Human bodies are biotensegrity structures. This is what allows us to our very special combination of stability, movement, adaptability and resilience. As we better understand biotensegrity, we can better understand how our physical structure functions, and we can use this knowledge to help our clients and patients discover more optimal movement. This article is extracted from Chapter 15 “Reconfiguring” of the author’s book Everything Moves: How biotensegrity informs human movement and ties together many topics previously introduced, including how the body’s closed kinematic chains emerge as part of its tensegral structure. As in the rest of the book, it contains a number of exercises to help you to learn through practical experience. Login or register a free account below to access the contents, key points and discussion questions that accompany the article.
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Fascial Stretch Therapy™ (FST) is a technique that involves painless assisted stretching that focuses on the neuromyofascial net of the body as a whole for improving flexibility and function. This article explains how to implement... Read More
Almost all adults will have a scar of some sort somewhere on their body. Reading this article will give you an insight into how to decide if your patient’s scar is contributing to their symptoms... Read More
You have probably read articles about fascia, what it is and how it connects everything, and you have probably read articles about how to treat fascia-related problems; however, do you know how to identify if... Read More
When treating patients, we all want to create the ideal outcome opportunities for them, but how often is the ideal outcome achieved? Are there times when, in spite of both you and the patient doing their best, progress stalls? It is important to remember that fascial and musculoskeletal health can be affected by many factors. Treatment for some of these aspects might need referral to an appropriately trained medical specialist, whereas others are more under our own control. This article provides much food for thought about how to create the best environment for you and your patient so that the best treatment outcomes are attained. This article has been extracted from the author’s book Mobilizing the Myofascial System: A clinical guide to assessment and treatment of myofascial dysfunctions. Register free below (or log in if you already have an account) and you can access the article discussion points and other related resources.
This article offers a great overview of the structure of fascia and it's anatomical importance. This article is particularly relevant to student of manual and physical therapies as well as to existing practitioners wanting increase the effectiveness of their manual therapy treatments. Register below to read the key points for this article
This article is one of the first to consolidate the wide range of fascia-related therapies into one place. The article is an extract from a truly excellent book published by Handspring Publishing called Fascia: What it is and why it matters. If you're looking to add a specific fascia-based skill to your toolbox and you're not sure which one to choose, this is a great starting place. Register below to read the key points.
The interdisciplinary field of fascia research is a very dynamic field. Insights from past research have already contributed to a new understanding of musculoskeletal dynamics in which fascia plays a much more active and versatile role than previously assumed. The latest research has some fascinating implications for all bodywork therapists. Join the co-founder of the International Fascial Congress, Robert Schleip, for a lively exploration of the most recent developments and their practical clinical applications.
To view the webinar trailer simply click Latest news from fascia research - Trailer [Video] under the Media Contents section on the right hand side of your screen or click the embedded video below. The full length webinar is 53 minutes.
Why is elasticity so crucial to our health and resilience? What exactly do we mean by elasticity and how does it relate to Biotensegrity? What specific values does this context bring to the body work table or the movement classroom?
As Fascia Research expands, so the technology to understand its characteristics and behaviours in our moving bodies is becoming more refined. It is changing the perspective of how we see and assess the body holistically and, in particular, the value we place on elasticity as a component of adaptability and resilience. New models and metaphors, such as biotensegrity, explain movement and our responses to intervention in new ways. This is valuable, even crucial knowledge for all movement and manual practitioners in the fields of health and human performance. Using the theme of biotensegrity and recognising its range of applications, will provide insight into the value of all different kinds of intervention from a variety of modalities.
To view webinar trailer simply click Biotensegrity: A Balance of Forces - Trailer [Video] under the Media Contents section on the right hand side of your screen. The full length webinar is 1 hour 58 minutes.
If biotensegrity or the 'biology of tensegrity' is everything that some of our thought-leaders in anatomy believe, it has the potential to change the way we deliver many physical and massage therapies. Biotensegrity has been defined as the new "science of body architecture" and includes the latest research into the fascia. Biotensegrity, or tensegrity in biology, is described as the tensional network of the human form. Biotensegrity is an emerging field that raises new questions and insights into how this fascial connective tissue matrix is tensioned and how crucial that is to human structure.
The objective of this article along with our Co-Kinetic module on biotensegrity is to help you as a therapist understand how to integrate biotensegrity principles into physical activity programmes and massage therapies. If we can achieve this, all signs point towards a recipe for fewer injuries, better rehabilitation, improved natural function in motion, greater happiness and by virtue of all the above, greater success as a therapist. I am sure that most of us will agree that when we, or our clients, move injury-free everyone is at their happiest. Pain and injury bring misery.
Can tensegrity, or more specifically biotensegrity (defined as ‘tensegrity in living structures’), explain the interconnectedness of body structure? More importantly, will an understanding of biotensegrity change the way in which you work as a massage therapist? At this moment in our evolutionary history, it seems very likely it can and will, which is why the concept of tensegrity and biotensegrity has become an international hot topic and has provoked much discussion among a wide range of scientists and therapists. Simply defined biotensegrity provides a scientific (and plausible) explanation for something that we as therapists instinctively already know, that every structure in the body is in some way interconnected in a way in which the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. This article (along with its associated links to a series of animations) documents a fascinating insight into the ongoing debate between two leaders in their fields of research into the organisation of body structure and gives the reader the opportunity to understand the relevant concepts and compare the different points of view. It looks very much like this is the next step in our journey of discovery of functional anatomy.
This article discusses whether tensegrity or more specifically biotensegrity, which is explained as "tensegrity in biology" is changing our understanding of anatomy. The article is part of a special series published to coincide with the Biotensegrity Pre-Conference day which preceded the British Fascia Symposium 2016. It is part of a module of articles which can be found at the following link: Biotensegrity: concepts and practical applications for the manual therapist. Other articles in this series include: ‘Biotensegrity Part 1: Introduction to biotensegrity’; ‘Biotensegrity Part 2: Considering the role of fascia in the science of body architecture’; ‘Biotensegrity Part 3: Levers and pendulums’; ‘Dissecting the anatomy experience: a valuable learning tool’; ‘Function, form and fascia: What lies beneath?’; and ‘A new anatomy for the 21st century’.
Our regular research review summarises research looking into the effectiveness of dry needling for myofascial pain.
This article discusses the role of dry needling in the effective treatment of myofascial trigger points specifically and chronic pain states generally. The article details when dry needling is suitable but, more importantly, when it is contraindicated. A special emphasis is placed on the safety of the patient and the interests of the sportEX reader. The author highlights the need for tutors of dry needling to have an excellent knowledge of anatomy giving examples of why this is vitally important.
Biotensegrity, or tensegrity in biology, is described as the tensional network of the human form. It is an emerging field that raises new questions and insights into how this fascial connective tissue matrix is tensioned and how crucial that is to human structure. Biotensegrity is a compelling model that explains structure and motion in non-linear biologic forms such as the human body. The problem with many of the classical theories of biomechanics is that they are largely based on outmoded notions, such as the widely accepted idea that muscles act on the human limb joints as if they are levers. This article (Part 3 in a series on Biotensegrity) explains why it is a misconception that there are levers in biologic forms and proposes the idea of recognising closed kinematic chains as an alternative model of human anatomy and structure.
Dry needling is a technique similar to acupuncture that is used for the treatment of trigger points and muscle pain. This article describes its effects, dangers and technique as well as providing details of how to treat common trigger points.
This article explains the importance, for therapists, of experiencing human dissection as a teaching and professional development aid. With the empathy of a clinical anatomist and a doctor, who are also manual therapists, these experienced professionals understand and appreciate what therapists need to know. Touching a body is the key to most, if not all, movement and physical therapies; cadaver dissection helps in understanding the architecture beneath the skin which provides a much greater depth and breadth of knowledge or human anatomy for the practitioner.
Kinesiology tape (K-tape) has been increasingly applied to both amateur and elite athletes since its rise to popularity at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. K-tape has been reported to enhance muscular flexibility, through mechanisms which are not well understood, but are thought to be due to fascial manipulation. This article discusses the current research and ideas about flexibility and how K-tape might enhance it.
In this second article about the concept of biotensegrity, we consider the fascia, or tensional network of the living body. Many traditional concepts of biomechanics and musculoskeletal anatomy are evolving rapidly, particularly in light of a better understanding of biotensegrity. Biotensegrity has been defined as the new "science of body architecture" and includes the latest research into the fascia. Biotensegrity, or tensegrity in biology, is described as the tensional network of the human form. It is an emerging field that raises new questions and insights into how this fascial connective tissue matrix is tensioned and how crucial that is to human structure. There are challenges in naming the fascia and relating this ubiquitous fabric of human form to structure and natural function in living movement. Some key questions are explored here. Does biotensegrity provide the missing link?
Biotensegrity has been defined as the new "science of body architecture" and includes the latest research into the fascia. Biotensegrity, or tensegrity in biology, is described as the tensional network of the human form. It is an emerging field that raises new questions and insights into how this fascial connective tissue matrix is tensioned and how crucial that is to human structure. It evolves many of the classical concepts of biomechanics and offers new and intriguing perspectives on how we naturally move ourselves in space. In this first article the basic concept of biotensegrity is introduced (in plain English) and describes why we as movement and massage therapists cannot afford to ignore this concept.
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