The Stick Original Body Stick

I have been learning submission grappling for a few years now. Having used extensively the Knob, the Tiger Tail, three foam rolls, tennis ball and the Stick, I feel that I can compare those products.

As everone reading this probably knows, those tools are used to soften up tight muscles, which can cause stiffness and pain in short term and injuries in long term. I found that the Stick works better for medium sized muscles. Specifically, the Stick was excellent for the back of my neck, my front shin (muscle outside of your shin bone), the forearms (both the back side and the front) and surprisingly, for the bottom of my feet. It was decent for my quads and my calfs but I preferred foam roll for those and other large muscles, including shoulders, glutes and IT band. The Knob worked better than either for small muscles, such as the part where the neck joins the shoulder, around the knee and front part of your body where your leg just joins your body. Tennis ball worked better for glutes, lower back and between the shoulders than any of those products.

So do I think the Stick is worth getting even if you have one or more of those above "massaging" products? Depending on your sport and pain area, absolutely! The areas where the Stick works well (forearms, neck, front shin, and foot) it works better than anything else I have ever tried. If your sport taxes those areas or if you feel pain or tightness there, the Stick will beat anything else.

How does the Stick compare to the cheaper Tiger Tail? I think it is a personal preference. For me, I like the cool and softer feel of the Stick. Tiger Tail is basically a bit stiffer (less bendy) and shorter. I didn''t like its plastic foam wrap feel (it feels like cheap bicycle handles). If you like one as much as the other, then you should obviously get the cheaper Tiger Tail.

Finally, is the Stick worth the $40 price tag? I debated for about three months because I felt $40 was ridiculous for what is essentially a HVC pipe wrapped in plastic rings. How much did it cost them to make it? $3, maybe? But after using it extensively, I feel that it is a sturdy product that may last a many years, if properly cared for. So while expensive, if those areas I discussed is giving you any pain, I think it is worth buying.

I bought "The Stick" as an impulse buy at a sporting goods store to massage the muscles in my legs. Plastic rings roll independently over a stiff pole making it a very hard surface. I had to use care to avoid coming close to my shins or any other bony areas. It''s not a very pleasant-feeling tool and the little plastic rings rattle as you run up and down your muscles. It feels like rolling a metal pipe up and down your legs (although it''s plastic).

I decided to check out Amazon which I should have done before buying anything to begin with and discovered the 22" Tiger Tail Rolling foam massager and I prefer it, hands down. It''s pretty much a very hard, foam rolling pin and feels like it gets deeper into my muscles than the plastic rings of The Stick which ride without resistance over the surface of my skin. The foam has just enough give to prevent bruising if I inadvertently run into a bone. This means I''m able to massage a greater surface area with less caution and my muscles feel much better after using the Tiger Tail over The Stick. I feel like I can use the Tiger Tail with much greater pressure and work more deeply than with The Stick.

The only downside is the Tiger Tail is 22 3/8" long with a 14" rolling foam work surface whereas The Stick is 24" long with a 16 1/2" work surface area. This makes working on the back or other areas where length is a plus easier with The Stick. (Diameter is 4.5" for the Tiger Tail, 3.5" for The Stick) But for me, the Tiger Tail makes my muscles feel deeply well-kneaded and vibrant whereas The Stick makes them almost feel injured and my skin sensitive.

Oh and The Tiger Tail is much cheaper than The Stick. That''s just hard to figure out.

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I run and walk trails. Even with stretching afterwards, sometimes at night I can''t get to sleep because my calf muscles tighten up. I could get up and go through a long, slow stretching regimen, which isn''t bad, but this device gives me a quick, effective way to get the tenseness out of my calf muscles.

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If you are a serious athlete you have to have one of these. Its a full self massage in a stick. More power to you if you can get somebody else to use it on you. Its especially outstanding for sore calves after running and cycling.

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I''ve been teaching Yoga for 10 years, Somatic exercise and been in the gym for the past 25 years. My sport of choice is road biking and functional exercise (TRX, stability ball, etc). I''m an old guy so I do have my share of aches and pains.

With that said, nothing, not foam rollers, or other "stick like" devices give me

the almost instant relief The Stick does. Well maybe my lacrosse ball that can

penetrate deeper can address individual trigger points but for relief after a long ride in the Coulees of Wisconsin or a hard day in the gym The Stick does it best for me.

When a person uses The Stick you need to remember the key is "tolerable pain", start with a minimum of pressure and work up to that "hurts good" sensation. Better to go back a bit later and reapply than to over do it.

I have both the Body Stick and the Travel Stick, one of them is always in my gym bag.

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