Tension

“What keeps the body upright is a dynamic network of fascia and muscles maintained in a state of tension” ~ Robert Schleip

The human body is a tensional network. That tension keeps us upright and moving. Remove the tension, like when your sleeping, and you collapse in a heap. Sometimes that tension becomes unbalanced, through injury, illness, emotional trauma or inactivity and we feel the effects in our body.

The fascia or connective tissue holds, senses, balances and transfers that tension. Because the human body is a dynamic system, a whole in which everything is connected, that unbalanced tension is transferred and experienced in different and often surprising ways. That pain in your knee could be the result of an imbalance in the opposite shoulder or something in your foot. That tight low back could be from the way you’re feeling about your job.

One of the goals of all our movement work from Fascial Stretch Therapy and LifeStretch classes to strength training is to adjust and rebalance that tension. And, because everybody ( every body) is different, that balance and work is different, even from day to day or week to week.

The fascial system is more than just a structural network. It is a sensory system, movement system and supply network. It connects body, mind and spirit. Each impacts the others. Changes in your body are often telling you something about other things in life that need adjustment.

Keeping that balance is always a dynamic process. As you listen to your body and become more and more in tune you recognize those imbalances sooner, learn how to adjust, and when to ask for help. Keeping the tension in healthy balance is what it’s all about.