Foam Rolling IT Band

Iliotibial band also know as the IT Band is the band that runs down the side of our leg, from the hip/pelvic region to our knees. Tightness in the IT band is the cause of what people call 'runner's knees'. The best way to loosen up the band and get rid of runner's knee is to roll them out to loosen up and hit some trigger points. At first it's going to hurt, but if it doesn't hurt then you're doing it wrong.

Foam Rolling

Begin by placing the foam roller at the top of the hip, slowly roll down til the top of your knees. You can either have both legs together or have the other help you move up and down. Continue to roll up and down the side of your leg. Apply more pressure as you do this and stop at any tight or painful spot you feel. While at the spot, put more pressure onto the area, hang out for about 10-15 seconds. You can also flex and extend your leg just to move around those trigger points. Twist/turn and rock side to side so you can hit the top and bottom of the IT Band as well. There's usually no wrong way of doing it, as long as you can feel the foam roller hitting up against your leg. Try to aim for 10-15 rolls and try to find at least 2 tight spots to hit. Do the same to the other leg.

This is probably one of the most common use of the foam rolling, as the majority have tight IT bands that need to be loosened up. So the next time you feel like your knees are hurting, try this out!