Release the IT band

I knew I needed this class this morning with soreness in my legs and thighs. Amazing what those slow rolls can do for our muscles! Thank you Julie!

Wow. That hurts so good. Thanks Julie.

I was looking for a different class, but this came up and as at least one of my legs has been showing some tendencies that I do not really care for, I decided to give this a try. I have a more or less constant issue in my left lower back/side and perhaps these exercises will have an effect. I feel the problem to be my hip being tilted forward as I walk, only slightly but still, and if I take my hand and pull it back the discomfort goes away. With my left leg hams, along with IT band feeling tighter than the right it makes sense to check out what some releasing might, right? On a side note, I am very pleased to hear that I might just as well leave my foam roller alone, as nothing will make me roll up-down on that one again! I guess my idea of something that painful can not be good for me was spot on and not me being sissy :-D

thank you, this was just what I need at the moment. I "run" a B&B and in my 300 year old house we have a lot of stairs, so I am professional stair climber ;-) since my back OP this area of my left upper thigh/It band is really tight, and - thanks so much for this information - I learnt to fear this smart little foam rollers ;-) to roll out this area with a towel, it is much more "enjoyable" Now the pain (more of a pulling) moved a little up in my left lower back, I will observe and repeat this class. Please more of your therapeutic classes, I really enjoy your profoundnes

Ooof! That was tough at times but as always your good humour got me through! Thanks Julie, I so appreciate how you make these learnings so accessible. Please may I request a practice like this for my steel-girder-like hamstrings? 🙏🏼 Much love to you and the Big Island. Miss you xxx

Thank you Julie. I always love your tutorial; my legs always feel longer after these kind of practice. And here, interestingly, as I stood up I felt "shorter" but I think more as wider maybe rather than shorter. so cool!

Hi Julie! Thank you so much for your tutorials, I find them extremely helpful. Have so far done the shoulder one and this one, both problem areas for me. I have disturbed sleep because of hip pain and although the joint shows signs of wear, I am convinced it predominantly a muscular problem. This sequence I will use 3 tines a week as you recommend - my left TB is as hard as wood! I am curious to know if it will help with the pain that radiates from whatI I think comes from the gluteus medius - deep under the hip curve, and leads to a tightening of what I believe to be the G.minimus? Do you have a class on re-balancing the firing of the glut muscles? Your classes are wonderful offers of relief for me, thank you again.

Thank you for this session Julie, it feels so much more relaxed in the it Band and is helping with the tendonitis in my knee ❤

Dear Julie, thank you so much! This is the class I was waiting for! As I cycle about 30 km a day, my IT joints are always very tight and some weeks ago my right knee started making problems. The patella is pulled to the side. This class helped me so much, not only for my body but also to understand what's going on. This class is going to be part of my regular practice now :) Namaste

This is super useful. I had a coach who calls knees "innocent victims". He'd say they are victims of your ankles, victims of your hips, victims of weak quads. This work should help to keep my running a victimless crime. :)

I think I’ve found the problem why I can’t sit in seiza and feel that the right knee muscles on the inside can’t stretch and want to snap. I literally saw stars when I was rolling on my right thigh. Ouch. Thank you for this big revelation.

So helpful and informative! Thank You! My achy legs feel so much better.

Thank you so much for this class! It felt like discovering a long lost communication channel to that part of my body, that is often so tightened up. I am sure I am going to come back to this again and again. Thank you!

This class is wonderful for me as a runner! I come back to it again and again. I should do it more often. What other classes do you do that you would recommend for a “back-of-the-pack” very slow run/walker who has IT Band / Knee pain? Thanks again!

Love the practice. I struggle with the part on the towel in terms of placing the towel and getting into that part right above the knee. Any tips? Thank you so much!

Hey Julie! Thanks for this awesome tutorial, yes it feels so light now on my hips and with the la la la’s and pop pop pop's from my knees ha ha ha I guess I was a little tight, I usually use a tennis ball for after runs but this new approach was very mild yet effective, I will keep this in mind from now on and the tennis ball will go back to play tennis. Mucho luv and thank you again for sharing all this awesome techniques. ॐ

Eeeeek...yep definitely needed and will need some repetition. I have a question... my left glute muscles in really close to my sacrum keep triggering and tightening ( then triggering into my lower back) ... this sequence helped and I'v been trying to adjust all other poses across my yoga practice...it feels like its overworked and on the grid too much and is taking over where other muscles should be active.. any advice would be greatly appreciated. T

Thank you, Julie! As I am used to tight quadriceps an it-band I going to integrate this class into my routine.

Awesome! Such a release. Always learn so much in your classes Julie 💜

What an amazing class. All these years rolling away on my foam roller = :( After only 2 session, my legs and generally my body feels less tighter, helped my posture, and I actually slept better as my body felt stretched and lifted. Just bloody amazing!

Oh Julie, your class came from the heavens ;) I did it yesterday. The day before, my IT-band was quite aching, my lower back also combined with a twisted feeling in my left hip. I used the foam roller (up and down), short effect, next day it was the same. As you said. After your class I felt great, first a bit wobbly in my legs, but today, one day later, it's just great! No pain, no twisted feeling. THANK YOU! It just makes sense to roll the other way. Love ~ Nina

Wow! After this class, the knee pain I've had for almost one year went away! I've been "treating" it with strength training, but I guess releasing it was far better in my case.

Thank you Julie~ such a brilliant sequence, gentle and smart, so effective. Also, great to lean that the ouch/ouch vertical rolling isn't the way to go. So grateful for your classes! <3

Julie, all of your therapy classes have helped me so much. Thank you! They are great exercises for sewers and knitters.

wow, thank you so much, best class ever on IT bands, Im gonna practice this regularly

this was really good thank you Julie - i did it this morning, and i still feel it now - a kind of ache - which i think means i REALLY needed it. i run everyday so i'm going to make this part of my weekly practice!

Hi Julie, this practice is great, (albeit somewhat uncomfortable ;) . It really helps with my lower back pain and my hips feel wonderfully relaxed, (pliable?) when I am running or walking. Bliss!!!!!

Thank you for this insights of the IT-band -and this inspirations to give to my students! 🙏💕😘

That was amazing! I have a bad knee that doesn't allow me to bend too far. I feel so much relief on just doing this once. I will definitely continue to do this. I know I have tight IT bands and I am one of those people who bought a foam roller to try to release it. It did nothing for me except pain in doing it. I also have very tight hips so the pose where you push your knee away from you was quite effective for me. At the end I totally felt heavier in my feet, so much more grounded. Thank you so much!

Wow, this works....at some point it was very intense. Funny that this seemingly soft blanket can be so intensiv.The walk at the end is amazing. The hipps feel so much lighter...or better to say, I don‘t feel them, in a good way. Soo good! Thank you, so great ❤️Namaste

Wow! Is all I can say. Everything you were talking about is exactly how my legs, my low back, my hips and my knees were feeling. And I can feel the difference! Thank you so much I have saved this to my favorites😊

Thank you for this class Julie. I was despairing how to help the pain in my knee and thigh muscle. This has helped soooooo much! Will now do it regularly.

Thank you! Feels so good... I walk, run and cycle, so this is perfect!

Awesome! I have a problem with tight IT Bands and this helped tremendously. Thank you Julie.

This class is such a relief and still I had completely forgotten about it. It has now definitely a deep place in my heart and I thank you for the wonderful work you do, Julie.

me ha encantado la clase, yo soy corredora y he sentido super potente el trabajo con la toalla....muchas gracias

Hi Julie ! How wonderfull it is to realiaze IT Band is NOT shape as I thought !!! And the final massage then took all his sense !Thanks a lot for your "special runner or cyclist session" ! ( as i have a student very painfull in his IT band... I will tell you how he will feel after the next session ! Isabelle, from Spain

Thanks Julie, that was very informative and helpful. I feel like I am walking on clouds 🙏💖

OMG that was wonderful. Thank you so much

This is terrific. It is as helpful for me as a physical therapist as it is for me as a yoga practitioner. Very instructive. Perfectly paced. I'll be using this a few days a week and I'll come back to the class for tune ups. Thank you!

Julie, thank you so much for this tutorial. I loved learning about how the fibers of the IT band cross. I personally love using the yamuna balls for body rolling because as they are round you can really get into the tissues and roll in all directions. I'm curious about whether you have had any specific experience with the yamuna balls and if so I would love to hear your thoughts on using the balls to release the IT band. Thank you!

Oh! Fabulous! Came into the class with a lot of lateral knee pain, with no clue about what IT bands are or do.... What a difference!!! I know that my knee pain is a signal of other things that need attention - your class confirmed this once again. THANK YOU!!!

definite love/hate session - lol. thank you as always for all the detail and explanations- makes such a huge difference and reminds me to….slowly slowly approach each move and not just barrel into them.

Amazing, Julie. I’ve been doing this on repeat for the past 4 months. It was the only thing that offered relief from this strange pain that I started to get on my right thigh. My physiotherapist eventually explained me that tension in that area is common for cyclists like me. And she validated all that you already explained in this class. You got it first, Julie! Thanks so much.