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. 2022 Feb 15:4:799985.
doi: 10.3389/fspor.2022.799985. eCollection 2022.

Chronic and Residual Effects of a Two-Week Foam Rolling Intervention on Ankle Flexibility and Dynamic Balance

Thomas Christoph Seever  1 , Joel Mason  1 , Astrid Zech  1
Affiliations

Chronic and Residual Effects of a Two-Week Foam Rolling Intervention on Ankle Flexibility and Dynamic Balance

Thomas Christoph Seever et al. Front Sports Act Living. .

Abstract

Background: Foam rolling has been shown to acutely improve joint range of motion (ROM). However, limited knowledge exists on the chronic and residual effects. The primary purpose of this study was to examine the chronic and residual effects of a 2-week roller-massager intervention on ankle dorsiflexion ROM and dynamic balance.

Methods: Forty-two participants (24.3 ± 2.5 years, 33 males, 9 females) were randomly assigned to either roller-massage (RM) or control group (= no intervention). Ankle ROM was assessed with the weight-bearing lunge test (WBLT) and dynamic balance with the Y-Balance test for both limbs. The RM group was instructed to roll their calf muscles for three sets of 60 s per leg on 6 days a week over 2 weeks. Acute effects were measured during baseline testing for dorsiflexion ROM and dynamic balance immediately after foam rolling. Chronic and residual effects were measured 1 day and 7 days after the intervention period. Multivariate ANOVA was performed for post-hoc comparisons to determine acute, chronic, and residual effects.

Results: Significant acute and chronic foam rolling effects (p <0.05) were found for ankle dorsiflexion ROM. The chronic increase in ROM slightly decreased 7 days post-intervention but remained significantly above baseline (p < 0.05). Regarding dynamic balance, there were no acute but chronic (p < 0.05) and residual (p < 0.05) effects.

Conclusion: Using a roller-massager for a 2-week period chronically increases ROM and dynamic balance. These increases are still significant 7 days post-intervention emphasizing the sustainability of foam rolling effects.

Keywords: ankle dorsiflexion; balance; foam rolling; range of motion; roller-massage.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Timeline of measurements and intervention.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Roller massage technique.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Study flow chart.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Change in WBLT over time in the treatment group and controls.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Change in YBT composite score over time in the treatment group and controls.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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