If you’re interested in more theory behind this week’s lesson, you might have a look at the following resources.
A quick lesson on fascia
Fascia is the connective tissue that wraps around and through our muscles and organs. If you’ve ever cooked a brisket, fascia is the “silverskin” on the meat. Fascia sheets condense into tendons and ligaments at the end of muscles, and continuous webs of fascia connect us literally from head to foot.
Sometimes when we feel like our motion is restricted, we say “my muscles feel tight.” Many times, what’s happening is that the fascia has become rigid or sticky, and the different layers of muscle can’t move across each other fluidly. Instead of stretching the muscle from end to end, what we need to do is to move the muscles sideways so the layers don’t stick together.
This gliding practice works on getting the fascia loose and limber, sliding in all directions. It also has a special focus on opening the front body to counteract the “fetal position crouch” we often experience when anxious. Freeing the fascia improves breathing, and also gives us the feeling that we can react usefully to adapt to situations. We can sidestep, run, or fight as needed – or catch others if they stumble. Freeing fascia opens up our options and prepares us to cope with whatever comes our way.
Here’s a pretty fascinating microscopic look at fascia and how it interacts with adjacent tissues. Fun fact: when in “fight or flight” mode, your fascia clamps down to reduce potential bleeding!
Additional resources
Several well-respected practitioners offer additional exercises and insights about fascia and its relationship to health, pain, and emotions.
- Tom Myers is one of the leading researchers into fascial anatomy. His book and method are known as Anatomy Trains (Links to an external site.).
- Karin Gurtner has created a movement practice called Anatomy Trains in Motion. She has many free videos available on her YouTube channel (Links to an external site.), plus even more for sale (without ads) on her Art of Motion Academy (Links to an external site.) web site. NOTE: If you do try her practices, be aware that she assumes a certain amount of fascial mobility to start. If you are especially stiff – or, let’s face it, normally stiff – her sequences may be “too much, too soon.”