Rethinking Fascial Tension For Dynamic Integrity
How we feel and think can have a hugely profound impact on our movement quality, patterns and options. Thoughts are no doubt powerful but it’s the attitude to the thoughts and images that we use is what gives them their power. In the realm of movement, the word tension can receive unnecessarily negative press…
The truth is, without tension it would be impossible to move. Tensile forces flow throughout your entire structure. From the organelle to organ, tensional ‘links’ are present everywhere. The contractile forces that are generated from our muscle tissue rely on the surrounding tensile membranes (fascia) to be transferred. The muscle-tendon-bone ‘unit’ isn’t necessarily a uniting network of different tissues. The muscle-tendon-bone ‘unit’ is a singular tissue matrix that changes in it’s cellular type, function and density as it self assembles throughout the body. In reality, nothing ‘attaches’ to anything. Our tissues formed from the same starting point. We began as a ‘whole’ being and expanded from there - nothing exists in isolation. From a ‘mechanical’ perspective, this united tissue (the body) communicates to itself in part, through tensional vibrations.
In many areas of the body, the role of muscle is to modulate the tensile frequency of tendons. Tendons are a type of regular connective tissue which means their densely packed collagen fibers are arranged in a mostly singular pattern (one direction). This fascial pattern of organisation is different from other fascial tissues which can be more omnidirectional (all directions) in nature.
Achieving ‘dynamic core control’ for example is the balancing of many myofascial tensile tissues that relate to ascending and descending forces, from the legs and arms to the torso and spine. This requires intelligent, omnidirectional conditioning to ‘find your core’. One of the primary functions of the transverse abdominis is to ‘tighten’ specific membranes that approximate the spine. This modulation in the tension of the lower back fascia is an essential component to achieving dynamic stability. Without this lumbar tension, stability couldn’t be achieved, which in turn means movement couldn’t occur.
An excessive up-regulation or down-regulation of the tensile properties that maintain your dynamic form, can produce unwanted results in the body (although this is no gurantee). What is the ‘optimal’ tensile/fascial tone for one individual will be different for another. Anatomical variability will have a huge influence on what is the ‘ideal’ tensile integrity. We resemble plants or trees more than we do machines. We all follow certain patterns that connect us as a species but how these patterns organise and express themselves can differ.
Without tension there’s no form and without form there’s no movement. You could say that the goal of exercise and physical therapy are to produce the appropriate amount of tension in the body to facilitate accurate, safe and efficient movement, based on the individual’s goals and needs. When our tensional tissues are resonating at the 'right' frequency, we move with fluidity and feel liberated!
Relating in a negative way to tension misses the point of it’s vital role in healthy and normal function as a locomotive creature.
How we think influences our neurophysiological rhythm. The thoughts in your mind influence the tone of your muscles. If we want to move organically and freely, we need to address our choice of descriptive language in relation to the body. We want tension, we just don’t want to feel too much or too little of it. What is the ‘right’ level of tension? This depends on the situation! It’s a complex negotiation with gravity and the forces of your body that are always in flux. If our movement becomes stale, our tensional integrity can suffer.
Let’s move with the intension of producing tension, not avoiding it. I invite you to re-contextualize your relationship with tension. It’s not the only force that moves through the body, but it’s certainly one we want to understand and appreciate as we move through our daily lives.
Movement is medicine.
Tom
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