interactive muscle exercise

Hi Everyone,
Although the following interactive exercise is specifically intended for the members of my anatomy and physiology class on muscles, anyone is welcome to play.
Here is how it works… I am posting a question on muscles. Whoever knows the answer can write in the answer, BUT you must also then post a NEW QUESTION for everyone else. For the purpose of this exercise, the muscle question MUST be about a muscle that is in chapter 8 or 9 of The Muscular System Manual, 2nd edition. The answer to your question MUST be located within one of those two chapters. And, please give us either your full name or at least your full first name and the first initial of your last name. I got this idea from another blog on anatomy.
Joe Muscolino
Okay, here is the question to kick this exercise off:
What are the four muscles of the rotator cuff group?

 

Interview at www.scienceofmassage.com

Hi there,

I am being featured as the “Person of the Month” at the website www.scienceofmassage.com. Once on the homepage, click on “Journal of Science” and then on “Person of the Month” to read the interview.
Also, my article on the body mechanics of stretching is reviewed on the “Good Apples / Bad Apples” page. To read the article itself, go to www.learnmuscles.com and click on the articles page.
happy reading!

 

Hands-on Neck Workshop this Sunday

Sorry for being so last minute, but… there is one spot open in my hands-on neck workshop this Sunday. The workshop is from 9-6 with a one-hour break for lunch and will be held in Fairfield. The topics include assessment of disc and thoracic outlet syndromes, body mechanics for deep tissue work to the posterior neck, palpating and working the anterior neck (longus colli), and specific and effective stretching of the neck.
If you are interested, contact me right away. Either email me at jemredd@optonline.net or call me at (203)788-7635. cost $160.00. Workshop limited to 8 people for close personal attention.

 

Roles of muscles

When muscles are first learned, it is classically the concentric (shortening) contractions that are first learned. Unfortunately, this is often as far as many students progress when learning about the musculoskeletal system. If a snapshot were taken at any one instant in time during a motion pattern, less than half of the contractions that are occurring in the body would actually be concentric contractions of movers (agonists). There are also the eccentric contractions of antagonists and the isometric contractions of fixators (stabilizers).

A nice exercise to do to examine and learn about the roles of muscles is to choose a specific joint action (and describe the position of the body at that time to determine the role of gravity), and then determine a possible mover, antagonist, fixator, neutralizer, and support muscle. Be aware though that some actions are simple and some are more complicated.

Joe

 

piriformis and piriformis syndrome discussion summarized

First, thank you to everyone who contributed to the discussion about piriformis and piriformis syndrome!

I would like to summarize the discussion with the following points/responses. Pretty much everything I will say has already been said by one or a number of you. I am simply condensing the ideas.

Question one asked how doing lateral rotation can stretch the piriformis if the piriformis is a lateral rotator.
Response: As many of you said, the piriformis is a lateral rotator when in anatomic position, but once the thigh is flexed approx 60 degrees or more at the hip joint, it becomes a medial rotator. Therefore, flexing and laterally rotating the thigh DOES stretch the piriformis.

Question two asked a number of things.

First, should hip joint abductors be strengthened in a person who has piriformis syndrome given that the piriformis is an abductor of the thigh at the hip joint?
Response: The piriformis is really not an ‘abductor’ of the thigh at the hip joint. It is a ‘horizontal abductor’ (or horizontal extensor) of the thigh at the hip joint. In other words, IF the thigh is first flexed approx 90 degrees, then the piriformis can bring the thigh away from the midline. SO, if the client is in anatomic position and does hip joint abduction exercises, the piriformis will NOT be strengthened. It will only be strengthened if the client’s hip joint is flexed and then brings the thigh away from the midline. If you look at the machine at the gym for this, you will see that the backrest can usually be lowered. When it is upright and you are sitting, the piriformis IS strengthened. When it is lowered, the piriformis is NOT strengthened (the glutes primarily are).

Second, would sitting with the thighs flexed and laterally rotated cause the piriformis to be hypertonic and have trigger points…?
Response: If the client sits with the thighs sufficiently flexed… and laterally rotated, the piriformis, being a medial rotator in that position, would actually be stretched. Now, if it is overstretched, then that could cause it to tighten and become hypertonic (due to the muscle spindle reflex) and perhaps have trigger points. But that is probably not likely. More likely, sitting this way would nicely stretch it. SO, if a client has a tight piriformis, this sitting position may be beneficial. (Note, there are many parameters… it is possible that overstretching a muscle can lengthen it and weaken it – due to the length-tension relationship curve – and then if it is weak, it may not be able to contract as well when needed and that could cause it to tighten, etc.)

Third, should adductors and medial rotators be strengthened in a client with piriformis syndrome?
Response: IF the client has a tight piriformis, then strengthening the antagonists (adductors and medial rotators) could reciprocally inhibit the piriformis, thereby relaxing it. Also, it could help to balance the pull upon the hip joint caused by the tight piriformis.

SO often, the answer to a questrion is “It depends.” It depends upon many factors/parameters, not all of which are always known. Certainly, not all were given in this case study discussion question. This points to the importance of a thorough history and exam when assessing a client!

Thanks once again to everybody for contributing! Please keep checking in for more discussion topics!

Joe

 

Frozen Shoulder Case Study

Hi everyone,

Following is another case study, this one on frozen shoulder. This is an actual case study from another blog posted by a therapist. Food for thought… Please discuss!

BTW, if you haven’t, take a look at the comments posted on the piriformis syndrome case study!

Joe

I have a 80 y/o client with advanced COPD,(on Oxygen) Osteoporosis secondary to age&chronic steroid use, unable to lie supine or prone, with a left frozen shoulder. She is unable to tolerate any deep work and the manual ROM to her shoulder is of course very painful and she does not tolerate it well.
Present ROM is 0-90 in Abduction, 90 in flexion and minimal extension.
Balance is poor, which precludes a lot of standing exercises or wall stretching. I also should mention she has a hx. of pathological vertebral fx. Any suggestions?
What are therapists doing for less complicated clients with frozen shoulders?

 

Discussion about Piriformis and Piriformis Syndrome. Please discuss…

Hello everyone!

Following are two questions about the piriformis and piriformis syndrome that were posted on another blog that I am a member of. They are thought provoking questions and I INVITE you all to discuss them. If you have an answer, feel free to give it. If you have a partial answer, please share. Please respond with any answers, thoughts, comments, or further questions that you have. The more the merrier!

Joe

1. Many sources suggest stretching piriformis and the other lateral rotators by crossing the affected leg over the other in a figure 4 and flexing the hips to bring the knees toward the chest. While I can see that this brings the greater trochanter away from the sacrum and ischium, lengthening the lateral rotators, the figure four also laterally rotates and abducts the hip, which shortens the lateral rotators, no?. Any thoughts?

2. Many sources also suggest folks with piriformis syndrome strengthen the hip abductors. But piriformis is a weak abductor of the flexed hip. If a client sits with the knees widely separated, the hip is flexed and laterally rotated, and piriformis is hypertonic and contains trigger points, is strengthening abductors wise? Would strengthening the adductors or medial rotators be more appropriate so that they are better able to antagonize the actions of the lateral rotators?

 

Should We Work a Muscle on Stretch or When Slackened?

Most therapists have been taught how to work a muscle when it is on stretch AND how to work it when it is slackened… But, when is it best to employ one method versus the other?

Of course the answer is resoundingly definitive: It depends!

Let’s look at an example…

TO READ MORE, click the following link: www.learnmuscles.com/tips.html

OR – Paste it in your browser.

OR – Go to www.learnmuscles.com and clink on the Tips link to the right side of the page, and then click on the title of this post.

Enjoy! Joe

 

Thinking Fast Makes you Happier!

Scientific American Mind magazine recently reported on a study out of Princeton and Harvard that shows that people become happier when they think fast. It does not matter what was thought about, the simple act of generating thoughts quickly made the participants happier.

Massage therapy teachers and students can take advantage of this information…

TO READ MORE, click the following link: www.learnmuscles.com/Thinking%20fast.doc

OR – Paste it into your browser.

OR – Go to www.learnmuscles.com and click on the “Tips” link.

Happy reading… and happy fast thinking!
Joe

 

Life Coaching – New Year’s Resolutions

When the calendar page turns to a new year, people often want to turn a new page in their lives. New Year’s resolutions are empowering and often inspiring, but when we limit ourselves to New Year’s resolutions we limit ourselves to a Hallmark-driven road map for our lives…

TO READ MORE, click the following link: www.learnmuscles.com/New%20Years%20ResolutionstoPrint.pdf

OR – Paste it into your browser.

OR – Go to www.learnmuscles.com, then click on the link for life coaching at the right side of the home page, and then click the link for New Year’s Resolutions

Happy resolutions all year long!

Joe