Utilizing rotational motion to stretch neck muscle tissues: classes realized from Cranial Nerve 11
Once I see the loopy neck stretches on the market in video land, I cringe.
Right now’s publish is my try to provide you a extra pleasurable, adaptable method of each activating and releasing the muscle tissues of your neck and shoulders by way of light, lengthening rotational motion. There ought to by no means be any forcing or pressure in the case of the fragile buildings inside your neck and throat.
That is a part of my Cranial Nerve Sequencing sequence, during which I share little tidbits from this extra somatic model of the Alexander Method that I exploit with my shoppers when wanted.
Understanding cranial nerve 11 is a large assist. Additionally referred to as the accent nerve, it has a lot to show us about tips on how to help our head, neck, and throat for optimum functioning and good, adaptable posture.
Your physique is designed to flex and lengthen, but additionally to rotate and spiral.
The easy flip of your head alternately engages one facet of your neck and shoulders whereas releasing the opposite. Understanding these complicated relationships takes time however is effectively definitely worth the cognitive effort.
Cranial nerve 11, or the accent nerve, is only motor. It has two essential units of rootlets, one which is cranial, and one which is spinal. They feed collectively and connect with the medulla, a construction in your mind stem, which relays alerts to and out of your mind.
It’s an actual bridge between what we name “head” and what we name “neck.”
Listed here are two photos to provide you an concept of this complicated association:
The cranial rootlets activate muscle tissues of the mouth, throat, and taste bud, principally suspending the buildings of your mouth and larynx out of your cranium. This picture exhibits a type of muscle tissues, the stylopharyngeus:
This group of muscle tissues encircles your larynx, enabling it to and open and shut, increase and decrease, so you possibly can swallow and converse. (Go to this web page of Kenhub, one among my favourite websites for updated anatomy info, if you wish to take a deeper dive into this anatomy.)
The spinal rootlets activate your higher trapezius and sternocleidomastoid muscle tissues to elevate, flip, and stabilize your head. The higher trapezius is lighter orange muscle on this picture:
The higher trapezius wraps three dimensionally round your neck, from the again of your head to the highest of your collar bone within the entrance. It suspends your collar bone out of your head when it’s resting. When it contracts, it can both elevate your shoulder girdle up, or for those who stabilize your shoulder girdle it can elevate your head up and start a sequential extension of the top on the backbone, arching and increasing the entire physique as within the “cobra pose” from yoga.
Thus, the extra cellular and freer your head and your shoulder girdle are in relation to one another, the better will probably be to breath, converse, swallow, and transfer on the whole.
Here’s a transient define of the detailed train I’m going over on this week’s video. I’m exploring solely the spinal department of the nerve, for the sake of brevity!
To stretch the sternocleidomastoid and trapezius on the proper facet of your neck:
- Gently tuck the again of your proper hand alongside the road of your sternocleidomastoid muscle on the proper facet of your neck. Fingers contact the mastoid strategy of your cranium, base of your wrist will probably be near your sternum and collarbone.
- Gently flip your nostril and face in direction of your proper shoulder, bringing your proper collarbone in direction of your midline in opposition to the flip of your head. Enable the collarbone to launch up off your first rib.
- Cup your left hand below your proper elbow, and gently enhance the ahead spiral by participating your left shoulder blade in direction of your backbone behind your physique.
- Your head will probably be spiraling to the proper, your shoulder girdle will probably be spiraling to the left
- Launch and stroll, permitting the shoulder girdle and arms to swing
To stretch the left facet of your neck, repeat on the opposite facet.
It makes a lot sense to me that lifting your head up in order that it may possibly steadiness above your physique is related through cranial nerve relationship to the exercise of opening your throat and swallowing. One can’t occur with out the opposite.
When you’d wish to discover additional, e book a sequence of 10 classes and we will undergo the complete Cranial Nerve Sequencing course of collectively.