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The Anatomy of Muscles and Their Functions
Muscles
aren’t just for exhibition by the guy wanting to impress the gals
working out near him in the gym, or to win a competitor the
designation of having the most defined, muscular build in a
body-building contest. Muscles have a more important function for us
than just “how good they make you look.” Just what exactly is a muscle?
A muscle is a combination of fibers and cells.
The human
body holds more than a whopping 650 muscles within its skeletal
structure. Each muscle has a different function within our body. Some
functions are on “auto-pilot” and occur without us having to think about
or do anything to make it happen. Some auto-pilot muscle functions would
be the blinking of the eyes, breathing, sneezing, digestion,
wound-healing and cell repair, vision, hearing, and the pumping of blood
through the heart, and its cardiac rhythm.
Muscles
have a function in keeping the central-nervous and immune systems
operating at their best. The functioning of these systems are also auto
pilot functions that most of us never even think about unless we become
ill and then we wonder why we fell prey to sickness. The central-nervous
system has the important role of transmitting signals to the brain for
smooth operation, and muscles send sensory signals to the
central-nervous system for transmission and interpretation by the brain.
The immune system is the “command center” for the red/white blood cells
that join in growing numbers to battle germs and bacteria that invade
our bodies before they can make us sick.
Muscles
facilitate our movements. Without muscles we would find it impossible to
stand with balance and control, or have the power to propel ourselves
forward such as with walking, reaching for and retrieving items from
above would be hampered and pose a danger of something falling onto and
hurting us. If fact, people with diseases that “debilitate” the muscles
will often develop problems with standing, walking, reaching overhead,
lifting, and sometimes even with being able to feed themselves.
Muscles
have a metabolic function in that they increase the body’s metabolic
rate. A high metabolic rate by the way is how fat is burned-off, instead
of being stored by the body. Do you want to “unpack” fat weight? Pack on
muscle weight by increasing the size of the cells within your muscles
and “fat weight” will disappear, pound per pound, per centimeter of
muscle mass gained!
Neck
muscles allow us to lift our heads up from the body and also prevent the
neck from being injured by such movements. Arm muscles such as the
biceps and triceps provide the strength needed for reaching, lifting,
pulling, and pushing. Our hand muscles allow us to “grasp” items, and
movement, and flexibility of the fingers is what enables us to use
writing and eating utensils. Abdominal muscles help us to bend and are
also used when rising from a sitting or lying position to a standing
position. Back muscles help us to stand upright and also offer
protection for the spine from minor bumps to the body such as in play.
Leg muscles help us control balance when standing, walk, bend our knees,
and even to help “push” blood along to reach our feet. The list of
various muscles and their functions is of course quite lengthy with a
whopping 650 of them on the list!
Muscles
truly are a remarkable work of nature in all the functions they perform
within the human body.
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