Stick Work - Tibialis Anterior Release

This exercise helps you loosen the muscle on the front of your shin with a massage stick, freeing up your ankle bend.

Start: Lie on your back with the foot of the leg you're working flat on the floor, knee bent. Hold the massage stick in both hands and rest it across the muscle on the front of your shin, just outside the shin bone.

Action:

  1. Press the stick into the muscle with moderate pressure — about 10 pounds, a little more or less depending on how it feels — and roll it slowly along the length of the muscle.

  2. Spend 10–20 seconds on the area. With each pass, sink a little deeper.

  3. Stay on the muscle — don't roll directly over bone.

  4. Work to the edge of discomfort but never into pain. That edge is where the tissue loosens best.

Feel: Expect a tender, satisfying ache that eases as you go. Sharp or radiating pain means stop.

Related Exercises