𝐒𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐓𝐨 𝐊𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐀𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐦𝐲 ... 𝐀𝐧𝐝, 𝐒𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐍𝐞𝐰𝐞𝐫

Not everyone is a student of Human Anatomy. But ... 

But, as a Human you have an anatomy, so it might be a good idea for you to have some familiarity with it. Like you probably drive a car. No need to know how to time the ignition, or adjust the valves; but some knowledge is helpful; some even necessary. The pedal on the right is to go. The one to the left, that's to stop. A third pedal? If you have a third pedal, hat's of to you; you know from what that's for. You OG. Kapische?

Knowledge, not just the intellectual/conceptual elements as taught in school; but the actual/perceptual knowing. How it feels. Just like driving that motor vehicle. We each have some level of knowledge of how cars work; but, with your hands on the wheel it's a direct experience. If you're into cars, then there's a whole romance to it. The responsiveness of the drivetrain, handling, the sounds, road feel through the suspension, torque. Like that. At least it used to be an experience, before the smooth and silent electrical drives and the self driving variants; the latter which are basically glorified shipping containers. But, even those ... it's an experience; even though who really will probably never know how that "self-driving" AI even works?

So, stick around. If only for the superlative prose. You might learn something that'll suit you down the "road". See what I did there ... "road". As in driving a car, as in the "road" of life. Kapische?

Okay. So let's get anatomical. [That's what she said.] 

Okay, okay ...

Basic Human anatomy: an aggregate of labels for a lot of identifiable parts. Arms, legs. Hips, shoulders. Torso, neck, and head. On the inside, muscles, bones, organs, blood vessels, nerves, blood, and guts. Systems: Muscular, Skeletal, Circulatory, Nervous, Digestive, Endocrine, Integumentary [skin, hair, nails], Respiratory, Urinary, Cardiovascular, Lymphatic, Reproductive. 

That's the short course. Of course, any one of those on the list has a whole library full of scientific study and documentation each. I'll leave you to delve as you will.

Did I leave anything out? No? 

Well, yes! 

The Fascial System. Which is comprised of, you guessed it ... "Fascia". Duh! 

You heard of it? Probably not. Just today I spoke with a high school Biology teacher. Fascia? Huh?  No wonder. It's always been there, but just like the way science progresses, it's and evolution. Hasn't been on the Biology study menu much; that is, not until recently. 

First, what is this "Fascia"?

Fascia is what we call the soft connective tissue network what holds everything together. Dr. Ida P. Rolf, considered "The Mother of Fascia" — so named for how her eponymous work first spotlighting the Fascial System — referred to it as the "Organ of Structure". And, by structure, we're talking relationship. Only until recently now getting serious focus as a distinctly important tissue, and as a system in itself. Until around now it hadn't received that much scientific or clinical/medical attention. But, now ... now everybody is working with Fascia. On Fascia. Releasing Fascia. Exercising Fascia. Sculpting Fascia. There's even a gizmo, "Fascia Blaster". Some call those into this as a study, "Fascianistas".

Let's jump the shark right now, and cut to the chase. What's it do?  Fascia in its role of holding things together and keeping things in their right place is functionally like the pulp of an Orange. Imagine all those juicy drops of citrus are like muscles each enveloped with a Fascial surround; and the skin of the Orange, like your skin ... there you've got a pretty good idea of what is Fascia. Maybe even consider those thickish bits separating the Orange segments to be like dem bones. 

Kapische?

So, why's this Fascia stuff important? It used to be just the stuff you had to clear away to get to the good stuff, like those organs and muscles and bones and all the rest of what goes on in the Human body. But, science evolves, and we now are looking into Fascia like the optimistic kid who is so eager to have a pony he's sorting through a pile of horse shit. "There's gotta be a pony in here somewhere!"

You see what I just did there? It's a poke at the let's-all-jump-on-the-bandwagon of gushing enthusiasm making Fascia the next new shizz. It's all the talk among researchers and clinicians who offer manual therapies. There's a keen narrow focus; so much so, that even students of Dr. Rolf's peerless and definitive method writing extensively about Fascia in their enthusiasm forget to relate that to the larger issue. Which is how the Gravitational field of the Earth is the central organizing factor for healthful, balanced living. 

How did Gravity get into the picture? Good question. Let's just say that without it Fascia would be gravy. You know how when you roast a Turkey the connective tissue melts and you make gravy. I do like to wramble, but I'm not gonna get into a recipe for such. Look it up. 

And, let's add how such balance in respect to the demands of Gravity is a factor in peak performance and full creative expressiveness. Makes common sense, right? You wouldn't want to keep driving your car with the front end out of alignment. The body is a vehicle too. 

But, and alas. Even now with seven international conferences since 2006 on Fascia research, we've arguably still not made that essential point. At least not enough to register on the top of mind radar. Maybe not if prompted with some clues. Even now, if this is all new to you, it's probably not gonna sink in right away. You know it took a bit to figure out the Sun doesn't revolve around the Earth. It just looks that way. So, Fascia. You can't see it, so the grokking of it may take a few takes, or more. You do know that the Sun doesn't circle the Earth?

Let's put two and two together. There's Fascia, there's Gravity. 

So?

The Fascial System is a three dimensional fabric/matrix rich in microscopic interconnected collagen protein fibers. Knit together as a fabric. But three dimensional. Bodywide it provides tensile support under the tensioning effect of the action of Gravity. 

This now gets us back to Dr. Ida P Rolf. You may have heard of her work, originally nicknamed Rolfing. Now it's a field in itself: Dr. Ida P. Rolf Method Structural Integration. "Structural Integration", if brevity is your thing. 

The main idea is this: the Human body has the ability to form and reform in response to patterns of use ... and misuse. It's plastic. 

Here's an example from my own family. Uncle Stash. Not the brightest iteration of the clan. Round shoulders, flat forehead. When you ask him a question he reliably will shrug his shoulders. Gets the answer, slaps his forehead. We are shaped by our experience(s).

Fascia is not just elastic like a rubber band, but plastic: as in it takes shape, and can be reshaped. That last point. A biggy. I can be reshaped. Of, if you're a youngster, can be taught is that direction. Who taught you to stand, to sit, to walk. Basic stuff. We're self-taught. And just take a gander at the variations on that one standard theme. We go to school, but who teaches proper body usage. It doesn't show up automatically. It's learned.

Good News! 

Capitalizing on that plasticity the method Structural Integration uses manual pressure and movement coaching in a sequential series training program to foster a reorganization toward balance of the entire body. The goal is to conform the arrangement of the body to the basic standard(s) for all physical structures. In the architectural design and the building trades the well known term is "Plumb & Square". The Human body is a structure, and as any Anatomist knows from day one, the design of the body calls for up and down vertical alignment with symmetries and everything nice and level. 

It's easy to assume we're talking about keeping one's balance. That's a thing, of course. What we're talking about is the balance of the makeup of the body as a whole. How the parts fit and work together. Structurally. And integrated. Not just integrated as a body as such, but the whole integrated within the Gravitational field of the Earth. Basic ecology really. How your body stacks under the influence of Gravity. Literally.

We all intuitively understand this from playing stacking blocks as young children. 

Until recently this whole proposition has not received any purchase in either the professional or on the stoop at the street level imagination. Dr. Rolf planted her flag on in solid ground. And, also sehr importante, it's been unrecognized that the Human body has the capacity to learn such balance; and to restore such balance when things get out of whack.

Per Dr. Rolf: "Some individuals may perceive their losing fight with gravity as a sharp pain in their back, others as the unflattering contour of their body, others as constant fatigue, yet others as an unrelentingly threatening environment. Those over forty may call it old age. And yet all these signals may be pointing to a single problem so prominent in their own structure, as well as others, that it has been ignored: they are off balance, they are at war with Gravity."

So, where's the pony, Fascia-wise? It's right there. Do this. Sit down on a firm flat surface chair. Loose and natural. Look inside. The force of Gravity is creating signals you can feel. It's called enteroception. To cooperate with Gravity's organizing way, just be with what's going on. Breathe. Do like Lennon and McCartney suggest ... "Let it be".

Try it. You'll see. Stay with it, though stay with it daily for a while. This may be new territory. Get used to it. You'll like it. 

That's the Gravity "Pony"!

And, you are very welcome!