The Umi Foam Roller shows that even low-priced rolling options with varying texture can help you massage tired or knotted muscles…
This Umi foam roller is an inexpensive yet useful tool to have in your home recovery box – which is why it makes it onto our list of best foam rollers for workout recovery. It’s incredibly sturdy and able to bear up to 300lb / 135kg in weight. Plus the outer layer of 20mm foam has two different textures. That allows you to choose whether you have the feel of fingers or palms to help ease tight muscles and loosen knots. It’s a great way to enhance your post-workout stretching exercises.
Men’s Fitness verdict
The Umi Foam Roller shows that even low-priced rolling options with varying texture can help you massage tired or knotted muscles. That hard foam can be unforgiving at first though.- Three different textures
- Lightweight yet sturdy
- Affordable
- Hard foam takes some getting used to
- Too short for full back or double-leg rolls
How we test the best foam rollers
Though most people predominantly use foam rollers for massaging tight hamstring and calf muscles, they can be used for every body part. So our testers used each roller after exercise for these best foam roller moves. They massaged and manipulated the tissue and muscles in their feet, shins, adductors and quads, as well as their upper and lower back, pecs and lats. They also used these moves in conjunction with complimentary stretching exercises, such as the best hip stretches and best shoulder stretches.
| Fam thickness: | 0.8in / 20mm |
| Length: | 13in / 33cm |
| Colour: | Black, green, pink, purple |
Umi Foam Roller features
I preferred the ‘fingers’ side, which really got into some of those tricky areas, especially around the hips. The flatter strips, which are meant to mimic the palm of a hand, are ideal for a more relaxing stretch. I really felt the benefits of using this foam roller and enjoyed the differences in texture which helped target more areas.
The textured outer foam does have a bit of give, although it’s still pretty firm. Beginners to foam rolling or those just wanting to use it alongside daily mobility stretches might find the Umi roller a little hard. Those who are more used to rolling will appreciate how this firmness can give a deeper massage than softer foam.
Umi Foam Roller performance
The Umi foam roller is exactly what you’d expect a foam roller to look like. I tried the loud pink version, although there are subtler green, purple and black options. It’s light weight and easy to transport, plus, because it’s essentially a hollow tube, it can be carried around pretty easily.
A minor pitfall was that the Umi’s length, although fairly standard for most foam rollers, was a little short for rolling my back. Plus, if you’re someone who likes to roll both legs at once, you’ll definitely want to invest in a longer roller.
Despite its low price the Umi racks up sustainability points as it’s made from environmentally friendly materials. The EVA foam is washable, too, which is useful when stretching after particularly sweaty sessions so smells needn’t linger.
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