What Happens When You Stretch Notes

1. "The nerve endings that relay all the information about the musculoskeletal system to the central nervous system are called proprioceptors. Proprioceptors (also called mechanoreceptors) are the source of all proprioception: the perception of one's own body position and movement." 

I thought that this quote was interesting because it showed how many words that are used in science are actually very easily definable despite the fact that they look complicated. this in large is due to the fact that many words, such as propioception, is made of prefixes and other parts that all mean words that we know in everyday life. 


2. "When muscles contract it places tension on the tendons where the golgi tendon organ is located. The golgi tendon organ is sensitive to the change in tension and the rate of change of the tension."

This makes me wonder about whether the golgi tendon organ is in anyway related to the golgi apparatus in the cell. Since they share a name, I would guess that they either perform similar functions or have some other correlation. 

3. "Some sources suggest that with extensive training, the stretch reflex of certain muscles can be controlled so that there is little or no reflex contraction in response to a sudden stretch. While this type of control provides the opportunity for the greatest gains in flexibility, it also provides the greatest risk of injury if used improperly. Only consummate professional athletes and dancers at the top of their sport (or art) are believed to actually possess this level of muscular control." 

I am curious about the stretch reflex and its control. How long does it take for athletes and dancers to develop this control? Do they have to do certain types of exercise in particular that help with this? 

Relate and Review:

I thought that this article was very interesting because it connected well to what we learned in class. In particular, I found it interesting how the sacromeres are stretched to their fullest when you stretch. I thought that it was great because even though it was an in depth article, because I already had prior knowledge in this topic and especially in how the muscle works when it contracts and relaxes, I was able to clearly visualize how muscles behave when they are stretched.  I also thought it was interesting how the stretching reflex could be trained and be controlled, especially by athletes. I am curious to learn more about the process of how it is controlled, as well as what goes on at a cellular level when it is changed. Are the genes that are expressed and proteins that are produced permanently altered? What mechanism makes it change?