One of my favourite things to talk about - FASCIA. It’s a widely used and important part of our anatomical being and more and more practitioners are coming to identify and use this system as an integral part of body therapy. I’ve talked a lot about what it is in other articles but for this investigation I want to draw our attention to the specific supportive lines of fascia through the body.
Our body is interconnected. We’ve had this explained to us in many ways at various points and when I was first exposed to this concept, I understood the principle without necessarily understanding the intricacies of how or why. This magical system is not magic at all - it’s a series of identifiable tissues that wrap around our body in differing connections that do indeed CONNECT us. When we begin to identify the primary distinctive connections, we can begin to assess weaknesses and issues that are indeed CONNECTED.
Even as recently as this week I had a client send me a message saying how pleased they were that I was able to give them some relief from their lower back pain that was radiating into the gluteals and causing them grief. In an offhand comment, he mentioned that he was feeling so good that he decided to go for a long bike ride over the weekend and now his knee was starting to ache. “It’s probably not connected” was his prefacing comment, to which I leaped out of my seat and threw my hands in the air like a methodist preacher exclaiming “Oh but they ARE”. At which point the people in the cafe were thinking I was a rather strange person. This is exactly the kind of relationship that is possible to explain with FASCIAL LINES.
“Static and dynamic control of posture and movement relies upon the connective tissue system – muscles, tendons, ligaments, joint capsules; in addition to bones, blood vessels, adipose tissue, and nerves – to maintain structural integrity of body position. When viewed in their isolated form, the connective tissue structures can appear independent of each other. However, what connects and unifies the entire connective tissue system is the extremely complex and integrative tissue known as fascia”
Fascial lines help support our movement. They create and necessitate the tension and supportive framework against which our muscles act to create and enable complex movement. There are several lines of interest and influence but in this part we will focus on the Superficial Lines.
Superficial Front Line - this line essentially runs from the top of the feet to the back of the skull. It’s job is to assist with movement of the head towards the toes and vice versa. It’s made up of two parts, the first starting at the mastoid process (at the jaw) and runs down along the anterior neck, sternum and abdominal line to the pubic bone. The 2nd part starts at the Anterior Iliac Inferior Spine (front and lower pelvis) and runs along the middle of the quad and the shin to insert at the dorsal section of the foot.
The simplistic relationship between these two lines is best expressed in our seated posture. When we sit we shorten our anterior line and this places strain on our posterior line of fascia. When we then take a standing position, this fascial complex is not balanced and this can result in a stooped or forward posture as the over stretch of one line and the shortening of another creates imbalances and adjustments to achieve balance.
Superficial Back Line - This is the primary posterior line and similar to the Superficial line, it’s job is to promote movement of the skull backwards towards the heel as well as providing postural support. It starts at the frontal bone of the skull (think 3rd Eye) and travels up over the cranium down the spine and the sacrum, over the gluteal region and along the hamstrings and achilles to insert at the underside (plantar) side of the foot.
Anterior Oblique Chain - runs from the external and internal obliques of the ‘core’ muscles (abdominal). It is connected via the anterior abdominal fascia and runs into the contralateral (opposing) adductors of the leg. This chain plays a key role in the gait (walk) bringing the leg from an extended back position through to the forward stepping position. It stabilises the spine and pelvis in rotation and helps to control the rotational forces at play in the stepping cycle. This fundamental motion links the core with the movement of the opposing leg and shows why poor form in running or walking can contribute to instability and pain in other areas such as the knee, ankles and shoulder.
Posterior Oblique Chain - runs from the posterior arm pit via the insertion of the latissimus dorsi muscle, traversing the thoracolumbar fascia onto the opposing side gluteus maximus. This line connects the opposite hip and shoulder which is vital in actions such as swinging, throwing or swimming freestyle. In this chain we are looking at stabilising the hips when involved in a movement that requires rotation and shoulder force. A pitchers throw for example. If the contralateral (opposing) hip is not stable, the force of the throw is dissipated and power is lost. Ensuring good tone through the nominal muscles as well as the thoracolumbar fascia being open means the full recruitment of support is available for performing this power move. Back pain is usually a result of poor stability and/or recruitment of this sling.
Identifying these lines you can begin to see how a bad R latissimus dorsi may indeed result in hip pain on the opposing side. Recruitment of elements within the chain to compensate for poor function of another muscle or soft tissue usually means something is getting overworked when it really shouldn’t need to. This is where compromised movement patterns can continue for long periods without being assessed or noticed. We can develop these movement habits until we can no longer maintain them which in some cases, can be years down the track. In this way an injury from years ago can still rear it’s ugly head in the present.
If there is poor tone and recruitment of these chains, we can overcompensate by recruiting muscles to do the job of maintaining posture and stability for us. For example, a person who sits all day long and does not have good fascial recruitment may overuse their spinalis (erector spinae muscles that control the spine) which results in hypertonic (tight) muscles. Thus they are unable to relax or turn off these muscles when resting. This creates tension and pain as muscles are being overworked. This is before performing any movement or exercise.
It comes down to using the most efficient system. If we aren’t using these combinations of connective tissues together in co-ordinated movement then the system isn’t working as well as it should. In this case the body finds another way to actuate the movement and though it is less efficient, it will do the job being asked of it. Then when this compensation is overtaxed - we get PAIN.
Understanding the primary fascial lines might help you to understand how some therapists come to assess the body and explain how the L ankle can wind it’s way up and effect the R shoulder. It’s not always vital to know the nitty gritty, but understanding this principle can help you understand how a therapist may be working with your body on an interconnected level to enable you to be pain free for longer in the event of an injury. It’s part of the complete process of support and elimination. Fixing only part of the problem can sometimes not lead you to pain free movement. In my humble opinion…
Tune in for the next section of this investigation as we begin to look at the DEEP FASCIAL LINES.
