Let's talk fascia...

So, you may have never heard of the word 'fascia'. in fact, it's something that is often overlooked. When you think of muscles, words like ligaments and tendons then spring to mind. Fascia is what we think of as our connective tissue, which is absolutely correct, although recently there has been light shed on the matters of fascia and how it has an effect on your body. In years of research in dissection, fascia was often discarded of due to it being over everything, thus scraping it off to reveal the muscles/organs/structures underneath.

The inspiration for this blog has sparked from experiences with recent clients. On assessment, there being no obvious muscular tightness/tension but symptoms of restrictiveness. It made me look deeper into the world of fascia and explore beyond my already existing knowledge of the matter. It turns out, the fascia is a tensional fluid system. This means that it needs to stay hydrated in order to maintain productive movement. So much like muscles, water helps aid the function of fascia determining how resilient and mobile the structure is. Although drinking water contributes to the hydration levels, manipulation of the soft tissues helps untangle the dry, restrictive areas of the fascia thus creating movement for water to flow through. Myofascial release techniques and stretching can aid this. Opting to do exercise classes such as Yoga and Pilates is also a great benefit to this.

Do you do the same movements, day in day out? Sitting at a desk, moving a computer mouse, typing...these repetitive movements give your fascia a pretty hard time, increasing the risk of your tissue becoming brittle, thus creating the perfect platform for injuries to occur. Moving in a range of ways different to your normal day to day positions can again help with hydrating the fascia. A combination of high intensity exercise and rest is perfect for ensuring your tissues are working and then replenishing. Classes such as HIIT work wonders for the body (and the fascia too!)

As I said before, fascia is everywhere and its all connected. Often when clients come to me, they will have muscle tightness somewhere specific but there will most probably be tightness below or above the problem area. If one muscle group is under performing, there will be problems elsewhere that need addressing too. Much like the fascia, if you were to compare it to pulling a tea towel tight, movement that started at the top of the material will also appear at the bottom. To help reduce the knock on affect, keeping fit and hydrated is of high importance and if you are a keen sportsman/woman, then regular massage to keep everything in check is beneficial.

So there we have it, probably not the most interesting blog post but hopefully you have gained something from the world of fascia. If you have a foam roller, make it your best friend. Looking after your body will make you happy on the inside as well as the outside. My latest offer this month is Mother's Day related - buy a one hour massage at £30 and get a second hour for £15!