Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/1501042
L i s te n to T h e A B M P Po d c a s t a t a b m p.co m /p o d c a s t s o r w h e reve r yo u a cce s s yo u r favo r i te p o d c a s t s 69 TAKEAWAY: Gliding relationships between muscles exist all over the body. Knowing where they are can help massage therapists explore their clients' tissue mobility for healthy function. WHY WE CARE For massage therapists, the anatomy of a muscle's gliding relationships can be as important as its insertions and origins. Knowing where the muscles should be free to move and where they should be stable provides us with a functionally informed road map for our touch. Tracing the "anatomy of glide" in your clients can leave them feeling freer in their bodies and give you a new way to assess and work with your clients' favorite muscles. FEEL IT FOR YOURSELF There is no better way to learn the "anatomy of glide" than with your hands. Follow this exploration of the trapezius with a refocus on where the muscle anchors and where it glides. Upper Traps Anchors: Starting at your sternum, trace your right collar bone until you can feel the tissue thicken where the upper trapezius anchors into the lateral clavicle. Leaning your head away, follow the fibers up the slope of your right shoulder, gently strumming the edge of the traps as they make their way to the occipital ridge and feel where they anchor. Anatomy of Glide: Gently grab the "scruff of the neck" and observe how you can move the upper trapezius slightly to the left and right of the midline before it becomes more anchored and stable at C7. Nodding your head forward and back, feel for the lateral edges of the traps and trace them from the occipital ridge down toward C7. Pinch the edges as they wing to the side and try sneaking underneath them with your thumbs. Notice if you can move them relative to the deeper cervical muscles. Flat tendon of latissimus dorsi with trapezius reflected. Near the spine, between T7 and T12, the red fibers of the right latissimus dorsi muscle diminish into the strong, anchoring, white collagen fibers that form its flat tendon. The trapezius muscle has been reflected left to reveal its smooth underbelly—a slippery, "slide-y" surface that permits it to easily glide over the latissimus dorsi during movement. Image courtesy of AnatomySCAPES.com. 2 HOW GLIDING HAPPENS Like its surrounding muscles, the trapezius is fully encased in a thin, fibrous covering of deep fascia. Completely adherent to the muscle itself, the fascial covering creates a smooth interface with adjacent muscles so when one muscle contracts it doesn't drag its neighbors along for the ride. Between these gliding interfaces, we find loose connective tissue, a hyaluronan- rich, lubricating tissue that helps each muscle slide and glide across its neighbors by further reducing friction. Leaving the force generation to the muscles and force transmission to the deep fascia, loose connective tissue's slippery, gel-like consistency provides the lubrication needed to make it all work together smoothly.