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If opposing muscles were to contract at the same time, a muscle tear can occur. This may occur during physical activities such as running, during which opposing muscles engage and disengage sequentially to produce coordinated movement. Reciprocal inhibition facilitates ease of movement and is a safeguard against injury.
A common example of reciprocal innervation, is the effect of the nociceptive (or nocifensive) reflex, or defensive response to pain, otherwise commonly known as the withdrawal reflex; a type of involuntary action of the body to remove the body part from the vicinity of an offending object by contracting the appropriate muscles (usually flexor ...
Stiffness adjustments due to reflexes are involuntary and are controlled by the spinal cord while posture selection is controlled voluntarily. [6] However, not each component of stiffness is strictly voluntary or involuntary. [8] For example, Antagonistic muscle cocontraction can be either voluntary or involuntary.
The stretch reflex (myotatic reflex), or more accurately "muscle stretch reflex", is a muscle contraction in response to stretching a muscle. The function of the reflex is generally thought to be maintaining the muscle at a constant length but the response is often coordinated across multiple muscles and even joints. [ 1 ]
Isotonic contractions place muscles in a constant tension but the muscle length changes, while isometric contractions hold a constant muscle length. [citation needed] Voluntary sustained contraction is a normal (physiologic) process (as in the crouching or box-holding examples), but involuntary sustained contraction exists on a spectrum from ...
In biology, a reflex, or reflex action, is an involuntary, unplanned sequence or action [1] and nearly instantaneous response to a stimulus. [2] [3] The simplest reflex is initiated by a stimulus, which activates an afferent nerve. The signal is then passed to a response neuron, which generates a response.
The withdrawal reflex (nociceptive flexion reflex or flexor withdrawal reflex) is a spinal reflex intended to protect the body from damaging stimuli. [1] The reflex rapidly coordinates the contractions of all the flexor muscles and the relaxations of the extensors in that limb causing sudden withdrawal from the potentially damaging stimulus. [2]
Resistance training has been shown to dramatically increase performance of motor units of the larger muscle groups. [2] Motor unit plasticity of the larger muscle groups is extremely important for athletes, especially those participating in high impact and fast pace sports such as track and field, martial arts, and American football.