How to make a foam roller and should you?

I've been meaning to do this for a while. I love foam rolling. To be honest I don't do it as often as I should. For some reason I've always wanted to make my own foam roller. So this seemed as good a time as any. But in the age of the internet and so many sports stores carrying rollers, is it worth it to make our own? Well here's what I found out. If you can find a good one for under $20, it's worth it to just buy it. But can you find one?

Yup here you go...

That being said, there are places that don't have rollers and maybe you can get to the stores that do. Maybe you're just like me and like to make something to learn more about it, or you just have a drizzly Sunday with nothing else to do.

So here's how you make a foam roller:

Step 1) Get your stuff together. You'll need:
PVC pipe ~$6
yoga mat ~$8
ruler
scissors
marker
athletic tape ~$3

Step 2) Measure twice, cut once. Measure how much of your yoga mat you will need by rolling the PVC pipe so that it's covered in one layer of the mat. Mark the mat with the marker and cut it to fit.

Step 3) Tape both ends of the mat and the middle together around the PVC pipe using the athletic tape.

Step 4) Starting from the center work your way up each end taping the mat closed. You might have to un-tape the end pieces once you get to them. Just make sure the mat touches and covers the PVC pipe the whole way around.

Step 5) Tape, tape, tape! Cover the PVC pipe in athletic tape and secure the mat. Once you feel it's secure, you're done. Now go work out those sore muscles ;)

I made mine smaller then normal because it's easier for me to use it on my IT band :)

Difficulty
Child's play

Cost
Less then your coffee for the week

Enjoyment

More fun then it looks