Background: The foam roller is considered a versatile tool. Along with an active warm-up, it appears to positively affect range of motion, stability, muscle stiffness, and perceived exertion with no reductions in performance.
Hypothesis/purpose: The main purpose of the study was to observe the effects of the utilization of a foam roller during the warm-up on ankle mobility and lower limb stability, and secondarily, to assess if any induced effects were sustained over time.
Study design: Randomized controlled trial.
Methods: Twenty-two healthy male subjects were randomly assigned to two groups: the control group, which only carried out a general warm-up over a period of four months, and the foam roller group, which followed a specific warm-up routine using a foam roller for a period of three months plus one month of follow-up in which no foam rolling was performed. Two outcome measurements were taken pre- and post- intervention to assess ankle mobility: the Dorsi-Flexion Lunge test and the Y-Balance test (YBT) for the lower quarter. Outcomes were measured at three time points: before the protocol was initiated, at the end of the protocol (at 12 weeks), and after a one-month follow-up period (at 16 weeks).
Results: A significant increase was observed in the dorsiflexion of the right (p < 0.001) and left (p < 0.001) ankles in the experimental group. Significant increases were also noticed in the anterior (p < 0.003), posteromedial (p < 0.050), and posterolateral (p < 0.050) reach distances of the right leg and in the anterior (p < 0.002), posteromedial (p < 0.010), and posterolateral (p < 0.030) reach distances of the left leg during the YBT in the experimental group. The control group also showed significant differences in the right (p < 0.007) and left (p < 0.010) anterior reach distances on the YBT. At the one-month follow-up period, the improvements that had been obtained in both groups were lost, except for the dorsiflexion of the right ankle (p < 0.050) and right (p < 0.010) and left (p < 0.030) anterior reach distance on the YBT in the experimental group.
Conclusions: The foam roller can be used as a part of a pre-training warm-up routine to enhance the dorsiflexion range of motion and performance on the YBT.
Level of evidence: 3. Registered as a clinical trial at ClinicalTrials.gov with registration number: NCT05971316.
Keywords: Athletic performance; balance; physical conditioning; range of motion; team sports.
© The Author(s).