BodymindResources.com

Class 7 Theory

Click on the scientist to go to Class 7 Lab.

      Welcome to Class 7 Theory. Last week we left off releasing the pelvic floor. This week we're going to follow the core up and release the guts and the respiratory diaphragm. 

The guts are in the very center of your body and therefore have very serious influence over the structure and health of your body.  The guts can affect the positioning of the bottoms of your feet and the top of your head! For instance, the muscles that operate the legs lie in the guts.  Holding in the guts tugs down on the diaphragm helping to collapse the rib cage and therefore the arms, shoulders, head and neck.    So you can see how the guts are integrated into the whole body. Let's take a look at the musculature of this middle core.

The Muscles

The main muscle of the core is the Psoas.  It is imperative at this point that you see an enlarged annotated version of the picture on your left to see how the muscles of this class come together. I will ask you to refer to it many times in this class. It will be the main Class 7 picture. The Psoas is a muscle that attaches along the front of the spine all the way up a vertebra or two beneath the diaphragm, although the connective tissue of this muscle actually attaches to the diaphragm. The psoas actually goes down the front of the spine, through the pelvis attaching to the inside of the upper portion of the femur (upper leg bone). This makes the psoas the prime flexor of the hip. In other words the psoas is the main muscle that is supposed to be responsible for lifting the leg when you take a step. I have found that this is seldom the case, however. Most people's psoas is chronically contracted and stuck to the spine. These people then have to use the weaker muscles of the leg (rectus femoris, tensor fascia latae) to lift the leg and walking becomes cumbersome and heavy. When the psoas is freed up and in use, walking becomes effortless. The hips are forced to swing healthily and the abdominal organs get detoxifying movement. To walk this way is to realize that the legs do not start at the hip, but up near the diaphragm deep within the guts on the front of the spine! It is a muscular fact and walking this way will actually stimulate the muscles of your back, shoulders, arms, ribcage, legs, head and neck to release because of the free movement that happens from giving into this kind of full body walking. When you walk, you should walk with that in mind.  Your cat knows what it is to make walking a full body experience. Watch her and learn!

The psoas doesn't really do all this work alone. The illiacus muscle, which lies on the inside of the crest of the pelvis actually merges with the psoas before it reaches the femur. Some people simply refer to these two muscles as the iliopsoas and so will I from here on out. This iliopsoas complex, along with lifting the leg, has a tendency to create an anterior tilt in the pelvis allowing the abdominal contents to spill out the front making you look fatter than you actually are. Interesting that people tend to try to hold tension in their stomach when they are trying to look thinner. A lot of people ,if they would just let go, would actually find a more natural balance in their guts and they could naturally rest with their guts more contained. Think about it. Remember I told you that the rectus abdominus works to create a posterior tilt of the pelvis. Well if the iliopsoas is working to create an opposite tilt, an anterior tilt, then the inner core (iliopsoas) is in a balancing act with the outer superficial (rectus abdominus). The trick is usually not to strengthen the rectus abdominus, but to release the hyper-strength of the iliopsoas. If you do this, the rectus abdominus will naturally shorten into a balanced position and you will look ten pounds lighter because your spine will be straighter, your pelvis more horizontal, and your guts more contained within the pelvic bowl.

Another consideration when dealing with these muscles is that some of the back muscles attach strongly to the core through connective tissue. The one most worth mentioning is the quadratus lumborum. This muscle is permanently attached to the psoas especially near the top of the muscle and must be released to truly gain freedom of movement.

Organs

The organs in the mid core area have many tasks. One of their main functions is the processing and elimination of toxins from the blood stream. In today's world, this is a big job and these organs need all the help they can get. When we are not breathing properly, the diaphragm doesn't come down far enough to perform its task of massaging the organs with every breath. When we are not walking properly, the organs get stuck to the iliopsoas because it is not contracting relaxing as it should with each step. Through lack of movement in the area, connective tissue hardens and the organs become encased in it. Strands of connective tissue tug on the colon and small intestines creating spasm (uncontrolled muscular contraction) which keeps some of our waste from passing through. When this happens, there are even more toxins for the liver and kidneys to have to filter. In a nutshell it is highly important to melt the connective tissue of this area and change our movement and breathing patterns to allow these organs to do their job and not stagnate. One factor in the proper functioning of these organs is to make sure that the nerves operating the organs are unhindered. The organs are made up of involuntary muscle tissue. This means the muscles contract whether we want them to or not. 

This involuntary muscle tissue is governed largely by the subconscious via the nervous system. One large bundle of nerves responsible for this lies in the solar plexus and just a little to the left in the crook of the stomach. Together, these nerves are called the celiac ganglion. If you have great holdings in your solar plexus (a broad area right above your navel and underneath your diaphragm), you may be impeding the proper communications from the brain to these organs. Therefore we must intercept our muscular holdings and take steps to clean up the hardened connective tissue that has formed.

Now remember that the body and the mind are not separate in any way. We can talk of musculature, organs and nerve bundles and this will help you to find your way out of your holdings, but in the end, the true release comes when you change the way you physically/emotionally respond to your environment. When you get that sinking feeling of dread in your stomach, you are tightening up part of your core. Intercept it and relax. You can handle whatever is thrown your way and you don't have to suffer feelings of stress over it. And don't worry about your weight or your physical appearance. When you do that you start to pull your body into itself creating digestive disorders, loss of vital energy and circulation, and you cheat yourself out of being happy. Why don't you just let yourself shine so bright with comfort in who you are that it outshines all those things you perceive to be physical flaws. I invite you today to drop all the issues you carry over the middle portion of your body. They do not serve you. From whatever position in physical life you are coming from you still have the capacity to give 100% percent of yourself until the day you die to the upliftment of yourself and others. There is nothing else in this world that you need. Drop your issue and go be a part of something wonderful. If only just for today, see that you have a choice! If you are suffering from discomfort in who you are, drop it and find a bigger picture. It will bring great joy to your life and realign your structure and health at the same time. Let's go on to Class 7 Lab.