ANATOMY

Figure 4: Spiral Line - the ‘jump rope’ Here we see the lower part of the so-called ‘Spiral Line’. There is a long fascial loop that connects the front of the pelvis to the back of the pelvis via the arch of the foot. This line starts out from the anterior superior iliac spine with the tensor fasciae latae, which feeds into the iliotibial tract, which is connected fascially and very strongly to the tibialis anterior. The tibialis runs down to the weak- est point of the arch - the first metatarsal-cuneiform joint, where it is always shown attaching. However, we were able to dissect a clear and strong attachment to the peroneus longus tendon that comes at the joint from the lateral side. Thus this ‘jump rope’ continues its

Tensor fasciae latae

Scalp fascia

Iliotibial tract

Sternocleidomastoid

Lateral knee fascia

Biceps femoris

Sternal fascia

CUT MADE BY EMBALMER

connection up the outside of the calf to the fibular head, and right on into the lateral hamstring, the biceps femoris. Again, this is a strong and distinct connection; nothing wimpy about it. This of course, brings us to the back of the pelvis at the ischial tuberosity.

Thus we have a palpable, visible, dissectable bit of evidence of the clinically observable connection between pelvic angle and arch support.

Tibialis anterior

Peroneus longus

Rectus abdominis

Fascia over sterno-chondral ribs

Pubic bone Figure 4

Figure 5: Superficial Front Line - the ‘bib’ on the chest In theory, theory and practice are the same. In practice, of course, they are quite different. And so, reliably, not everything went according to the theory. Here is a dissection of the upper part of the superficial front line. The rectus is below, connected down to the pubic bone, and then firmly to the 5th rib. The SCMs are at the top, linked across the back of the head with a section of the epicranial fascia. Once again, the linkage between the two SCMs has rarely if ever been seen or written about. Together they form a powerful pull down and forward on the head, which can create strain on the lambdoidal suture. (The cut through one SCM was made by the embalmer, not in the dissection.) The problem comes in the middle, across the sternum and ribs. In the book, the con- nection here is listed as the sternalis muscle and the sterno-chon- dral fascia. In the cadaver we used to dissect this, however, there

www.sportex.net Figure 5

was little to no sternalis, and the fascia that covered the ribs did not dissect out as a separable layer, with the result that after hours of painstaking labour, it still looks like a bit of lace. The fascia running up the surface of the sternum is clear enough, but not up the cartilaginous part of the ribs.

In the biomechanical sense, this is a non-problem as the rectus can still communicate to the SCM via the bones, creating the postural patterns described in the book. The conundrum is that in my role as a somatic therapist I can feel such a layer under my hands when I am working alongside the sternum to free the breathing and rib cage rotation. It both- ers me when I cannot find something I can feel - so this disparity remains unresolved by our first dissective foray.

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