeling of 'hurts so bad it's good'.

I don't have those anymore because of moving, but I look for that swim noodle on occasion and only have found the skinny ones where I'm at now..they might work too though.

Now I work out the pain with a machine called the verseo aqua toner. And I'm learning to keep a 'neutral' spine for posture, walking, sitting, etc.

I would love to have a series of deep tissue massage though..that sounds so good.

Love,
Prism

The foam roller is very effective for helping my IT band friction syndrome. The foam roller in particular is great for helping release the IT band.

I also get deep tissue massages done now and again and if done by a good massage therapist they can really help prevent injuries and help chronic knee pain, especially those caused by tight muscles and IT bands.

[www.vegankingdom.co.uk]

Having been a massage therapist for 12 years, one question I would ask, regarding your mention of myofascial release, would be "release from what to what"? What is your goal in releasing fascia? The goal for my work with fascia is not primarily to detox, though that is a certain benefit. It is simply to restore function to a part, or parts of a body that has been constricted by that fascia. Understand that the fascia can be up to five times stronger than the muscles, and thus, as your concerns state, tend to restrict flow of toxins to the parts of the body used to rid them. And when function is restored to that area and the body is back to the homeostatic condition it needs to be in, the the body will "naturally" process the toxins in the way intended for it to do. Most people go for a massage because it feels good, and often it does. Myofasical work does not necessarily feel good in itself, but the benefits to the overall body and how it functions can and will appear "good". There are many different approaches to myofascial work. Read some of the information composed by Ida Rolf, the founder and developer of Rolfing, which is an extreme form of bodywork primarily to work on the myofascial tissues. But if you've never experienced the 10 sessions necessary to complete a Rolfing session, then you haven't felt what that kind of fascial work is like. John Barnes, who is another type of myfascial specialist has a completely different approach to fascia work, often borderlining on metaphysical aspects of bodywork, and it will "feel" quite different than Rolfing. Sports massage and many many other types of body work incorperate myofascial work into them. The Russians are masters at fascial manipulation and have quite a different approach, read up on Zhenya Kurashova techniques. Bottom line is, the answer to your question on myofascial work is, "it depends", depends on your own body, your goals for wanting or needing the work, your diet, your fluid intake, etc etc etc.

On another hand, every form of manual body massage will affect the myfascial system.

Like Powerlifer I use a foam roller for working on my IT band.
I am also a massage therapist - and I think that any form of gentle rolling will encourage lymph drainage. The lymph system does not have a pump to move it around unlike the blood system which has the heart. Lymph is moved by muscular movement and massage. When you move lymph it is dumped into the blood system to be filtered by the kidneys and got rid of. I always advise my clients to drink lots of water, lay off the caffeine and alcohol etc after a massage and I warn them about feeling tired etc because of the metabolic wastes that will have been shifted and dumped into the blood system.
I suspect that this is what happened to you - you had a good rolling session and moved alot of lymph around - very good. Just take it easy afterwards, drink water and get lots of sleep - perfect