UNDERSTANDING FASCIA
WHAT IS FASCIA?
Fascia is connective tissue that weaves itself in and out of and surrounds, makes up and is part of, or involved with every single element of our bodies, from muscles and tendons, to ligaments and glands. It is essential to the correct and optimal functioning of the human and equine body and all their systems.
WHAT IS IT MADE OF?
Fascia is made up of high density collagen fibres and elastin, which makes the fascia strong and resilient, but it is actually 80% water which is why it is essential to stay hydrated, certainly in normal every day life, but especially after a Bowen treatment. If the fascia is healthy, it is opaque and stretchy. There are two types of fascia, superficial and deep.
WHAT DOES SUPERFICIAL FASCIA DO?
Superficial fascia sits just below the surface of the skin and is found all over the body, like a suit. It allows the skin to move and acts as a separating layer between the skin and the muscles and structures underneath. This superficial layer has many uses – it houses lymph, allows for the transport of nutrition and waste, nerves and blood vessels, retains heat like a layer of insulation, cushions muscles against trauma and connects the skin with the deeper fascia below. Superficial fascia will wrap itself around muscles close to each other, creating groups.
WHAT DOES DEEP FASCIA DO?
Deep fascia, as its name suggests, sits well beneath the skin. This fascia is more dense and irregular. It penetrates and surrounds every muscle, ligament, tendon, joint capsule, bone, nerve and blood vessel. Its main job is to ensure that all of these elements can move across, alongside, under, or over each other smoothly and effectively. Because it is present throughout the body in this way, fascia is also used to anchor and attach elements such as ligaments and tendons to bone via the periosteum.
WHY IS FASCIA IMPORTANT?
Healthy fascia is essential to the functioning of all the human and equine bodily systems. If the fascia is damaged, either from an external force, or from a spasm, or displacement from inside the body, it can become sticky, locked, and produce scar tissue which then affects the nerves and blood vessels that run through it and the muscles, tendons and ligaments it is in close proximity to, let alone those further away along the connective pathways. The results of this range from nerve impulses that are scrambled or blocked, preventing messages regarding healing coming back from the brain, to a decline in the human or horse’s ability to move.
“Stretched, a muscle will attempt to recoil back to its resting length. Stretch a fascia quickly and it will tear (the most frequent form of connective tissue injury). If the stretch is applied slowly enough, it will deform plastically. It will change its length and retain that change.”
Thomas W Myers, Anatomy Trains 2001
“..... the contractures of fasciae occur over a timeframe of minutes to hours but can be strong enough to influence low-back stability and general biomechanics.”
Horse Movement: Structure, Function and Rehabilitation – Gail Williams