Do You Have Tensegrity?

According to Wikipedia, tensegrity is a structural principle based on the use of isolated components in compression inside a net of continuous tension, in such a way that the compressed members (usually bars or struts) do not touch each other and the prestressed tensioned members (usually cables or tendons) delineate the system spatially.

Whew! That was a lot to write! I don’t blame you for just skimming over it. (I did as well.) To make a long definition short, and apply it to the human body, it is a structure of bars (bones) held together by cables (tissue) and done so in such a manner at which the bars hold true to a certain shape without touching each other.

So? Who cares, right? Well, what happens when the integrity is taken out of the model… something manipulates even just one side? The entire structure is effected.

Now for another vocabulary word. Fascia: A sheet or band of fibrous connective tissue enveloping, separating, or binding together muscles, organs, and other soft structures of the body. Summing this up, fascia is a seamless web of connective tissue in the entire body. Dr. Ida Rolf was one of the first bodyworkers to discover the importance of fascia. I mean, we’ve known what it was to an extent, but it used to be just the first layers they would cut through and throw out for cadavers. Now they’re studying every layer they can find. For it wraps around every muscle, bone, organ, nerve, blood vessel and fiber in the body. Fascia literally holds the body together. Because scholars of anatomy and kinesiology, and even the every day person, are becoming more aware of this “fascia” word… it gets thrown around quite loosely. “Fascial stretching”, “Mayofascial release”. Boy, it sure sounds cool and beneficial, but what he hell do those techniques really do for me? If you’re thinking what I’m thinking, you’re right! Tensegrity!!

Fascia, as mentioned above, is surrounding our huge (sexy) muscles all the way to the smallest of fibers. In fact, if someone were to strip away all of your skin, you would still look exactly the same because of  fascia. (Kind of a gross image, but you get what I’m saying.) It is a three-dementinal web of supports that can promote (or inhibit) movement. If one area of fascia is bound, according to tensegrity, the entire structure is distorted. Repetitive motion, overuse, UNDERuse, and injury can cause the fibers to become disorganized and create lack of smooth movement. Further more, and perhaps most importantly, fascia communicates with muscular action making an unhealthy condition less than ideal. Especially for the common athlete. There is more efficiency and mobility when the fascia is healthy and the fibers are aligned.

So, there you have it… “Tensegrity 101″. Upcoming posts will be more on self maintenance in common and perhaps, unknown issues. Thanks for reading, my lovely audience. Here’s a little video to better explain. Kind of cheesy music, but very informative.

Until next time, I leave you with this thought:

“Tension is who you think you should be. Relaxation is who you are.”

Chinese Proverb

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