A big word I learned that can help your breathing
Coincidentally in keeping with the theme of Metal (Lungs and Large Intestine figuring prominently) -
I attended a 90-minute live Zoom presentation this weekend about the diaphragm - abdomen relationship.
Try to contain your enthusiasm... ;)
The host - a former bodyworker, Tai Chi master, and more - has been for the past two decades focusing his own reverent study of the human body through dissection, we, the viewers, are gifted with the ability to see this relationship Very Close Up and Personal.
I'll spare you the details, but I think one of the most profound 'ah-ha's' for me was observing the interdigitation of the transverse abdominus and the diaphragm.
Wait! Don't leave! ... let me explain...
The diaphragm: the large dome-shaped muscle that sits at the bottom of the rib cage, separating the thoracic cavity from the abdominal cavity, and whose contracting function expands the lungs above it, creating a vacuum in the lungs which take in air (inspiration).
The transverse abdominus (or, the TrA): the pair of very broad flat muscles located on either side of the abdomen, and the subject of a great deal of debate/discussion regarding their employment for 'core strength'.
And, interdigitation:
Literally, 'interweaving', like what the fingers (digits, get it?) do when clasping the hands.
Arrow showing where TrA interdigitates with the diaphragm, just below the rib cage
Still with me? Ok….
Near the upper portion of each TrA as it dives under the rib cage, its fibers - running in one direction - interdigitate, literally weave - into the fibers of the diaphragm, which run almost perpendicularly.
Maybe those better versed in anatomy already know this, but I found it pretty cool, for at least one reason.
As I mentioned earlier, the TrA, the core, and what to do with all that to make it work better is a highly debated subject in bodywork, fitness circles, etc.
Without trying to stir all that up, but knowing that how we think about our body parts as discrete objects, rather than in relationship, can lead us to sometimes overly simplistic and erroneous conclusions.
Admittedly, I have much to learn here, but I'm looking at one basic relationship of theTrA to the diaphragm, which is that of agonist/antagonist.
This means that when one muscle contracts (in the role of agonist) the other muscle (antagonist) has to yield or relax.
If not, it's like both kids on the see saw are trying to go up. Sort of. (I couldn't find a picture of that either...)
There's a lot of advice out there regarding 'core strength' and how to attain it - much of which involves 'activating' or engaging the TrA: basically holding it in a slightly contracted state... like, all the time.
Now, if I've learned anything from Katy Bowman* (my Restorative Exercise teacher), it's that holding anything in a prolonged contracted state when it's not actually being used leads to not only chronic tension holding patterns, but can render many movements that may otherwise recruit these muscles, or, need them to yield, very inefficient.
*This is an affiliate link.
☞ (Read more about this in my free ebook - it has pictures!)
It stands to reason that if the diaphragm needs to contract and lower into the belly for full deep breaths, its antagonist, hand-holding partner - the TrA - would need to relax to allow for that.
A 'tight' diaphragm is a bit more of a complex issue, but suffice it to say, if the TrA needs to contract very strongly, like when coughing to clear the lungs or windpipe, the diaphragm would have to be relaxed.
And even still, the TrA can do a much better job of expulsion when it's not already contracted.
Try it for yourself!
Contract your TrA (the cue often given here is to imagine drawing your belly button back toward your spine. Place your hands on your sides and you'll feel them contract, as well as your belly flatten a little.)
Now, holding that, try to take a deep breath. How does that feel?
Release your navel and try again. Difference?
Try this contraction again, and then try to cough.
Try coughing again after releasing your TrA.
What do you notice?
Perhaps this raises a lot of questions, like, "Huh?" and, "Yeah, but, my PT says..." and, again, I do still have a lot to learn myself.
But, I can say for sure that it's important to understand that we are - our bodies and all they entail - are a beautiful, intelligent myriad of complex interdynamics and relationships.
And, because our movement diets are deficient in many of the 'vitamins' that would be organically cultivating a strong, yet supple core**, we end up applying disparate strategies that make sense on paper, but can ultimately lead to other issues... confusion not among the least of these.
Another thing I can also say for sure, is that many, or, MOST of us carry tension in the abdominal region, and the chest and everywhere, really.
Whether due to targeted, repetitive exercises (lookin' at you, 6 million crunches!), prompts to 'suck it in', injuries, surgeries, self-consciousness (within a very superficial culture), emotions - OY the emotions! .... a 'tight', restrictive abdomen can have a deep impact on the function of our visceral organs, and obviously, our breathing and oxygen intake.
Chronic tension holding patterns and their role in dysfunctional relationships within the body is beyond the scope of this particular missive, but I hope it's planted a seed of curiosity within you.
** One more term up for debate: 'core'. Katy Bowman defines the core as everything your arms and legs area attached to.
I think that sums it up pretty well.
We are in relationship. We embody relationship - many, many of them.
As Saul Bellow once said,
"Everybody knows there is no fineness or accuracy of suppression: if you hold down one thing, you hold down the adjoining."
Especially, if those things are interdigitated. :)
