Fascia, Stretching & Postural Therapy Get Rid of The Fuzz
Today I'd like to talk about the importance of fascia and stretching and how the two are intimately connected to what we do here at Pain Free Posture MN.
A few years ago, Dr. Gil Hedley posted a educational and entertaining Youtube sensation video called The Fuzz.
In it, Dr. Hedley makes a very complex subject simple. Through the use of real human cadavers, Hedley clearly demonstrates how connective tissue restricitions (the fuzz) between the muscles (fascia) needs to be freed up to enjoy a pain free life and living.
You might be thinking, why is fascia so important? Have you ever woken up completely stiff all over and wondered why?
Our fascial matrix is like an internal skin. It covers all of our muscles, nerves, arteries, veins, organs, and bones. Every structure in your body is covered in fascia. It acts as a communication system of the body through which:
- blood and nerve supplies travel
- most of the immune system exists within it
- feelings of pressure, proprioception and interoception are located
The brain constantly receives information on how the body is positioned both internally and in relationship to movement
My favorite Vinyasya yoga instructor, Sadie Nardini (Core Strength Vinyasa Yoga) explained it beautifully in her blog:
"Each night while we sleep, or any time we're still for long periods, like sitting in a car on a long road trip, our body begins to build collagen fibers. They look a little like cotton candy, and are just as sticky, causing friction between what should be smoothly sliding muscle surfaces. The end result is the stiffness you might feel in the morning getting out of bed or standing up after watching a three-hour movie.
Now, this is usually no big deal for those of us with a consistent movement practice. We feel creaky, we do yoga, we're good. But if you don't lubricate your joints and move your muscles to break up the fuzz regularly enough, it begins to knit together. Over time, the normal, subtle stiffness becomes limited movement, and even pain as the spider-webbed, bound body tries to move against resistance. Instead of confronting the fuzz, to avoid discomfort, many people simply move less. It becomes a vicious cycle that we often chock up to aging, but really is a cumulative, and mostly avoidable, buildup of fuzz.
Now, that's not to say that all physical slowdown is due to the fuzz, and if we simply stretch more, we will never feel the effects of age. But there is much more we can do to keep our bodies--and therefore our minds--as open, vital, and free as possible. "
Through the dissection, Hedley shows the audience how the lack of motion, or inhibition of correct movment patterns results in fascial tissue binding and as he calls it "pathological states" of mobility.
Basically, Hedley supports the following viewpoints:
- correct movement patterns and stretching maintain the sliding properties of tissues in the body
- how valuable bodywork modalities such as Posture Alignment Therapy (Egoscue Method), Pilates and Yoga are when movement has become inhibited.
I couldn't agree more! As an Egoscue University Affiliate Instructor and Certified Posture Alignment Specialist, I can tell you that Posture Alignment Therapy should be the first course of action prior to starting a pilates or yoga practice.
Why? The a corrective exercise program like Postural Therapy addresses and corrects the primary problem, the postural compensations and dysfunctions at the root cause of the fuzz accumulation, and resotres the body back to it's "blue-print" design.
Gil Hedley, Ph.D., made this clip when filming his DVD series in 2005. Back then he called the fuzz "filmy fasciae" and said:
"By using something visible to illustrate something invisible, people are helped to understand the importance of stretching, but for those wanting to understand more precisely, it is important to comprehend the difference between my illustrations using normal tissue "fuzz," and the kind of bonding which is taking place invisibly in connective tissue which can, in some instances, represent a pathological progression of tissue growth limiting movement."
So, along with all the reasons to practice the benefits of good posture, we can add healthy fascia and connective tissue. All the more reason to keep the body functional. If you are in chronic pain, suffering with muscle and or joint pain, Posture Alginement Therapy in The Egoscue Method is the place to start.
Address the imbalances and dysfucntions in the load joints, get out of pain,then get out there and enjoy your life. Do pilates, yoga, Patch Fitness, boot camp, CrossFit, Zumba, or whatever gives you joy in movement.
A Pain Free Life and Living is within reach!
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At Pain Free Posture MN, we believe in living life to the fullest! Your life should be PAIN FREE - fun, full of energy, and uniquely about you.
If it doesn't feel that way for you, give me a call.
Posture Alignment Therapy can help you resolve your musculoskeletal pain naturally without medication, manipulation or surgery.
If you don't know what to do, don't worry. I can help you get going again. I promise. We're in this together, and I am here to help.