Neuromuscular System
The body’s “software”
First off, when we say Neuromuscular
System, what do we mean? To break it down
into medical terminology,
Neuro = Nerves
Muscular = Muscles
So, when we say neuromuscular, we are
referring to the interaction between your body’s nerves and muscles. To use a computer reference, you can compare
the neuromuscular system to the software on your computer.
You can have the fastest processor and tons of
memory and storage on a computer, but if you don’t have the right
software programs to tell the computer to do what you want it to do,
that great computer is pretty much worthless.
You may not realize it, but 95% of
what we do in the world of sports performance and injury rehabilitation
revolves around training the neuromuscular system in some form or
fashion.
Motor
Engrams
As it pertains to sports training, we attempt
to create what’s called “Motor Engrams.”
Motor engrams are specific pathways that the nervous system uses to
minimize the work of the brain and spinal cord. As
your body performs a certain movement or activity over and over, your
body automatically creates one of these pathways, or engrams. Once an engram is created, your body will be
able to perform that specific activity without nearly as much input
from the brain. Your brain will tell your
body to perform the movement and the engram will take over.
As an example, I would bet that
whenever you brush your teeth, you perform the same procedure every
time, starting on one side and systematically moving throughout your
mouth without thinking about it. Your
brain (your body’s software) tells your body to brush your teeth, and
the engram takes over. You are able to
brush your teeth without thinking about it by utilizing the very
specific motor feedback loops in your body that you have created
through training and repetition.
These engrams are desirable in sports,
because they can create movement more quickly and efficiently than when
your brain has to be involved. So, with
practice and training, we are trying to create desirable motor engrams
for any and all movements in sports. This
may be as simple as performing a quality squatting movement, or as
complex as a difficult agility
run. The more efficient the software is in
your body, the more likely you will succeed in sports.
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