![]() ![]() ![]() First, bend forward to stretch these back muscles. This has the added effect of producing reciprocal inhibition, which further relaxes the hamstrings into the stretch.įollow the same steps in this pose with the quadratus lumborum and erector spinae. Then contract the quadriceps to straighten the knees and take up the slack created by the reflex arc. This produces relaxation and increased length in the hamstrings. Hold this steady contraction for five to eight breaths before releasing it. This engages the hamstrings and stimulates the Golgi tendon organs at the muscle-tendon junction. Then gently press the heels into the mat as if you are trying to flex the knees further. For example, in Paschimottanasana, slightly bend the knees and squeeze the trunk against the thighs. You can then take up the slack to move deeper into the pose. Facilitated stretching causes the spinal cord to signal the muscle to relax, in essence, creating "slack" in the muscle. This increases the tension at the muscle-tendon junction and recruits more Golgi tendon organs than does stretching a muscle alone. Use it with caution and care.įacilitated stretching involves contracting a muscle that you are lengthening. Because all skeletal muscles have Golgi tendon organs, this powerful technique can be applied to gain length and dissolve blockages throughout the body in yoga poses. This reflex arc acts as a protective circuit breaker to prevent the tendon from tearing at its attachment to the bone. The spinal cord then signals the stretching muscle to relax. This receptor senses tension and relays a signal to the spinal cord. There is a nerve receptor (the Golgi tendon organ) that is located at the muscle-tendon junction. Stretching applies tension to the muscle and its tendon. This utilizes a spinal cord reflex arc and is an example of combining modern Western science with the ancient art of Hatha Yoga. You can use a technique called facilitated stretching or proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) to lengthen muscles in yoga. The theoretical analyses in this study might furthermore provide insight about the strong physiological couplings found between muscle spindle and GTO afferents in the human nervous system.(From Yoga Mat Companion Book 2, Anatomy for Hip Openers and Forward Bends) Simulations showed that the proposed feedback could be easily incorporated in the optimal control framework without complicating the computation of the optimal control solution, yet greatly enhancing the system's response to perturbations. Finally, we incorporated the proposed scheme in an optimally controlled 2-DOF model of the arm for fast point-to-point shoulder and elbow movements. Responses to transient and static perturbations were simulated using a 1-degree-of-freedom (DOF) model of the arm and showed that the combined feedback enabled the system to respond faster, reach steady state faster, and achieve smaller static position errors. The feasibility of the proposed scheme was tested using detailed musculoskeletal models of the human arm. We propose that a combination of spindle and GTO afferents can provide an estimate of muscle-tendon complex length, which can be effectively used for low-level feedback during both postural and movement tasks. ![]() Using detailed musculoskeletal models, we provide evidence that simple feedback using muscle spindles alone results in very poor control of joint position and movement since muscle spindles cannot sense changes in tendon length that occur with changes in muscle force. This is surprising since there is ample evidence that both tendons and GTOs contribute importantly to neuromusculoskeletal dynamics. Whereas muscle spindles play a prominent role in current theories of human motor control, Golgi tendon organs (GTO) and their associated tendons are often neglected. ![]()
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