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MYOLOGY AND MUSCLES
The amazing secrets of muscle
600: that is how many muscles our body contains. Beyond movement (their primary function), our muscles interact with many organs and are essential to our overall health
The amazing secrets of muscle
How many muscles do we have in our body? What do they do? Did you know that the more you exercise, the better you preserve your memory? Is it true that lifting a weight with your right arm also builds up your left arm (a little)? What is sarcopenia? The experts at the Institute of Myology answer these questions and many others in our videos on the amazing secrets of muscle.
Moving about? You owe it to your skeletal striated muscles working properly, the muscles that cover your skeleton and make every movement possible.
Breathing? You owe that to the diaphragm: a muscle that contracts 24,000 times a day to draw air into our lungs, and even more during physical activity!
Enjoying a good meal? You owe that to the smooth muscles in the intestine, the stomach and the digestive tract, which move food and nutrients along and help with digestion.
Alive? That is because the cardiac muscle, which contracts and relaxes continuously without our ever having to think about it, keeps the heart working and the blood circulating.
The diaphragm, for breathing… and much more!
Did you know? The diaphragm is a key muscle in our body. Located between the thorax and the abdominal cavity, it drives our breathing. It contracts 24,000 times a day to draw air into our lungs, and even more during physical activity.
Over a lifetime, the heart beats nearly 2.5 billion times
Did you know? The heart, the organ that keeps us alive and lets us feel all kinds of emotions, is a muscle. Its rhythmic, automatic action drives blood circulation and delivers the oxygen our body needs.
The 43 facial muscles shape 10,000 expressions
Did you know? 43 facial muscles make 10,000 different expressions possible. A smile alone calls on 17 muscles, including the well-known zygomaticus major, which pulls the upper lip upwards. The zygomaticus minor, for its part, helps to express sadness.
No stretching after intense muscular effort!
Did you know? Muscle soreness comes from micro-injuries to the muscle caused by unusually intense exercise. Stretching immediately after exertion is not enough to prevent it, quite the opposite! Intense stretching can make things worse: weakened fibres break when they are stretched.