What are the best BJJ foam rollers that you can use? Or, perhaps I should ask if you know why you need to be using one in the first place? Okay, let’s take it back a few steps. IN a few words, foam rollers are training recovery tools that athletes use to speed up the healing of muscle tissue. Since grappling is a highly competitive contact sport even under the friendliest training circumstances, you can see how recovery should be a prerogative for grapplers. Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu puts so much stress on the body, that after a competition style opens mat, you probably won’t be able to function for a couple of days. Now imagine having to go through another one of those the day after! That’s where foam rollers can make a difference!
Foam rollers are first and foremost, a self-massaging tool. Still, athletes have numerous uses for them. You could grab a foam roller to warm up, cool down, work on recovery, or even that some minor injuries. While grabbing a foam roller is nowhere near as detailed as getting an actual message, it is a cheap way for making sure you get them on a daily basis. With recovery as a part of athletic training booming these days, so does the offer of foam rolling tools and equipment. As you’ll see late on, you now have the option to choose whether you want a smooth-surfaced roller, a textured one, or even a self-vibrating one. They all have a role to play but you can’t think of them all as the best BJJ foam rollers for grapplers.
Best BJJ Foam Rollers
The best BJJ foam rollers out there are actually not easy to find. The thing with foam rollers is that they’re quite durable, so people do not change them too often. that means that you can’t really test many of them in bulk. Yet, we managed to get our hands on quite a selection of foam rollers, and looked at each one carefully. We wanted to know which are the best to help grapplers recuperate from training. For that purpose, we looked at shape, size, material, and of course, price. The ones we deem worthy as the best BJJ rollers for grapplers to use in 2021 are listed below:
TriggerPoint Grid Foam Roller
The TriggerPoint Foam roller is one of the best rollers on this list, and one I’ve used on many occasions. While I do not own one, there’s one at the academy where I train. If there was ever a foam roller that fits all the needs for grapplers, it must be this one.
This is basically a hybrid between a smooth and a spiky roller. While it does not have spikes, it features grooves that work much in the same way. The roller has a hollow core, like many others, and is able to withstand up to 500 lbs of weight. It also comes in a few different colors, for those that want looks to go along with the benefits. This roller is a softer one, which means it can double as a warmup tool on top of its recovery properties. The added bonus is that it comes with free instructional videos.
LuxFit BJJ Foam Roller
The LuxFit roller is a compact and smooth foam roller made of polypropylene foam. It comes in a variety of sizes, including 36, 24, 18, and 12 inches. This is one of the firmer foam rollers, offering a really deep massage for high-grade recovery. Yet, if you’re a beginner, you might want to take it slow, as you’re bound to experience some pain due to the hard material.
An outstanding characteristic of this foam roller is the density. The LuxFit roller has an incredible 2 lbs per cubic foot density. This means that it is extremely hard and can withstand a lot of weight. It also means it provides deep relaxation of any muscle tightness. The LuxFit is also water repellent, which is somewhat of a unique characteristic in foam rollers. Like the TriggerPoint roller, this one comes with a free instructional video as well. Yet, the LuxFit also comes with a three money-back guarantee.
OPTP Soft Density Pro-Roller
If you’re just starting out with foam rolling, this should be the first roller you get. While it is a softer density one and not as high quality as some others, it is certainly one of the best BJJ foam rollers you can have. The material is lower grade PE material, yet one that is germ-resistant and extremely durable.
The length of this foam roller is 36 inches, making it one of the longer ones. This, along with the fact that it is a smooth surface roller, makes it perfect for day to day use. Moreover, it makes it a great fit for working the whole body in a shorter amount of time. Since it is a soft roller, there won’t be any pain related to working with it, while it will stimulate circulation just a much as harder ones. The foam is cross-linked and of the closed-cell variety, which makes it a very long-lasting piece of equipment. Comes in blue and pink color.
“NextRoller” 3-Speed Vibrating Foam Roller
Time to take a peek at some high-tech options. The NextRoller is a foam roller for the “lazier” grappler. It offers a whole new dimension by including vibrations in its performance. Moreover, there are no less than 3 different speeds of vibration. And, in all honesty, the price is not steep at all.
As far as the best BJJ foam rollers go, this one is certainly a top contender. Honestly, it was an interesting experience to give it a go, to say the least. This roller combines deep tissue massage and vibration therapy into one. What vibration brings to the table is a shorter recovery time and absolutely no pain whatsoever. This is a smaller sized roller, coming in at 13 inches in length and 6 inches in diameter, but it’s still perfect to do anything unilaterally. There’s a hard plastic handle built in to make manipulation much easier. It works with a rechargeable battery that can last for up to two hours without rest. You also get a one year warranty with every purchase!
RumbleRoller – Textured Muscle Foam Roller
The RumbleRoller is a textured roller that has spikes all along its surface. It is a very durable roller that has a texture of alternating rows of bumps. The reasoning behind such a textured surface is that it provides a much better release since it stretches the muscles in addition to massaging them.
As far as trigger points go, this foam roller is the solution for them all. It completely relaxes tightness with minimal discomfort, despite the sturdy built. Still, the bumps are quite tough so beginners need to be careful with this. The bumps themselves are very firm yet still flexible with the aim of imitating a massage therapist’s thumbs. The Rumble Roller is a piece of equipment designed to last, and will probably last longer than any other foam roller out there. There’s the added value of a three-year full money-back guarantee with every purchase as well.
321 STRONG Foam Roller
The 321 STRONG foam roller is a medium-density roller that comes in a huge variety of colors. It comes at a “basic” size of 12.75 x 5.25 inches, with a solid core and an ethylene-vinyl material. It has a unique design of interchanging bumps and plates that have the task of mimicking different fingers.
This foam roller comes with a free E-book full of clear and precise instructions, as well as a carry case for the roller. It is the perfect foam roller for both personal uses at home or at a gym or BJJ academy. The fact that it is a medium-density roller makes it perfect for every occasion. The texture ensures you can get a really deep massage, if you want to, without experiencing the pain related to sturdy rollers. The weight of the roller is just 1lb, making a very portable one as well. All in all, this is probably the number one on our list of best BJJ foam rollers, due to the fact it fits the needs of both beginner and more experienced grapplers.
PowerPro 2-in-1 Foam Rollers
This is the end-all-be-all of the best BJJ foam rollers. It is a great way to cover all your bases by getting two different types of the roller that are easy to use and extremely portable as well. Both rollers are lightweight, yet extremely durable and come with a black carry bag.
The 2 in 1 foam roller consists of a spikey foam roller that features both bumps and plates, much like the 321 Strong rollers. It is 13 inches long and 6 inches in diameter, with a hollow core. Within this core, there’s a smooth surface roller that has the same length as the textured one. This means you can get all the benefits of both surfaces and cover everything, from a deep tissue massage to a gentle warm-up roll. Two e-Books accompany this bundle, offering all the motions you can do with both of the included rollers.
TriggerPoint Grid Foam Roller – Mini
If you’re someone that can’t do without a foam roller and you also have to travel or commute a lot, then this is the best solution for you! The Trigger Pro Mini is a “pocket-sized” foam roller that serves all the purposes a full-sized one does. While it may be challenging to set some movements up at first, you’ll soon realize is just as good as its larger counterparts!
The Trigger Point Grid Mini is a textured foam roller that is definitely one of the best BJJ foam rollers for grapplers. it is a foam roller you can keep in your BJJ bag or backpack and carry with you to the gym every time you train. It features grooves on one side and bumps on the other, allowing for a lot of variety during rolling. It has a medium-density and comes at 4 x 5.5 inches, but is able to withstand up to 250 lbs of weight. One year warranty and free video instruction are included!
IntelliRoll Textured High-Density Foam Roller
This type of roller is somewhat different from all of the roller we explored so far. The IntelliRoll high-density foam roller comes in a very specific shape and size. It is a roller originally designed specially for massage therapists and doctors.
The INtelliRoll comes at a length of 20 inches and has a distinctive curved shape. It is made of ethylene-vinyl meaning it is going to last incredibly long. The curve is due to the roller’s anatomical design, making it perfect for reaching parts of the body that are hard to massage. This foam roller is particularly useful for releasing the muscles of the back and dealing with grappling – induced back pain. It comes in a black and blue variety and is safe for use with both beginners and advanced, despite the high-density material.
Recovery And Grapplers
Recovery is now a huge thing in combat sports. If I had to guess, I’d say that MMA and all the craze associated with it brought recovery to the forefront after all the strength and conditioning madness. Suddenly, people started using weird looking tools, like these foam pipes with pikes on them, or dens little balls, bands, and a bunch of other things to “recover”. But what exactly is recovery?
In terms of weight training, recovery is the period where the muscles actually grow. While you train with weights, you put stress on the muscles and break their tissue down. When the muscles recover, they grow in order to accommodate the new demands. The cycle then goes on. In terms of grappling, this translates to performance and efficacy of movement instead of size. Still, the training presents as a stressor and recovery is a must if you want to train again at the same or higher pace. And the one factor you have to consider for recovery is time.
For the most part, if you give it enough rest, your muscles will recuperate. But most grapplers do not usually do that. Even recreational grapplers can’t really stay away from the mats for too long. In those cases, active recovery means, the likes of stretching or self-myofascial release enter the frame in a big way. And the best way to ensure full body self-myofascial release is by using a foam roller. To that extent. we’ll take a look at the very best BJJ foam rollers you can get to require with the speed of light!
Foam Rollers For Jiu-Jitsu
A foam roller is basically pipes of varying lengths and diameters that are covered in a special foam-like material, hence the name. Their role is to help you release tension in your muscles and improve blood flow for faster recovery. For that purpose, there are a few different types of foam roles which you should know about before you decide which are the best BJJ foam rollers for you.
Material wise, foam rollers are usually made of polyethylene, ethylene-vinyl, or polypropylene. Each of these materials offers different qualities to a foam roller. The first is the of the softer variety and least quality but are the cheapest. The second type of foam rollers are sturdier, and most of the foam rollers people use are of this category. Finally, the firmest and highest quality ones are made of expanded polypropylene and are never going to soften, which may be an issue on its own for some people.
Then, there’s the size. While different sizes serve different purposes, you can do almost all with even a travel-sized foam roller. That said, the standard size of a foam roller is about 13 inches in length. This allows you to work all body parts, albeit on one side only. There are foam rollers double that length for simultaneous bilateral work. Diameter-wise, 6 inches are the norm, although smaller people might want lightly smaller ones.
The best BJJ foam rollers can come in both a smooth and spiked variety. Both versions have their use, and it is advisable to have one of each if you truly want to see results.
