The Science Behind
Essentrics®
Understand how your body works and the
role you can play to keep it healthy.
ANATOMY
Essentrics views the human body as one interdependent unit, working each part and system in harmony. All systems are like members of a team whose job it is to keep you healthy and feeling good. The function of every single part of your body matters to your overall health, starting with your cells.
The human body is the sum total of trillions of cells. Maintaining the health of each cell is essential to our longevity and vitality. Nourishing and cleansing our cells can only be accomplished through movement. Movement activates the cells—signalling them to stay alive and healthy. Without nourishment, our cells will atrophy, shrink and eventually die. Knowing that all movement in our body is initiated by our muscles is why muscles are referred to as the guardians of our youth. Each Essentrics workout aims to stimulate all 650 muscles for maximum results.
When you move, your muscles activate the muscle cells, awakening your mitochondria, which are the powerhouse “furnaces” of your body. Mitochondria are responsible for regulating your metabolism, providing you with energy and controlling your weight. The full body movements in every Essentrics workout target all 650 muscles, and thus activate these furnaces. The more you move your muscles, the more energy you generate.
Just like a house is built around a supportive scaffolding, a strong skeleton is required to support the human body. As a building’s scaffolding requires clean alignment in order to support the load-path or weight of the building so does the human skeleton require clean alignment of the bones to safely and effortlessly support us throughout a lifetime.
The human body has approximately 360 joints; each of which are found at the meeting point of two or more bones. Our joints play a vital role in the mobility and efficacy of everyday movement. To access the power of your muscle cells, your joints need to move freely. Essentrics unlocks and decompresses your joints by stretching and strengthening the muscles that surround each one, while also lubricating and working the connective tissue. This unique, re-aligning and rebalancing approach is the key to a healthy, energetic, long-lasting and pain-free body.
Ligaments are a ridged, band-like connective tissue which attach one bone to another. Their primary job is to support the joint and permit it to move in its designated direction. For example, the ligaments of the ankle support a hinge-like movement of the foot at the ankle and prevent us from instability as we stand or walk. It’s important to maintain pliability but not flexibility in the ligaments; we need to be able to move our joints, but not too much as to lose the stabilizing benefit of healthy ligaments.
Tendons are made of the same structure as ligaments, however they play a completely different role in our body. Tendons are found at either end of every muscle in our body. Their purpose is to attach the muscles to the bones. Without tendons, muscles would float around our body! If a muscle is overextended as the result of a sudden fall or tennis accident, the tendon could be torn or injured.
Connective tissue comes in many forms; soft, firm and fluid. Fascia is soft, ligaments and tendons are firm, and the watery substance that both hydrates and allows for movement is fluid. Your connective tissue forms a protective web that surrounds, supports and connects every part of your body, from the top of your head to the tip of your toes, from every cell to every organ. It relays messages throughout your entire body, and is now recognized to directly impact your overall health. When connective tissue is not exercised on a regular basis, fascia, tendons and ligaments harden, thus making us feel stiff. In order to do its job efficiently, it must remain flexible and well-lubricated. In Essentrics, we use safe, slow, large, three-dimensional, full-body movements that exercise the design of this “living matrix” in its entirety.
The cardiovascular system consists of your heart, blood and blood vessels. The exercises in Essentrics stimulate blood flow throughout the entire cardiovascular system, delivering fresh oxygen and nutrients to every cell in our body while also removing toxins. In addition, our full-body movements and deep-muscular pumping techniques relieve the workload placed on the cardiac muscle by stimulating efficient circulation throughout the often neglected vascular system.
The nervous system is a complex network of nerves, neurons, the spinal cord, and the brain that carries important messages to every part of your body. Coordinated full-body movements of Essentrics activate and engage nerve cells throughout your brain and nervous system. This type of exercise strengthens brain circuits and pathways involved in a full suite of cognitive functions; including movement, emotions, memory, and more.
The Human Body
Your body is a complex machine—each part of it constantly communicating with the other and contributing to your overall health. Supporting this system is simpler than you may think and Essentrics has the formula.
*Please note, we are not medical doctors. While it has been proven that movement aids in healthy aging, if you suffer from illness or injury – get your doctor’s approval before beginning any new fitness program.
MUSCLE MASS LOSS PER DECADE
This diagram explains why you might be feeling some signs of aging. Our muscle mass contains the cells that keep our energy up, help us to burn calories and many more important functions. The good news is, that If you do full body exercise you’ll maintain a significant amount of those important muscle cells!
Essentrics at Every Age
We embrace the aging process and want you to feel your best at every birthday. Learn your body's needs at every age and how Essentrics can help.
OUR PRODUCTS
STREAMING
Access our full collection of 300+ Essentrics and Classical Stretch workouts online—on your smartphone, tablet or computer.
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DVDS
Discover our complete library of Essentrics and Classical Stretch workout DVDs for all ages and fitness levels.
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BOOKS
The entire collection of health and lifestyle books written by New York Times bestselling author, Miranda Esmonde-White.
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OUR TV SHOWS
All you need to know about Miranda’s TV shows and docuseries: Classical Stretch, Aging Backwards and Forever Painless.
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