My practice of self-myofascial release began with me rolling around on a baseball, a softball and your garden variety 4" PVC pipe! I know it doesn't sound too sexy, and at the time I didn't feel too sexy either. Truth be told, it took months before I got into a regular practice of self-myofascial release. For me, like most, rolling around on hard objects just didn't sound right and was definitely not in the mainstream, so I didn't give it much time or thought. It was not until I had tried everything, spent a ton of money and was living in constant pain that I started regularly practicing self-myofascial release.After suffering with sciatic and neck pain for years, I had run my body into the ground. Finding a trigger point (i.e., a tight muscle) was not hard to do, I just needed to sit, stand or lay on a ball and I was on a trigger point! My self-myofascial release practice started by doing just that, I would place a ball on the ground, lay on it for a couple of minutes, breathe deeply to relax, wait for the muscle to release then move to the next spot. After the first week I could feel my pain decreasing and my mobility increasing. As the weeks went by I was able to roll on a ball from my neck down to my low back and I could feel my body changing. As the months went by my body and mind were getting better aquatinted - the daily rolling out was connecting them both. I finally knew where I was tight and what I needed to do to release the tension.My collection of balls and odd shaped rollers grew with my need to gain access to deeper trigger points. I also bought a "Theracane," the green hook shaped object that is great for releasing tension in your neck and shoulders. Some of you may be wondering why I don't have a foam roller, which is known as the prop of choice for self-myofascial release. The foam rollers were simply too soft for me and provided no real benefits. My problems were deep tissue and the foam roller is better for soft tissue problems. For the same reason I don't use tennis balls for self-myofascial release, which is another common prop recommended by physical therapists.Despite my large collection of balls, rollers and other devices, I always felt there was something missing. There were very few products that were geared specifically for self-myofascial release, and those products that were on the market, were simply too soft to effectively activate and release my trigger points (i.e., foam rollers). It was this absence of effective self-myofascial release products that led me to develop Bula Balls which consists of five balls of varying sizes and firmness specifically designed to activate sensitive trigger points. But until Bula Balls are out on the market (which should be in the next few months!), you should get started with your own practice of self-myofascial release. Use whatever props work best for you, if tennis balls and foam rollers get the job done, then that is what you should use. But, if your like me, you will need something harder, such as baseballs, softballs and PVC pipes to really see the benefits of self-myofascial release. So head down to your local sports store or raid your kid's toy box and get started. Your body will thank me for it!