I used a foam roller on my IT band this morning at the gym and it hurt like hell, which I’m guessing it is supposed to. Is there any reason I should pay $60 for a PT Masssage Quadballer when I can get a foam roller for $20?
I used a foam roller on my IT band this morning at the gym and it hurt like hell, which I’m guessing it is supposed to.
Indeed, unfortunately this is a sign that you were using it correctly 
Is there any reason I should pay $60 for a PT Masssage Quadballer when I can get a foam roller for $20?
Go for the foam roller, it’s cheaper and does the same thing. Also you can roll your back on it which is sometimes nice after a long bike ride or a hard tempo run IMHO.
And if you want another old-school solution, a “soft training softball” is almost the exact size and consistency as the TP Massage ball and costs only $4. Awesome for calves, psoas, and those horrible little muscles between the shoulder blades.
TP quadroller is way more effective and wont deforme like a foam roller… there is a big difference…and you can use it to work on all your leg muscle…
the tp massage ball will also be effective to use in located area like your butt and is essential to keep your biomechanic in line so you get rid of your ITB issu
Muffintop sold me on the foam roller. Then Jonnyo came along and backed the TP ball. Decisions, decisions…
I use both-actually the theory behind the TP stuff and the way it is designed to soften after a static hold/press like a massage therapist would do on your trigger points is way more effective. To get started though, use the foam roller- the TP takes it to a whole nuther level . Course, I wrote my TP stuff off as business expense 
Depending on the foam roller, they can break down pretty quickly. The TP products won’t break down as quickly or at all. They also can be a little bit more specific to certain areas since the diameter is smaller. I’ve got both, but find that I use the Quad Baller and Massage Ball more than anything. If you are able, I’d go for the Quad Baller…it’s also easy to pack for travel races.
so for a foam roller- are we just talking a foam cylinder, or is there a specific item to be had? I just had a hellacious experience w/ an adhesion in a gluteal muscle, plus the tendon (piriformis?) that runs over the sciatic nerve. Its made me commit to better stretching and self-massage.
I’ve seen a few different types. Most of the ones that I’ve seen at Gyms or Health Clubs are white open cell foam that will compress after heavier use. There are also some that are darker in color that are more dense and last a bit longer. Lastly, the fitness center that the Missus works at has some that are blue/white that are pretty dense as well. These last two seem to hold up better. But I think that the ‘gold standard’ would be Cassidy’s TP Therapy products.
http://www.performbetter.com/SearchResult.aspx_Q_CategoryID_E_235
Has both the white ones and the more dense ones.
The gold standard…I used to have a discount code, so let me know if you want to order something and we can see if it still works.
Or if your coupon code doesn’t work and you want a better price order from performance bike and use a coupon code from RBR
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I use a woodern rolling pin, very cheap and wont deform ever and a golf ball for specific areas, also cheap
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Holy crap, do you chew broken glass as well while you do that? The foam roller / TP quadroller is painful enough for me but I admire your toughness.
the prinicpal and results are the same whether it be foam roller, tp or dowel, tennis ball or tin can…they alll work well…
Go for a model with a hollow plastic core inside the foam, not just the solid piece of foam. Will last much longer, be more effective.
Hello everyone, I am the founder of Trigger Point Technologies,
I thank all of you that support the use of our products. This thread was emailed to me and typically I don’t get involved with message boards being that I believe that we all have the right to an opinion.
The one thing that I want to make clear with this post is that we are not just a product, we are a company that is dedicated to the bodies ability to perform. On our website we educate about biomechanics, muscular structure and injury prevention. We want you as athletes to understand what is causing the problem rather than just treating the symptom. Our products allow you to implement this education in a safe effect way. The reality is if you use something hard, it can be evasive, and if you are dehydrated you can really make things worse. If you use a product that is to soft it’s not really effective. This is why all of our products mirror the feeling of an actual therapists hands.
I don’t want to ever be a company that just sells a products, I want to empower people to be able to take care of themselves, enhance their performance and prevent Injuries.
We as triathletes buy the best bike because of the performance, shoes the same reason. I’d like to believe that people buy our products because of what they do. I’ve worked with some of the best triathletes in the world and they all use our products but they also use our methodologies as well.
Please when thinking about our products think about them as a company that is dedication to triathlon and our passion for what each and everyone of you can achieve.
I wish all of you the best and hope to see you at a race some day. This code was made a long time ago, feel free to use it on our site (tptherapy.com) you’ll receive a 15% discount SLOWTWITCH06
Regardless give your muscles what they deserve…some attention
Thanks for taking the time to respond to this thread. And thanks to everyone else for all the information. I haven’t decided what I’m going to go with, but either way me and my IT band are going to get to know each other in the coming weeks.