Fascia training: 8 exercises for fit fascia

Regular fascia training can revitalize your fascia and give you more momentum and vigour in everyday life. Trained and elastic fascia supplies the body with nutrients better. In addition, they can absorb energy in a more targeted manner, thus transferring power to joints and muscles better. Accordingly, you will feel fresher, more vital and also more resilient.

The two most essential prerequisites for practical fascia training are mindfulness and regular training. In the following, physiotherapist Julia Worischek will show you eight simple fascia exercises for frequently sticky connective tissue and pain zones of the body.

Doing these exercises two to three times a week is advisable to achieve noticeable elasticity in the fascia. However, don’t expect rapid progress because the body needs time to regain dynamic and elastic fascia; the connective tissue changes only slowly. However, with patience and regular fitness for the fascia,  you will notice the first changes after a few weeks.

Only do fascia training with first warming up. Swinging and rhythmic movements dynamize the fascia and make it more supple. With a warm-up, you reduce the likelihood of injuries to the connective tissue and optimally prepare it for the following stretching exercises and tensile loads.

Fascia exercise 1: Fascia warm-up

In addition to the warm-up function, this exercise also has the purpose of enabling targeted training for stuck fascia in the area of ​​the knee and hip joints. With regular use of the training, pain in these regions can be significantly reduced.

1. Take a big step forward.
2. Pay attention to a soft rolling movement of the foot. Think of the light and supple demeanour of a cat.
3. Swing both arms up toward the ceiling.
4. Now, perform these two movements resiliently and dynamically ten times per side.
5. Then, do ten side lunges with each leg while lifting your arms toward the ceiling.

Fascia exercise 2: arm swings

Arm swings train the fascia throughout the body but strengthen the shoulder joint area the most. In this exercise, move as loosely as possible and allow the movement to be dynamic swings.

1. Stand hip-width apart on the floor.
2. Let your arms swing loosely, straight and parallel forwards and backwards.
3. Keep increasing the movements until your arms are swinging above your head. 
4. Let your movement become dynamic and accompany your arms swinging with your whole body by standing on tiptoe at the highest point and rounding your spine at the lowest point.
5. Do the arm swings for about two minutes.

Fascial exercise 3: abdominal muscle pendulum

The pendulum exercise stretches the abdominal fascia even with a small range of motion. You will feel how intensively even a minimal movement on the abdomen has a stretching effect.

1. Lie on a mat with your knees bent at 90 degrees and your toes lifted.
2. Don’t hollow your back with this exercise. To do this, press your lumbar spine firmly onto the floor.
3. Stretch your arms behind your head and lift your upper body slightly off the floor.
4. From this position, swing your torso slightly up and down in a tiny motion. 
5. Depending on the effort, stay in the respective end positions for three to five deep breaths and repeat this exercise ten times.

Note: By increasing the movement of the upper body upwards, more fascia is stressed, and an even more intense effect can be achieved.

Fascia Exercise 4: Flamingo

With the “Flamingo”, you strengthen the back fascia for an elastic and resilient spine and train your body balance simultaneously.

1. Stand on one leg and bend your knee slightly while straightening the other and moving it back.
2. Lean your upper body forward with your back straight, and at the same time, lift the leg stretched out behind you further up until the longitudinal axis of your body (head, back, pelvis and leg) forms a horizontal line.
3. Extend both arms to the side to help your body balance better. 
4. Hold this position for three to five deep breaths, then switch legs. 
5. Do this exercise ten times on each side.

Fascia Exercise 5: Back Bridging

The “backward bridging” exercise focuses on the fascial stretching of the arms, shoulders, chest and abdomen.

1. Sit on the floor with your legs stretched out and your hands slightly behind your body.
2. Now push your buttocks off the floor until, ideally, your stretched legs, upper body and head form a diagonal line.
3. Hold the plank for two deep breaths. Be careful not to lose stability in the shoulder joints and actively maintain support.
4. Then, slowly lower your buttocks back to the floor, remembering that this downward movement is also an essential part of the exercise for fascial elasticity.
5. Repeat this exercise ten times.

Fascia Exercise 6: Neck roll

For the “neck roll” exercise, you need a foam roller to work on your connective tissue with an even more intensive effect. Only use the foam roller if its use does not cause pain. Also, always do the rolling in slow motion, as you will train faster without the desired effect on the fascia.

1. Lie on your back on a mat and bend your legs at a 90-degree angle.
2. Place the foam roller on your neck and lay your head loosely on it.
3. Now, at a languid pace, turn your head to one side as far as you can, then stop turning when the pressure on the roller increases uncomfortably.
4. Hold these uncomfortable pressure points until they subside. Try to take deep breaths in and out while doing this. 
5. Note that the pressure points can take several minutes to subside. Only then continue with the rotating movement of the head. 
6. At the end of the rotation, slowly turn your head back and switch the direction of rotation to the other side using the same procedure. 
7. Do this exercise until your pain and pressure points significantly reduce during the turning movement.

Tip for professionals: For the effect on the fascia to be even more intense, you can also lift your buttocks with this exercise.

Fascia Exercise 7: Anti-Cellulite Roll

Massaging with the fascia roller stimulates collagen production in the connective tissue. The pressure that arises ensures that toxins are removed . The rolling doesn’t “magic” away your cellulite, but it does stimulate the formation of new elastic fibres, which ensures the noticeably firmer and tighter connective tissue in the “problem zones”.

1. Sit with your right buttocks on the foam roller while your left buttocks float freely in the air.
2. Place your left leg on top of your right leg and support yourself with both hands behind your body.
3. At a languid pace, move your torso backwards so the roller rolls down your thighs. 
4. The end of the movement is usually exhausted in the middle of the thigh. From here, let the roller slowly roll back up your thighs to your buttocks.
5. After rolling up and down ten times, switch sides.

Tip: The massage with the fascia roller can be associated with pain. Like the “neck roll” exercise, remain on painful points until the pain subsides, and slowly move the roll further along the thigh track.

Fascia Exercise 8: Triangle Support

The triangular support addresses the fascia in the spine, waist and shoulders. It also helps you to stabilize your body better and achieve a healthier posture overall.

1. Support yourself on your forearms on all fours and ensure your elbows are placed just below the shoulder joints.
2. Extend one arm up towards the ceiling and rotate your torso behind as much as possible.
3. Your gaze should also be directed to the ceiling or the raised hand.
4. Stabilize the supporting arm, careful not to sag with your shoulder, as you hold the position for three deep breaths. 
5. Perform the movement five times before slowly switching sides.

 

 

 

When coping with the exact strength requirement, the “stronger” person exerts less effort, and the heart rate and blood pressure rise less. The latter leads to a reduction in the oxygen requirement of the heart muscle while improving the oxygen supply simultaneously, which is equivalent to counteracting a heart attack.

In addition, the musculature, especially in the lower extremities, acts as a muscle pump. When the muscles contract, the blood vessels (veins) are squeezed, and the blood is transported to the heart. Here, too, a fully functional musculature relieves the heart, which is responsible for the return transport of blood. Last but not least, it can also prevent venous diseases (e.g. varicose veins ).

1. Promotion of the nervous system and psyche

The oversized part of the nervous system is responsible for controlling muscle activity. These nerve regions can only be kept functional into old age through regular muscle activity, an essential prerequisite for unrestricted physical performance. Muscle training also has a positive influence on mental well-being and mood.

Muscular exercise usually makes you feel more balanced, calmer, relaxed, and happier. In addition, the state of mind can also be improved in the longer term by reducing depression and anxiety. A significant explanation for this feeling-promoting or mood-enhancing training effect can be seen in the increased release of neuropeptides – popularly called “happy hormones” – during muscular activity.

In addition, muscle training strengthens self-confidence due to the associated increase in performance and positive physical changes, which in turn contributes to more mental stability.

In addition to the reasons mentioned, the importance of muscle training is also indicated by the fact that it also determines the health effects of endurance training. Zimmermann: “On the one hand, those with more muscle mass due to strength training burn more calories when walking, jogging, swimming, cycling or cross-country skiing and can thus optimize their health effects. On the other hand, the condition of the muscles determines the resilience of the joints and spine during endurance activities.

When jogging, for example, the joints of the lower extremities and the spine are loaded with about twice the body weight with every step. Only muscles that have been well developed through muscle training can “buffer” these loads and help to avoid damage to the joints in the long term.” Strength training is, therefore, an indispensable preparatory and accompanying measure for health-oriented endurance training.

 

Conclusion

In summary, the lecturer estimates that the health and performance-enhancing effects of muscle training go far beyond the muscles and more or less cover the entire organism. “No drug or other measure has a comparable range of effects. Regular, moderate muscle training helps to increase life energy, zest for life and vitality. It enables healthy and content ageing. As a result, the years can be given more life,” says Zimmermann.