What exactly is fascia?
Fascia is a band or sheet of connective tissue, primarily collagen and elastin, which lies beneath the skin and attaches, stabilizes, encloses and separates muscles and internal organs.
Healthy fascia is smooth and slippery so that it can ‘glide’ and move. When your muscles are stiff it is because something is causing the fascia to meet resistance. This resistance is actually the growth of sticky cobweb like collagen fibres that solidify the muscle making movement difficult which can limit their range of motion.
Fascia & hydration
A new born baby is nearly 90% water but as they age this percentage drops. The average adult today is around 67% to 72%. According to Tom Myers (author of Anatomy Trains) “getting older is a process of drying out …. as you get older, fascia dries out and begins to fray or stiffen as it loses its elasticity”.
The process of hydration is particularly important for the youth of fascia. It is important that you drink plenty of water but you also need drive the water out to all the tissues.
This process has three steps:
You need to move! Movement is important to help distribute the water throughout the body.
You need to vary that Movement. If you keep doing the same movements you send the water to the same areas. Foam rolling, massage and myofascial release are some of the most common ways to target the whole fascial system.
Rest. Give the body the time to rehydrate. Exercise drives the water out of the tissues, muscles and tendons. You need to rest to allow the water to seep back in.
Book a Massage & Bodywork session today to help keep your fascia healthy.
Contact Barb on 0415 422 600
