Yoga & Fascia: Fact File
Four fascinating facts about fascia — and how yoga can help. By Sara Jobling
Fascia is the organ of posture, so for yogis, knowing a bit about it is helpful. Fascia holds the body together, holds it up and at the same time separates it into parts. Fascia fibres are tough enough to support 10,000 times their own weight but soft enough to protect delicate nerves and blood vessels. Fascia is a very simple structure. It has only three main parts, collagen fibres, elastin fibres and hyaluronic acid, the slippery fluid lying between the layers of fibres. While fascia is simple, the huge range of its abilities can be complex. So, let’s look at four facts about fascia; its ubiquitous nature, its super sensitivity, its plasticity and its love of yoga practice.
Fact #1 - Fascia is everything
Everything in our body is fascia. Hard to believe, but it’s a fact. As an embryo develops inside the womb the first structure to form is fascia. Imagine a very complex 3D colouring book. The outline of the picture is set out and then all the pieces have to be coloured in to create the final image. Fascia forms the outline of the baby while the cells that make a heart, lungs and brain and so on are gradually ‘coloured’ into the outline. Every organ, bone, tendon, ligament and muscle is made of fascia. Fascia with added calcium becomes bone and muscles cells develop in fascia to create muscles. The widespread presence of fascia means it is the biggest organ of the body.
Fact #2 - Fascia is super sensitive
Fascia is super sensitive. Fascia has more nerve endings than the tongue, eyes, nose or ears. Fascia is an important organ of proprioception, the ability to understand where we are in space, how we are moving, how we control our body movement and of interoception, how we register feelings of hunger, thirst, temperature, pain and more. When healthy, the sensory ability of our fascia increases and our senses of proprioception and interoception improve so we feel more present and connected. Indeed, fascia are the main conduit for most of our body’s sensory stimuli. Fascia minutely detect movements and send their information to the nervous system for interpretation. This makes fascia the organ of our self-awareness and the key to our mind-body connection.
Fact #3 - Fascia’s plasticity
Fascia is plastic. If muscles are the engine of the body as they contract and relax, fascia are the brakes. Muscles can stretch but fascia cannot. Instead, layers of fibres glide across each other like skates on ice. The hyaluronic acid layer between is important to lubricate that movement. As you stretch in a yoga asana it is not your muscles that limit you. You reach your ‘limit’ when the fascia cannot slide any further. Fascia fibres weave and criss-cross all over the body. They are shaped by their experience of forces. Lack of movement causes fascia to weaken, the hyaluronic acid dries and hardens resulting in stiffness and inflexibility. Regular exercise builds strong, elastic and well-lubricated fascia. The fascia across joints (ligaments and tendons) remain strong but flexible so range of movement, balance and stamina improve.
Fact #4 - Fascia loves yoga
Fascia love yoga practices. The systematic stretching involving multiple directions of movement and constant changes of forces are perfect for improving the health of our fascia. Yoga practices stimulate an increase in fibre strength, compression (tone) and elasticity. It’s estimated that there are a staggering 84,000 yoga postures. What makes yoga asanas such an all-round beneficial practice is this vast variety of postures target every part of the fascia and involve every possible type of movement. Practicing a mixture of postures has a more positive impact on more of the fascia than repetitive exercise such as running or swimming. Yoga classes or courses that offer a wide variety of postures and modifications will fully tone the entire system of fascia effectively.
Sara Jobling is founder and director of YogaWellbeing. With a background in science, research and education, she now teaches yoga classes, runs teacher training courses, offers yoga therapy sessions and has just completed her first book Fascinating Fascia: A Handbook for Yogis. Discover more at: yogawellbeing.org
“Fascia love yoga practices. The systematic stretching involving multiple directions of movement and constant changes of forces are perfect for improving the health of our fascia.”
Om Magazine
First published in November 2009, OM Yoga magazine has become the most popular yoga title in the UK. Available from all major supermarkets, independents and newsstands across the UK. Also available on all digital platforms.
