Activities - Muscle Actions

ACTIVITY - MUSCLE ACTION - Introduction
'''Having obtained experience through our senses and analysed it with our mind there is nothing left for us to do but act on information recieved. Action is produced by a complex system of contracting muscles acting on a flexibly jointed frame of 208 living bones. The action produced can vary from breathing and blinking to singing and eating.'''

Eating and breathing; are the key activities which supply the food-fuel and oxygen necessary for muscle contraction. These raw materials are transported to our muscles by the disc shaped cells of the blood. This fluid is circulated by a centrally located pump which has acquired a mythic status. At six weeks the fetal heart starts to beat before there is blood or a circulatory system in place.

The gut, lung and heart are themselves, operated by muscles. The gut and heart will benefit from exercises but are otherwise automatic functions which cannot be improved or further experienced by practice. (Except by raising, the quality of the raw materials). Lungs are similarly automatically regulated but are also under more conscious control and awarenes. The movements involved being larger and more external. The eternal cyclic and rhythmic operation of the lungs make them central to our focus on muscle borne activity.

This section opens with a variety of breathing exercises and follows these with a sequence of elemental movements from resting and lying down through sitting, standing, walking to running and jumping. This sequence covers the main mobility functions of the human animal. There are two more ares of muscle action which give us our power over other animals and make us virtual gods. These are the dexterity of our hands and the expressive range of our voice.

See also discussion of structure/categories used Talk:Activities_-_Muscle_Actions

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Principles of Practice
We have covered the absolutely basic muscular functions. Before going on to the myriad other muscular actions and skills here is a short guide to the principles of practice.


 * 1. The character of the movement must either be demonstrated for imitation as slowly, and as often as required, or the limbs must be physically guided to the pattern of the act. In this way the general shape of the movement is acquired.


 * 2. Verbal instruction is of little use at fundementals levels. Where the elements of an act are known and labelled then verbal use of this 'skill vocabulary' may act as sufficient cue.


 * 3. If a complex act needs to be learnt or refined in parts, the meaning and place of the part in the whole should be well understood.


 * 4. Once the movement has been roughed out by the learner the only way to gain improvement is practice, practice, practice.


 * 5. At the roughing out stage care should be taken that basic errors of good posture are avoided.


 * 6. Corrections at all stages should consist of relaxed caring physical guidance and demonstration rather that verbal fault finding.


 * 7. As the action is practiced a few major features should be kept in mind at any one time moving on to other features only when these have been successfully assimilated.


 * 8. Constant feedback of some kind is absolutely essential. It may be by the reflections in a mirror or through verbal encouragement and correction of errors by a coach.

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POSTURAL / GESTURE
Although action can have an ideal of the efficient and safe use of the skeletal frame and its muscular pistons it also carries social meanings. An efficient balance of the spine with the use of minimal muscular tension is also a posture of pride and self assurance. A posture that also has the unfortunate association of being 'regal' and belonging to the 'upper' classes.


 * The shoulder, in rising, is not called upon to teach us whether the source of the heat or vehemence which mark it, arise from love or hate. This specification does not lie within its province; it belongs entirely to the face, which is to the shoulder, what the barometer is to the thermometer. And it is thus that the shoulder and face enter into harmonious relations to complete the passional sense which they have to determine mutually and by distinct paths.


 * The shoulder of every man who is moved, rises sensibly, his will playing no part in the ascension; the succesive developments of this involuntary act are in absolute proportion to the passsional intensity whose numeric measure they form; the shoulder, therefore, may be fitly called the Thermometer of Passion and Sensibility. Francoise Delsarte quoted by Ted Shawn in Every Little Movement


 * The physical expression of a gestural mood is, however, not always the most appropriate for the situation.... Anyone not thrusting up his shoulders when startled but gathering his strength in his lower belly must certainly have practised in some way.  Sato Tsuji quored by Durkheim.

People in cities often suffer with tense shoulders and neck because their gestural reaction to urban stress has become chronic and 'stuck' in the mode described above. To make matters worse this unresponsive fixed expression is contagious.

Each part of the body is capable of some expression of internal feelings. The body as a whole is communicating meaning all the time. Activities are dealt with here as functional processes but it should be remembered they are also expressive states and sometimes we can choose to trade efficiency for expression.

BREATHING
Breathing is the cyclical and continuous pumping action by which air is brought into the body. Air is sucked into the lungs so that oxygen in the air may be absorbed into the blood and carbon dioxide and water exhausted. The oxygen is necessary for the combustion of carbohydrate foods which produce our energy. The energy fuels all our body processes. As a whole this biochemical activity is known as our metabolism.

The lungs are composed of an elastic spongelike structure of tiny and delicate compartments called alveoli. It is in the thin walls of these minute chambers that oxygen is absorbed and the waste products carbon dioxide and water vapour are released from the blood. This process is called respiration. The lungs themselves are not muscular and play a passive role in the process of breathing.

The rib cage protects and supports the lungs. It is the muscles between the ribs (intercostals ) and a sheet of muscle that forms an upward curving floor to the rib cage (the diaphragm), which motor the breathing process.

To suck air into the lungs the diaphragm contracts, moving down in the trunk like a piston. Simultaneously the ribs expand out and up to increase the girth of the rib-case.

In the first stage of exhalation the diaphragm and intercostal muscles relax; the elasticity of the inter-rib cartilage and lung tissue return the lungs to their original volume and the air is gently expelled. Further expulsion of air may be achieved by use of the abdominal muscles.

The capacity of the human lungs is about 6 to 7 litres. Only about 1/5 of this is exchanged in relaxed exhalation. This is called the tidal air which comes and goes steadily. With forced exhalation up to 4/5 of the lung capacity may be used. This is known as the complemental air and the remaining liter or so is known as residual air.

At rest an average adult will take 10 to 14 breaths per minute. with light activity this goes up to 17 to 20. People practised in sitting meditation claim to be able to manage as little as three. In each breath about a half a liter of air reaches the alveoli and takes part in respiration. The rate of breathing is automatically regulated and related to the pulse rate.

Breathing practise does not serve to increase skill as much as remove obstacles to efficient breathing. Breathing practises also seem to be used for their effect in calming the psyche and as a meditative cosmic metaphor.

The intitial instruction one often comes across in breathing exercises is to 'let it happen'. Don't 'take' a breath. Deep breathing is a natural function; all we have to do is to relax enough to let it happen.


 * The first thing that has to be learned is to let breathing happen. This is possible only to the extent that the person is able to cease directing the breath from his I. Just how difficult this is becomes clear when he first observes his breathing, for then the effect of the fixing I, interrupting the natural rhythmn, becomes immediately apparent. Breathing falters and the beginner frequently has the impression that he is no longer capable of breathing properly, and that he is short of breath. It takes a long time before such a person, even one who breathes more or less rightly, is able to breath conciously in the right way. To learn this is a basic exercise - exercitum - which is needed by both the sound and the unsound...  Again and again he resists exhalation half-way and half intentionly he assists the inflowing breath.


 * K.G. von Durkheim Hara: the centre of personality, Allen & Unwin 1960

Another school of thought would say that poor breathing is an effect of generally faulty coordination. The way to improve breathing is only through a general improvement of coordination. Defects which are often in people who have learnt 'deep breathing' include; undue depression of the larynx, stiffening muscles in the throat, vocal organs and neck, undue lifting and depression of the front part of the chest and insufficient use of the back. Yoga breathing exercises are somewhat different in that they do not apply to normal breathing. As in other yoga practice they put a controlled strain or stretch onto the breathing faculties which stimulates them and. their allied functions. Abdominal breathing will massage the viscera which aids peristalsis and so helps alleviate constipation etc. This serves to flush out poisons, make the organs tougher and more flexible and have beneficial psychic effects.

Perhaps the best breathing exercises are those which are done as a part of movement sequences. The concious mind focuses on the movement and breathing is just allowed to happen in response.

The diaphragm the main breathing muscle, is closely connected to parts of the nervous system in the solar plexus. The old old prescription to take three deep breaths in times of danger has a basis in our physiology. Achieving smooth deep breathing does seem to have some calming effect on the 'nerves'. Massage of the solar plexus seems to happen especially during forced exhalation.

In addition to the calming effect energy seems to be released. This energising effect is imaginatively described in many oriental practices. The breathing is seen to be a pump for an 'intrinsic energy' which moves in channels through the body. Probably the same channels as those identified in acupuncture practice.

The intrinsic energy or 'chi' (as in 'Tai Chi') rises from the base of the spine up the spinal column. It is pumped up these channels by deliberate abdominal breathing in a relaxed mood of concentration with the exclusion of everyday thoughts. The 'chi' is said to be stored in seven centres as it rises through the body. (the perineum, sex organs, navel, heart, throat, pineal gland, brain.) When this energy is accumulated it is claimed to power some of the More extraordinary practices of the Eastern martial arts. It is difficult to assess whether this is due to the physical process of breathing or a mental image that is evoked.

The following exercises fall into roughly three types:


 * 1. Improvement of everyday breathing by identifying and avoiding bad habits of body coordination.


 * 2. Strengthening o the breathing apparatus by synthetic methods of breathing.


 * 3. Breathing as a cosmic metaphor and rythmn that helps us get in touch with present time reality.


 * Nature has provided two familiar muscle responses to help maintain a long spine in breathing. They are automatic, which makes us feel they are unimportant. But anyone who starts trying them out begins to find their true value. One response is called the yawn the other is called the sigh.
 * The yawn acts as a muscle barometer for the breath. Without being aware of it you can shorten your breathing over a period. This can happen in either a rapid or prolonged build-up of tension. It can be occasioned by physical or emotional impulses or both. This tension creates a desire within the muscular system to stop holding the structure rigid. Result... you yawn or sigh.


 * Barbara Clark Lets Enjoy Sitting, Standing, Walking.

SLEEPING
Sleep, rest and relaxation are all kinds of non action. Non action is as important as action. Sleep is another area which does not fit easily into the tripartite classification of STA. The mental side of sleep, dreaming, is covered in the thinking section. A good perspective to take on the importance of sleep is the thought that if we have lived for 75 years, then 25 of those are likely to be spent in bed.

There are two types of sleep that alternate four or five times during the night. The basic dreamless sleep, during which the body tissue is restored, is divided by shorter periods of Paradoxical or dream sleep. During paradoxical sleep nerve connections are strengthened and nerve tissue restored. (link to dreams)

There are four conditions which go to make good quality sleep:


 * 1. Pre-sleep period - mental and physical repose


 * 2. Environmental conditions - warmth and ventilation


 * 3. Correct support - bed, pillow and posture


 * 4. Waking up

Pre-sleep prescriptions: Because we know so little about sleep and because it is, by and large, a non-experience, we tend to wish that it would look after itself. In fact, like conscious activities, it is able to be done well or not. The most effective general prescription for sound sleep is to allow at least half an hour to prepare yourself.

RELAXATION
To relax successfully and deeply does not mean that any permanent improvement of posture or body co-ordination is achieved. However formal relaxation does allow the tension patterns that interfer with our body's proper functioning to subside for a while. This gives our body essential relief from the restrictions imposed by stress.

Tension arises when gestural expression becomes rigidly or chronically held. For instance: a person who once had a good reason to be frightened of the world will have tight muscles around the upper torso/neck with a tendency to have constantly raised shoulders. This habit has become fixed even though the original cause of the fear is no longer- present. As babies all of us have had experiences which have left a residue of tightness in our musculature. Such muscle tensions will interfer with breathing and other basic functions; including the constriction of blood vessels and nerve routes. Apart from the shoulders other common areas of tension are neck, stomach and back.

Neck tension often causes headaches by restricting flows to the brain. Stomach tension results in stomach upsets, constipation etc. Back tension gives us crippling aches and slipped discs.

Temporary relief is afforded by relaxation techniques. Permanent relief requires the recovery and healing of the memory of the original frightening experience. Physiological resolution happens by setting up conditions which will allow the appropriate natural healing reflexes of the body to operate process. (link emotions)

Relaxation is also the first step in achieving waking sleep in which the consciousness may get in touch with the creative powers of the unconcious.

Fruitful relaxation is not slumping into an armchair. It is creative inaction. Similar in this way to meditation. Systematic relaxation allows us to be in tune with our intuition. It allows us to see the less obvious possibilities by finding a neutral space outside of our routine program. The highest forms of relaxation/ meditation practice achieve an inner poise that allows us to observe some of the emotions and fantasies in which we are usually immersed.

Apart from the exercises described here baths are very good relaxers. Turkish, Russian, Sauna and Aerotone are a worthwhile weekly treat if there is an establishment in your vicinity.

SITTING
Sitting is a postural compromise between standing up and lyihg down. Sitting is the perfect position for creative inactivity. The requirements of keeping the trunk erect whilst taking weight off the legs and feet help keep us alert for long periods without getting tired. You can sit behind a table to work or you can just sit. You can sit up on a chair or sit down on the floor.

If you sit most of the day it is worth spending some time getting- it right. If you don't often sit then is nice to enjoy doing it well when you have the opportunity.

STANDING
Standing is a complex task of subtle muscular co-ordination. The central structural member is the spine which is made up of 33 individual vertebra. Ideally it is the deep muscles lying close to the spine which lend us the most efficient support. However, bad posture, the expression of chronic emotional experience, tends to bring other muscles into the job as the structure becomes more eccentric. Apart from inefficiency this leads to all sort of health problems



WALKING
Walking includes much of the postural principles mentioned in the last section on standing and in the previous section on co-ordination. In walking the weight exchange which we noted in the standing exercise 'the small dance' becomes much more pronounced. The weight of the body is supported first through one leg and then the other. The dynamic and rythmic use of our muscular symetry often makes walking for long periods easier than standing for a similar time. However, as with all posture, walking is not just a matter of mechanical efficiency but a whole mode of communication and source of rhythm. When we walk we express our deepest feelings about ourselves and how we would like others to see us.

Walking we are ensured a continual change of stimulation - we see. more detail in the world than by any other faster method of travel - we are more able to interact with our surroundings.

Walking is our most ancient and basic means of travel.

RUNNING
The difference between running and walking is that, in running, both feet leave the ground.

It is really a series of small leaps. The leaps can be made so efficient, the exchange of weight so smooth and rhythmic that a healthy fit and physically average person can run for miles without undue strain.

Jogging or long distance running allows us to experience the limits of our metabolism. We learn to run as fast as our circulation can cope with, bringing oxygen and glucose to the muscles and carrying away waste materials. This flushes out our system in a way few other physical activities can.

It is really exhilerating to realise how fast we cover distances when we have learnt to run properly. The sensation itself, if we are not struggling through the pain barriers of competition or personal best times, can be like floating along whilst our feet beat time. It can be encouraging to run with other people and some people may find it useful or exciting to compete. However, especially when beginning, it is very important to find your own pace.

Some claim that a daily running schedule burns off negative 'energies', cleansing the psyche as well as invigorating the body.

JUMPING
We jump for joy. The exhileration of leaving the ground under our own power and flying through the air, however short an experience it is, cannot be equalled by any other unaided muscular action, It is an expression of tremendous vigour and energy.

HANDLING
The dexterity of the hands produces tools, which make machines, which produce the wealth of all the things made by humans. Things that now provide every imaginable aid to the extension of our basic functions. The abstracted development of dexterity does not seem to be a common element in self-improvement programmes even though it is the hand which often provides the most important synthesis of our sensing and thinking in the production of THlNGS. Improvement of dexterity is usually an integral part of some specific craft only a few of which seem to have separate hand exercises.

Hands produce communication as well as things. Here is a selection with their British meanings...



VOCALISING
Speech is both the most vivid and precise method of communication available to the unaided human. The part that the voice plays in speech is to produce the myriad component sounds that make up vocal quality. It is capable of great range and complexity. It is the sound that a human infant will most prefer to listen too.

The result depends not only on the vocal cords but also the lungs, tongue, mouth cavity, skull, lips, etc. Each area must be under control and yet elastic and not rigid with muscle tension.



EATING
There is an old controversy about how we should physically eat our food. There are old customs that it is good to chew each mouth 17 times or whatever. These advices seem to have a basis in the fact that digestion is aided if the food is fully mixed with saliva before swallowing. Saliva contains a digestive enzyme called Ptyalin. Chewing also means we eat at a steady pace and are so, perhaps, able to avoid the indigestion which occurs when food is gulped down in lumps.

A good case against the careful chewing approach is made by a Persian Dervish related by Gurdieff in his book 'Meeting with Remarkable Men'.


 * By chewing your food so carefully you reduce the work of your stomach... At your age it is better not to chew at all... We eat chiefly to gratify our taste and obtain the accustomed sensation of pressure which the stomach experiences when it contains this particular quantity of food. In the walls of the stomach there branch out what-are-called wandering nerves which, beginning to function when there is not a certain pressure, give rise to the sensation we cal1 hunger. Thus, we have different hungers: a so-called bodily or physical hunger and, if it may be so expressed, a nervous or hunger, and psychic hunger.

There are no exercises on eating at present...

Related Links

 * http://www.streettraining.org/ .... 'Street Training continues to explore the ever shifting boundaries between creative and antisocial behaviour.