Jill Miller, C-IAYT, ERYT is the co-founder of Tune Up Fitness Worldwide and creator of the self-care fitness formats Yoga Tune Up® and The Roll Model® Method. With more than 30 years of study in anatomy and movement, she is a pioneer in forging relevant links between the worlds of fitness, yoga, massage, athletics and pain management. She is known as the Teacher’s Teacher and has trained thousands of movement educators, clinicians, and manual therapists to incorporate her paradigm shifting self-care fitness programming into athletic and medical facility programs internationally. She has crafted original programs for 24 Hour Fitness, Equinox, YogaWorks, and numerous professional sports teams. She and her team of 500+ trainers help you to live better in your body with an emphasis on proprioception, mobility, breath mechanics and recovery.
She has presented case studies at the Fascia Research Congress and International Association of Yoga Therapy conferences. She has the rare ability to translate complex physiological and biomechanical information into accessible, relevant moves that help her students transform pain, dysfunction and injury into robust fitness. Jill is the anatomy columnist for Yoga Journal Magazine and has been featured in Shape, Men’s Journal, Good Housekeeping, Women’s Health, Yoga Journal, Self, and on the Today Show and Good Morning America. Jill is regularly featured on the Oprah Winfrey Network. She is the creator of dozens of DVD’s including Treat While You Train with Kelly Starrett DPT and is the author of the internationally bestselling book The Roll Model: A Step by Step Guide to Erase Pain, Improve Mobility and Live Better in your Body. Based in Los Angeles, CA, she is a wife and mother of two small children and is currently writing her second book.
These exercises are so simple and offer so much relief. The cross fiber massage is fantastic.
Loved this video. Especially the cross fiber work on the QL. I have found that the Yoga Tune-up balls work better than anything at cross fiber self-massage, including working with the quads where often a lot of tension is held. When I first started working with the Tune-up balls, I didn’t understand the difference between them and tennis balls. However, after working for about a month, I can see that the tune-up balls target areas more specifically, and they get in to areas more deeply. Also, due to the sticky nature of the balls they pull the skin and fascia in a way that tennis balls cannot. Yoga-Tune up balls have taken the place of those two tennis balls tied up in an old sock!
such a gentle but wonderful technique for the QL and mutlifidus!
I have not seen this technique for lower back before. Back pain seems to be the most common pain in the body, I have many friends who have this problem. I will definitely share this video.
I loved using the therapy balls in yoga tune up class. It really helped me better understand my own anatomy and also pinpointed areas of tension while also working through layers of adhesions, connective tissue, and into the sore muscles. After massaging back and forth along the quadratus lumborum in class, I found that my lower back mobility improved as demonstrated by my tucked tail bone reaching the floor while in happy baby pose!
Just ordered 60 Yoga Tune Up Therapy Balls to share with my students. My own experience with them has been so profound it would be irresponsible for me not to bring them into the studio. Thanks so much for the video tutorial–I love the shimmy!
One of the things I have most enjoyed in my exploration with the balls is the increased awareness I now have of different tissue and muscles in my body, and how they connect to one another. I feel like with the balls on my lower back, I get a good sense of my psoas as well as the imbalances in my right and left sides. And, it feels heavenly! I appreciate being taught the proper technique with the balls-it makes all the difference in the results.
i wanted to say, not really about the back massage, but the Yoga Tune Up Ball work has made a tremendous difference in my flexibility this week. I usually do cardio conditioning, spin, kickboxing, etc…) All things to tighten my hamstrings, hips, etc… But now I have had 6 consecutive days of only doing YTU work and it’s amazing how I feel in my body. Now I just need to find the balance to do both:) I will definitely begin using these at home and hopefully in time with my students.
I love the YTU balls not only for the relief of muscular tension but also for the facilitation of energy flow through the body. As I study more QIgong, I realize how vital this healthy flow of energy is. Not just for our muscles, but for our organ systems and spiritual well being. I notice after the ball routines the feel in the room changes from tense to blissful and that is a beautiful thing!
I’ve been focusing on the upper back and the neck with the balls.
I’m now discovering the lower back massages. That feels intense but in a very ggod way!
I saw that movie too Basia! And I completely agree, getting a visual understanding of the tissues we are actually manipulating is pretty awe inspiring. I have a whole new appreciation of what the two little spheres of high density rubber can do to work all the junk out of those soft tissues. Love those balls!
I have watched a screening of a great movie today! Cadaver lab. The topic – connective tissue and muscle fibers. I will play with the balls with a renewed enthusiasm. Wow, there is a jungle out there – thick and tropical jungle. I wish I had a little camera hiding under the layers of tissue while I am gliding on the balls. Perhaps there is a new movie coming up some time soon…
THESE BALLS ARE FABULOUS FOR RELEASING TENSION. I USED THEM TODAY AND MY LOWER BACK FEELS MUCH MORE FLEXIBLE AND THE FASCIA IS MUCH SMOOTHER.
I watched the ball routine with curiosity. I do not have a lower back problem so I cannot experience the results personally other than a gentle lumbar massage. However, I would only use the routine for my students with no lower back issues. It looks too deep to me for students with lumbar spine problems, but I don’t have your experience. Thank you for the ball massage therapy. I find it very effective.
This felt so good on my lower back – after doing it, I felt both grounded and light. I felt like I was barely touching the floor, but in the places, which was the whole of my lower back, I felt grounded. It was a strange feeling, but for the first time in as long as I can remember, I felt even, and like my back was properly aligned!
I loved using the therapy balls on the back. Its totally new to me but I could feel a difference in the way my back felt after only using them once. I can’t wait to experiment with them. It felt like a deep massage.