Muscular System

The Anatomical System Most Directly Affected By Exercise...is the muscular system. While bones and joints provide the framework for the body, it is the contraction (and relaxation) of specific muscles that enable us to move. There are three types of muscle tissue. They are: Skeletal, Cardiac, and Visceral.

Skeletal muscle tissue is attached to bones by tendons, and is typically named according to its location. Skeletal muscle is voluntary muscle; that is, it can be made to contract by conscious effort.

Cardia muscle tissue forms the walls of the heart and is involuntary by nature.

The third type of muscle, visceral muscle is found in the walls of internal organs like the stomach and intestines and in blood vessels. The contraction of visceral muscle also is involuntary and, thus, is not under conscious control. While all three types of muscle have vital functions, the structure and function of skeletal muscles warrant the chart below.

Both ends of a skeletal muscle are attached to bone via tendons (a cord of connective tissue). In some cases, skeletal muscles are attached to bone by an aponeurosis, a broad, flat type of tendon. The wide, flat insertion of the rectus abdominis is an excellent example of aponeurosis. While there are more than 600 muscles within the human body, only the major muscles are illustrated below.

Skeletal Muscular System - Anterior & Posterior Muscular Anatomy

Learn what your muscles look like inside you and where they are in your body. Find out what functions your muscles perform and how they work. Select a muscle group below to learn more. If you're looking for new exercises to add to your routine visit our Exercise Guide, complete with pictures, descriptions and video examples of hundreds of exercises.

Skeletal Muscle System - Front View
Chest Muscles Rotator Cuff Muscles Shoulder Muscles Biceps Muscle Abdominal Muscles Quadriceps Muscle Adductor Muscles Hip Flexor Muscles

The muscle anatomy descriptions and picture on this page were provided courtesy of Nick Nilsson.

With books ranging from "The Best Exercises You've Never Heard Of" and "The Best Abdominal Exercises You've Never Heard Of" to "Metabolic Surge - Rapid Fat Loss," Nick offers some of the most eye-opening exercises and training methods you'll ever encounter - this is NOT stuff you'll see anywhere either in print or on the Internet! If you're on the lookout for techniques on how to shock your body into new growth, be sure to check out these books.