PNF (Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation)

This is a cool label for a very simple set of techniques, but I love the way it sounds, "proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation"!

The anatomy of the muscle cell includes a couple of organs that tell your brain where your body is in space. For instance, put your hand behind your back and extend 2 fingers. Have you ever wondered how you know you have two fingers extended when you can't see them? Well I can tell you!

Your muscle cells have what are called Muscle Spindles which surround the muscle cell and send a signal to the brain as to how long the cell is contracted or lengthened. The brain knows where every muscle cell is everywhere in the body, and so if the muscle spindles in your hand are telling the brain that the extensors of your first and second digit are shortened, then our organic super computers know that means two fingers are extended!

It is possible to manipulate this organ to encourange the cell to become shorter and increase the 'tightness' of the muscle. I haven't practiced this technique as there isn't much call for MORE tension in our lives.

Your muscle cells also have Golgi Tendon Organs. These stuctures develop where the muscle cell ends and the sheath surrounding the cell extends beyond the cell and becomes tendon. This cell tells the brain how much tension there is on the tendon. This organ can be manipulated to trick the brain into thinking there is too much of a load on the muscle and the brain causes the muscle to 'release' and become slack.

I once worked on a client who had experienced 3 strokes. His arm was paralyzed and curled so that the hand was fisted and held tight to his shoulder. This technique worked to relax his muscles from the shoulder to his fingers and he could allow his arm to remain relaxed, down at his side and with less pain. There are reasons that we hold a muscle tight where even this technique won't work, but this skill has been the most exciting to see work on a large variety of clients.