Biomechanics

The science concerned with the internal and external forces

Biomechanics is the science concerned with the internal and external forces acting on the human body and the effects produced by these forces.

Put simply, it is the study of the human body as a machine through applying Newton's physics principals to the skeletal system of our bodies. Many aches, pains and injuries are exacerbated by how we move.

Symmetry is important to ensure that joints and muscles work in their proper alignment.

Misaligned joints experience increased loads, stress and subsequently damage. Imbalanced muscles work outside of their safe range and suffer tears and sprains.

How the joints work together affects how your movements are controlled. If you are unstable on your feet, improved biomechanics can help

Do you suffer from painful joints or muscles?

Three things affect the way we move: Muscle actions, ground reaction forces and nervous innervations

Muscle imbalances alter the range of motion available at joints.

Tight muscles limit the range of motion available at a joint.

Muscle groups work in pairs to flex and extend joints. If one group is stronger than the other it misaligns the joint.  Poor joint congruency increases wear on the joint.

Our feet provide our main interface with the world around us. The way we interact with the ground affects the way we move. 

The way the foot strikes the ground when we walk affects our whole movement pattern.

Too much internal rotation through the feet internally rotates the leg and the pelvis translates forward.

This increases the lordosis (forward curvature) in the lower back, which can increase back pain.

The nervous system controls muscle movements. If nervous innervation is interrupted, movement patterns are affected.