Your tongue is connected to your foot
And, why whole body movement is so good for you
Wrapping my head around this can take a minute! Your tongue is connected to your foot by way of the fascia. Let’s explore fascia and how this connection from one part of the body to another is made.
First off, I think it’s helpful to know what fascia is. Think of it as webbing, similar to a cobweb, strong and also flexible. There are different types of fascia, some thicker than others. But, essentially, fascia wraps around muscle fibers, wraps around organs, and wraps around muscles. Thicker fascia includes the plantar fascia on the bottom of the foot and the tensor fascia lata that runs along the outside of the thigh. In regard to muscles, sometimes, it’s hard to tell where one muscle ends and another begins because of the webbing of fascia that is present throughout our body.
When I was in school taking our anatomy classes for physical therapy, we were told that fascia didn’t do much. I remember it seemed like it was more in the way of seeing the actual muscles and organs. It was a benign covering of sorts wrapping and weaving its way through the body. I remember it was everywhere I wanted to see a muscle and it IS everywhere throughout the body. I guess what was missing in my education was that fascia is not just a benign structure with no purpose.
Fascia is made up of collagen and elastin. Collagen is a protein. It provides structure and strength to our muscles, skin, bones, ligaments and tendons. Elastin is also a protein and helps the body to retain its shape before, during, and after movements that include stretching, almost like how a rubber band returns to its original shape after it has been stretched.
There are nerve fibers within the fascia that help provide us with information regarding our proprioception(our position sense) and pain. There are also nerve receptors in fascia that help us to regulate our autonomic responses, such as our blood pressure.1 Fascia also has structures within in that help keep the tissue hydrated so that it will glide and stretch independently of the muscles and organs it surrounds. There are different types of collagen cells within our body that have different responses to stress(mechanical), and movement. Some of the types have more give and stretch than other types. From a functional perspective, what this can mean is that if we always complete the same tasks and move within that range of motion, or if we don’t move out of one position frequently, our fascia can reorganize itself into a stiffer matrix of material and it can become dehydrated which causes it not to glide well over the underlying muscular or organ structures.
Now that you know what fascia is, how is the tongue connected to the foot?! According to Tom Myers with Anatomy Trains, there is a deep front fascial line that connects the tongue and jaw to the soles of the feet by way of the neck, thoracic spinal muscles, diaphragm, hip flexors, vertebrae of the lower back, pelvic floor, inner thighs, knees, lower leg muscles, and finally, the arches of the feet. According to Thomas Myers, the deep front line “relates the wave of breathing to the rhythm of walking.”
Whole body movement that engages groups of muscles from the entire body is beneficial because it helps to keep our fascia hydrated and pliable. This hydration and pliability allows for healthy gliding of the fascia around our muscles, muscle fibers, and organs. There are several fascia lines as described in Anatomy Trains, but it’s the deep front line that seems to connect the tongue and jaw to the foot.
What would be considered a whole body movement? I’m so glad you asked!
Dancing. Put your favorite music on and move your body!
Yoga, especially Vinyasa, Hathaway, and Ashtanga forms
When weight training, complete combined moves such as squat with an overhead press, walking lunges with biceps curls, or single arm hinge and swing
Rebounding on a mini-trampoline
Typical activity related to sports
Allowing yourself to play
I’m sure there’s plenty more I have not listed, but this is a good place to start in keeping your body mobile and healthy.
Take good care,
Sharon
Kumka M, Bonar J. Fascia: a morphological description and classification system based on a literature review. J Can Chiropr Assoc. 2012 Sep;56(3):179-91. PMID: 22997468; PMCID: PMC3430451.