No matter whether you’re a professional athlete, someone who works out regularly as a hobby, or an individual who simply spends the majority of their time at a desk, chances are you’ve experienced foot and neck tension. These two parts of the body are one of the most exposed ones to pain. The reasons are simple.
The feet are the body parts that carry the majority of our weight every day. When combined with a poor choice of footwear and insufficient care, they can easily combine traumatized and lead to pain and other long-term consequences. On the other hand, the neck is affected by tension in the shoulders, the head, and other surrounding muscles. If you’ve fallen victim to foot pain or neck pain, don’t be quick to choose medication as your best shot at resolving the problem.
There are a number of ways you can cure foot and neck pain without the help of pills or injections. For example, back in time, people relied on warm river stones that were placed on the affected area for relief. Today, we have a more sophisticated and advanced method that we can use – massage balls. In this article, we’ll look at how massage balls can help with foot pain and neck pain. We’ll also explore their advantages and show you how you can use them.
What is a massage ball?
If you’ve gone shopping for a massage ball, you may have been surprised with the vast majority of options you have availabe. You may have seen them marketed as foot massage balls or massage balls for neck but they’re pretty much the same thing. You may also see them sold as myofascial release balls, yoga balls, or physical therapy balls. They come in different shapes, sizes, and colors.
Over the years, deep tissue massage balls have turned into a popular technique for conducting your own massage therapy to release muscle tension and stimulate faster recovery. Deep tissue massage balls have spikes that are designed to help target the affected zone. The spikes target the myofascial system to stimulate better blood flow, improve body awareness, get rid of muscle tension, and contribute to injury prevention and rehabilitation. They specifically target trigger points, which is how they are able to reduce pain and enhance motion.
How does a massage for feet help with pain?
If you’re physically active or if you’ve experienced foot pain, you’ve probably been recommended to use a massage ball for your feet by friends, family, or experts. There are a lot of reasons why. Using massage balls for your feet works in a number of ways.
The pressure applied to the affected zone is efficient at distracting the brain’s pain receptors, leading to temporary relief of foot pain. Repeating the message will lead to a long-term positive effect and potentially full elimination of pain. Furthermore, a foot massage performed by a deep tissue massage ball improves blood flow and sends blood to the affected zone. This additionally contributes to the elimination of pain from previous insufficiently treated tears.
Another benefit of using foot exercise balls is that they stimulate certain heel and footpoints, leading to the ability of these areas to relax and release any accumulated stress as a result of physical activity or tension. The good news is that using a foot massage ball can happen anytime, anywhere. The size of the ball allows it to be carried to work, to the gym or used at home. All you have to do is spend a few minutes a day caring for your feet and the results will be evident. Deep tissue massage balls are often prescribed as an additional form of treatment by professional therapists too.
Are massage balls for neck effective?
In short, yes, massage balls for the neck are an amazing way to treat soreness and pain in the neck zone. It’s also an effective method to remove any kinks and knots. When it comes to neck pain treatment and massage balls, you can rely on a long-term effect. This is due to the reason that instead of only scratching the surface, neck massage balls can be effective in tackling the root of the problem. However, the treatment may need to be combined with other techniques or changes in lifestyle too.
For example, if you’re experiencing neck pain as a result of weak back muscles from regular sitting in front of a laptop, chances are that the massage ball will help you take care of the pain temporarily but won’t offer a permanent solution unless you change your habits. Correcting your posture will involve a lot more than massages from time to time.
Here is an effective ways you can use the neck massage ball for your benefit:
- Rest on your back
- Bend your knees
- Position the massage ball on your rear delt where the connection point with your back is located
- Apply more pressure by leaning towards your shoulder
- Rock your arms performing a semi-circular motion
- Repeat for around 30 seconds and continue to the next painful area in your rear delt
- Repeat for the opposite side
How to use a massage ball
When you are getting started with your massage ball for feet or your neck massage ball, make sure to only target a few knots at a time, focusing on the ones with the highest priority first. As you can imagine, the high priority areas would be the ones causing the most pain. Your aim is to secure the know in the muscle with the ball and slowly and gently apply pressure to reduce the sense of pain from the area. Once you feel that the spot has been relieved of tension, hold the ball in position and breathe in and out to relax. Hold this position until most of the pain has been eliminated.
Be careful not to press too tightly as this can cause additional pain and will prevent the massage ball from having a positive effect. Pushing too hard could also lead to muscle irritation and further problems. What you want to experience is a soft pain that is manageable. Gradually start rolling the ball in other surrounding areas to locate any other painful spots and sit back and enjoy the feeling of tension release.
Once the pain has been eliminated, make sure to compliment the massage therapy with regular muscle stretching to help prevent the problem in the future. You can use your massage ball once or twice a day.
In short, here is how you can use your foot massage ball or deep tissue massage ball:
- Rub the ball in the affected zones applying moderate pressure.
- Sit or stand on the massage ball, letting your weight do the magic.
- Use specific movements using the spikes on the ball to stimulate certain muscles and provide deep tissue recovery and relaxation.
It’s important to note that it’s not advisable to use a massage ball if you’ve recently suffered from an injury or a skin-penetrating trauma, joint inflammation, or other health problems. If you’re not sure whether you can use a deep tissue massage ball, speak to your doctor or another health expert who can point you in the right direction and provide professional support.
All the reasons to try the massage ball for feet and neck
As you can see, getting your own foot massage ball or neck massage ball can do you a world of good. We’ll sum up by providing an easy to comprehend list of benefits from using a deep tissue massage ball to release muscle tension and get rid of pain:
- Stress relief – regardless of your age or profession, a massage ball can offer significant stress relief if used consistently.
- Elimination of anxiety – foot and neck massages are an amazing way to take away built-up anxiety and eliminate depression.
- Pain reduction – as we’ve already mentioned, one of the main reasons people choose to use a massage ball is thanks to its power to eliminate pain.
- Injury prevention – regularly rolling a massage ball under your feet will help you improve mobility and strength.
- Enhanced circulation – boost the circulation in your foot and neck area by using a reliable and high-quality massage ball.
- Sleep improvement – the elimination of pain will inevitably help you improve your sleep cycle and enjoy a good night’s rest.
- Reduced blood pressure – relaxing foot and neck massages can significantly decrease blood pressure.
- Improved bloodway flow – by stimulating the affected area with the spiky massage ball you are also contributing to better blood flow.
