The eccentric lengthening of the tissue that is created by the need for shock absorption also helps the body return in the opposite direction, just like the springs of the trampoline. The myofascia is mechanically loaded, like springs, through the momentum created by the forward and rotational forces of walking, as well as by the pull of gravity.

Walking, according to Bernstein, uses synergy among many different muscles, coordinated without any input from the brain, relying on self-monitoring by the proprioceptive system (Latash 2012). In our exploration of the myofascial system, we will see how the mechanoreceptors are located within the fascial tissue and seem to form a computation system

The joints—the interfaces between the bones—fold, bend, flex, rotate, or extend in predictable directions. They are therefore able to guide the forces in the body: when the quadriceps contracts, the force is transmitted via the patella to extend the knee. However, when we look at the interaction between the body and the ground, the relationship is

It is through the combination of gravity and our tissue’s response to our momentum that we can gain practically free energy. By using the body’s movement to stretch elastic tissues, we recruit the captured energy and then recoil the kinetic energy (the energy of motion) to help create a return movement. It is to this mechanism that much of this

In the repetitive motions of walking, the inner tuning of our springs is unconscious. Apparently even the spinal cord is rarely involved in controlling the movement—it is the local relationship between the mechanoreceptors in the fascial tissue and the surrounding “adjusters” of the muscles that are in charge. By finding the most efficient level of

One of the hallmarks of efficient walking is the absence of active muscular contraction, maximizing the recoil efficiency of the fascial tissues; an easy walking pattern should use only around 38 percent of the body’s maximal aerobic capacity.

Figure 1.20. The lengthening of the myofascia is sensed by the muscle spindle, which signals the spinal cord. The spinal cord responds with an efferent (motor) nerve signal for the muscle to contract.

Tensegrity structures have an internal resilience that absorbs the energy of external forces and then uses it to return to neutral.

we must be able to visualize the interactions between the forward momentum of the gait, the downward force of gravity, and the supporting ground reaction forces.