Issue 6: Traditional Static Yoga And Stretches Do Not Effectively Reset the Gamma Feedback Loop

Pulling on muscle fibres does not alter the resting level of tension set by the gamma feedback loop.

Resting muscle tension levels can ONLY be reset by actively Retraining Your Brain with conscious, voluntary movement. Voluntary movements provide sensory feedback from your muscles to your brain letting you know that your muscle is actually contracted. Only when you are aware that a muscle is contracted will you be able to release it. My signature Somatic Mobility Drills Sequences “Put Your Mind Into Your Muscle” and return muscles to a normal base level of tension for noticeable gains in range of motion. I grumble about the muscle science that is perpetuated and taught in yoga teacher trainings despite having studied and paying homage to various yoga disciplines for the past 25 years. My determination to figure out a more holistic way to practice yoga came out of this struggle. And the antidote is Somatic Mobility Drills Sequencing.

Train smarter with Somatic Muscle Science.

I stopped practising at yoga studios. Tired of hurting my own body day in and day out over the years and tired of seeing students get injured in other yoga classes, I continued teaching at studios but without naming it (beacuse I didn’t have a name yet) I integrated Somatic Mobility Drills (SMD) sections of my classes. I spent about ten years refining these sequences. The result is a meticulous integration of dynamic movement techniques combined with Somatic Release Exercises. The culmination is Somatic Mobility Drills (SMD) Sequences for Yoga Poses based on Krishnamacharya's principles of Vinyasa Krama. It saved my body– and it can save yours and your students too. Known as “the teacher who does things differently” I give my students a new perspective on yoga. Now, students love SMD because they feel the difference it makes in their bodies when flows are created with the stretch reflex in mind.

Somatic Mobility Drills (SMD) Sequences work with the stretch reflex avoiding risk of repetitive strain injuries.

Overtime, outdated yoga and stretch workouts cause muscle tears, over-stretched ligaments, tight/weak fascia, adhesions along the myofascial meridians, and joint degeneration. Instead you can build resilient muscle, tendon, ligament, and fascial tissues, gain lean muscle mass, protect joints and improve range of motion by incorporating SMD Sequences into weekly yoga routines. Move with more ease, power, and grace for years to come on the mat– and in daily life.

​What Is The Gamma Loop? Why It Can Help Or Hinder Your Beloved Yoga Practice

The Gamma Loop is a nervous system feedback mechanism that regulates the level of tension, tone, and reflexes in muscles.

The Feedback Loop, aka the Alpha-Gamma Feedback Loop, involves the coordinated activity of Alpha Motor Neurons, Gamma Motor Neurons, Sensory Neurons, Muscle Spindles, and Skeletal Muscle to maintain muscle length and responsiveness.

Feedback loop

• When a skeletal muscle is stretched, the muscle spindle is also stretched and triggers signals in sensory neurons to the spinal cord. These signals activate Alpha and Gamma Motor Neurons causing the muscle to contract and also adjusting muscle spindle responsiveness.

• The Loop maintains muscle tone, and controlled and coordinated movements while also enabling the stretch reflex to help prevent overstretching of muscles. The Loop assures that muscles are properly prepared for action by adjusting their readiness to contract.

Alpha-Gamma Co-Activation

• The simultaneous activation of Alpha and Gamma Motor Neurons occurs so that the Muscle Spindle remains active, able, and ready to adapt to and sense changes in muscle length.

Step-by-Step Gamma Loop Feedback Order

Step 1: Alpha Motor Neurons

• Control the contraction of Skeletal Muscle fibers.

• Alpha Motor Neurons control the contraction of Skeletal Muscle fibers. Skeletal Muscles join bones and are responsible for generating force and movement. When Skeletal Muscles contract, joints bend and move bones.

• Muscles can only Contract or Relax and work in Agonist and Antagonist pairs known as Antagonistic Muscle Pairs.

Step 2: Muscle Spindles

• Muscle Spindles are sense (stretch) receptors located within skeletal muscle that detect and provide feedback to the spinal cord via sensory neurons regarding changes in muscle length.

Step 3: Gamma Motor Neurons

• Control the contraction of muscle fibers within Muscle Spindles.

• Gamma Motor Neurons control contraction of muscle fibers in the Muscle Spindle which controls tension levels. Gamma Motor Neurons fire automatically between the spinal cord and muscles. Its quick impulses regulate the level of tension in muscles without reaching the brain.

Step 4: Alpha-Gamma Co-Activation

• When the brain sends a message down to Alpha Motor Neurons to contract a muscle it also sends a signal to the Gamma Motor Neurons to contract the muscle fibers in the Muscle Spindle.

• Co-Activation ensures that the Muscle Spindle remains able to detect changes in muscle length even during muscle contraction. If during a contraction a Muscle Spindle became too slack it would be unable to properly sense length changes and convey feedback.

Step 5: Muscle Spindle Sensory Neurons & Alpha Motor Neurons

• Sensory Neurons are wrapped around the Muscle Spindle and sense changes in the length of the muscle spindle.

• Muscle Spindle Sensory Neurons relay information back to Alpha Motor Neurons to regulate and fine tune the length of the skeletal muscle and contribute to Stretch Reflex functioning and overall muscle tone.

• Therefore, muscle length is determined by descending messages from the brain and spinal cord (Central Nervous System CNS) AND by the automatic reflexive activity in the Gamma Feedback Loop that does not reach the brain.

Step 6: Muscle Spindle Sensory Neurons & Gamma Motor Neurons

• Gamma Motor Neurons adjust the sensitivity of Muscle Spindles therefore are able to modulate the Stretch Reflex influencing global muscle responsiveness to external stimuli and commands from the brain

Step 7: Why the Alpha-Gamma Loop Is Important

• The Loop maintains muscle spindles in a responsive state allowing for an accurate sense of changes in length and a controlled precision of muscle length and tone.

Ready for mini yoga practices that effectively reset your Gamma Feedback Loop and return your muscles to a more normal level of base tension??

C'mon.

Check out free mini practices here

​Stay tuned for Issue 7: How Yoga Stretches Can Trigger An Imbalanced Gamma Loop– And Tighter Muscles