DIY muscle roller?
March 31, 2019 10:03 PM   Subscribe

I recently went to a chiropractor who used one of these on me for myofascial release. I'd like to get one for home, but they're expensive, and since it's basically just a steel cylinder (4" x 20", 44 lbs), I'm wondering if I could somehow engineer one myself. Is that something I could find locally (Portland OR), maybe at a machine shop or something?
posted by gottabefunky to Health & Fitness (12 answers total) 5 users marked this as a favorite
 
Could you get the same pressure from an ordinary foam roller (or lacrosse ball or theracane or any other usual suspect in the toolbox of myofascial self-release)?
posted by batter_my_heart at 10:13 PM on March 31, 2019 [3 favorites]


Yeah, there are a million variations on this. Also, the traditional rolling pin.
posted by trig at 1:20 AM on April 1, 2019 [2 favorites]


My trainer sent me to the hardware store to buy a 24” length of PVC pipe, which ran me less than $5. YMMV, only works if you just need the long side.
posted by asphericalcow at 2:04 AM on April 1, 2019


Lacrosse ball between you & the wall or floor is the usual DIY solution to this kind of thing.
posted by pharm at 3:39 AM on April 1, 2019 [2 favorites]


If it’s 20” long, 44# and solid steel then it’s 3” in diameter, not 4. I know nothing about this sort of thing but handling a steel cylinder of that weight around someone’s spine looks dangerous.

A machine shop isn’t going to save you money, but PVC seems like a good idea. If you need it to have some substantial mass, cap the ends and fill it with sand.
posted by jon1270 at 3:55 AM on April 1, 2019 [5 favorites]


So it looks like the working end of this is the rounded end, making it very different from a foam or PVC roller though maybe not super different than a lacrosse ball. Presumably you need a friend to employ this.

Anyway, the issue here from a diy perspective is (domestic, US) sourcing. You could potentially hire a vendor on Alibaba to make one for you but if you're working in the US my first quick look shows a chunk of steel those dimensions will run you $150+, before any machining time. In order to be useful the ends need to be very well polished which sets a bunch of parameters both on steel quality and machining time. I don't think you can produce it for anything like their price without outsourcing to a country where both materials and labor are much cheaper.
posted by range at 5:49 AM on April 1, 2019


I have an assortment of fist-sized river rocks that I've collected over the years for this. Each one has a lump that fits some part of me just perfectly when it's between me and the carpet.
posted by flabdablet at 6:28 AM on April 1, 2019 [1 favorite]


So it looks like the working end of this is the rounded end, making it very different from a foam or PVC roller

Beg to differ.

posted by jon1270 at 6:56 AM on April 1, 2019 [1 favorite]


Rolling pin?
posted by Enid Lareg at 7:30 AM on April 1, 2019


I believe that the Theracane will do what you want for a lot cheaper
posted by Dmenet at 8:40 AM on April 1, 2019


I have a hand-made roller made of two tennis balls shoved inside a 1ft-long piece of foam pool noodle. I use it on my spine by lying on it and scootching along all the way down.

Using the end of that thing looks like what my massage therapist does with her elbow in my back.
posted by booth at 11:35 AM on April 1, 2019


I can’t tell if you want to roll on it like a foam roller or if you’re looking for the trigger point digging in thing that the practitioner is doing in the product photos. If it’s the latter, I highly recommend the Back Buddy. It does that same trigger point thing and you can do it yourself.
posted by Weeping_angel at 12:32 PM on April 1, 2019


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