VIDEO 7. Fascias IV

Our seventh fascia is “The Deep Front Line (DFL)”, which forms the myofascial ‘core’ of the body, placed between the left and right Lateral Lines in the coronal plane and between the Superficial Front Line and Superficial Back Line in the sagittal plane. It is surrounded by the Spiral and Functional Lines. Starting from the depths of the foot’s sole, it extends through the lower leg bone and the back of the knee to the inner part of the thigh. From there, it takes an alternate path passing in front of the hip joint, pelvis, and lumbar spine, and an alternative track rises from the back of the thigh to the pelvic floor, merging with the first track in the lumbar spine. From the Psoas-diaphragm interface, the DFL continues upward through and around the chest internal organs, passing through and around the ribs, and extends down to the neurocranium and viscerocranium.

Compared to our previous lines, this line demands to be defined not as a line but as a three-dimensional space. While all lines are fundamentally fascial in nature, they more explicitly occupy space. In the leg, the DFL includes the deep and less distinct supporting muscles of our anatomy. Along the pelvis, the DFL has a close relationship with the hip joint and connects the respiratory wave and walking rhythm. In the torso, the DFL, together with autonomic ganglia, provides a balance between the neuro-motor ‘chassis’ and older organs inside the abdomen. It provides a balancing lift against the pull of both the Superficial Front Line and Superficial Back Line in the neck. Successfully understanding the DFL requires a three-dimensional understanding for almost every type of manual or movement therapy application.

The postural function of the DFL plays a significant role in supporting the body: (will be given in e manual)

• Elevating the inner arch,

• Stabilizing each segment of the legs,

• Supporting the lumbar spine from the front,

• Balancing the chest while allowing expansion and relaxation of breathing,

• Balancing the fragile neck and heavy head on top of all this.

The lack of support in the DFL, imbalance, and inappropriate tone (for example, the common pattern where the hip joint is not fully extended due to short DFL myofascia), can lead to overall stiffness in the body, collapse in the pelvic and spinal cord, and negative compensatory adjustments in all other lines we described.

The general movement function of the DFL: There is no movement where the DFL does not exert a strong influence, except for hip adduction and the breath wave of the diaphragm. However, none of these effects are independent. The DFL is surrounded or covered almost everywhere by other myofascia that replicates the roles of DFL’s muscles. The myofascia of the DFL contains more durable, endurance muscle fibers that reflect the role of the DFL in maintaining the solidity of the core structure and subtle positional changes for the efficient functioning of superficial structures. Therefore, the improper functioning of the DFL, especially for an untrained eye or a less sensitive sensor, often does not immediately or explicitly involve a loss of function. The function can usually be transferred to the outer contours of myofascia but may be slightly less refined, imparting a bit more tension to the joints and surrounding tissues, which can lead to injury and degeneration conditions over time. Hence, many injuries are often predetermined by a failure within the DFL years before the event that triggers them. (will be given in e manual)

*To stretch the DFL, with one knee in front and the other leg extended backward, body weight can be shifted forward by inverting or everting the foot.

Upper-crossed syndrome (UCS) (will be given in e manual)

is also referred to as proximal or shoulder girdle crossed syndrome. In UCS, tightness of the upper trapezius and levator scapula on the dorsal side crosses with tightness of the pectoralis major and minor. Weakness of the deep cervical flexors, ventrally, crosses with weakness of the middle and lower trapezius.

Specific postural changes are seen in UCS, including forward head posture, increased cervical lordosis and thoracic kyphosis, elevated and protracted shoulders, and rotation or abduction and winging of the scapulae. These postural changes decrease glenohumeral stability as the glenoid fossa becomes more vertical due to serratus anterior weakness leading to abduction, rotation, and winging of the scapulae. This loss of stability requires the levator scapulae and upper trapezius to increase activation to maintain glenohumeral centration.

The lower crossed syndrome (LCS) (will be given in e manual)

is the result of muscle strength imbalances in the lower segment. These imbalances can occur when muscles are constantly shortened or lengthened in relation to each other. The lower crossed syndrome is characterized by specific patterns of muscle weakness and tightness that cross between the dorsal and the ventral sides of the body. In LCS there is overactivity and hence tightness of hip flexors and lumbar extensors. Along with this there is underactivity and weakness of the deep abdominal muscles on the ventral side and of the gluteus maximus and medius on the dorsal side. The hamstrings are frequently found to be tight in this syndrome as well. This imbalance results in an anterior tilt of the pelvis, increased flexion of the hips, and a compensatory hyperlordosis in the lumbar spine.