• Musculature for Laboratory
  • A muscluoskeletal atlas shows the basic muscles, ligaments and bones of body joints.
  • Here is a site that lets you choose muscles by region or from an alphabetical order list of skeletal muscles. A muscle's origin, insertion and action are listed with an individual sketch for the muscle.
  • Here is a test of the many muscles from the muscle atlas above. Also are practice test questions with graded answers on muscle fiver anatomy, muscle fiber contraction and other myology terminology. A MUST when you want to be tested on what you think you know.
  • Gross muscle anatomy (visible muscles) can be most interesting for what is under our skin. This video shows in the greatest of vividness just what is under our facial skin.
  • Here are some animation of various muscle dissections by removal of the skin and some underlying structures. source:The Visible Human Project
  • Study of the runner's legs can be interesting. Here is a video of multiple x-rays that shows the skeleton of a running man.
  • Body movements are the result of agonists and antoginist muscles working in opposition to flex and extend joints therefore producing body movement.
  • Isometric and isotonic are names given to non movement and movements of a joint when a muscle contracts. Yes, a jaoint may not move when a muscle contracts. Watch this video to find out why.
  • The Visible Human Project (VHP) was a federal funded project (your federal tax dollars) directed by the National Instituee of Health (NIH). This a collection of some of those awesome sections and videos.

Myology (study of muscle structure and physiology)

• Functional anatomy of muscle
  • Start here: We have three types of muscle and thus muscle tissue in the body. This animation shows the basics of each group.
• Contraction of skeletal muscle
  • This animation with audio shows the complete process of muscle contraction from start to finish
  • Stepping through the sequence of muscle contraction is another way to view this process.
  • Knowing muscle fiber anatomy is required in this animation before they take you through the process of contraction. You will know fiber anatomy by the end of this animation.
  • This will reinforce your learning of muscle fiber anatomy with detailed pictures and text to read.
  • Calcium ions are critical for the process of contraction (allowing cross bridges to connect actin to myosin).
• Energy use and muscle activity
  • Glucose is required for ATP production and then muscle contraction. How the body regulates glucose levels is complicated and summarized as the Cori Cycle. This animation goes through some of the basics.
  • The mechanics of muscle fiber contraction.
  • Actin and myosin are the major contractile proteins of any muscle fiber. Seeing how they interact to cause contraction helps to understand the contraction process.
  • This animation explains the muscle receptors, spinal reflexes & muscle contraction. This requires your interaction with the animation by answering questions whose answers are in the animatiion.
• Exercise
  • Exercise is good for the body provided the person does over do it and is healthy to start.
• Neurological control
  • Neuromuscular junction
    • explaination 1
    • explaination 2
  • Reflex
    • The reflex is a muscle's involuntary response to a stimulus. This step through (interactive) video will show you that process of a reflex.
• Pathologies