Now that the weather is improving, you’re probably outside more. The Wii injuries of winter have faded, but continue to mind your body mechanics!
Yard Work: squating, bending, kneeling
Frisbee, soccer: running, kicking/throwing, crashing into others (or the ground!)
Running, hiking, biking: oh, those winter knees feel it!
Keep me on speed dial (503.282.8600). I can help with summer’s aches and pains so you can keep playing!
It’s mouthful, yes, but you use this muscle everyday when you raise your eyebrows. You might do this when you are surprised or frightened. Boo!
The front part of this muscle starts under the skin where your eyebrows are located. It then travels back to the top of the head, blending into a layer of thick connective tissue which then blends into the back (occipital) portion of the muscle. This portion rests at the occipital ridge, the bony part of the skull where the neck starts.
The occipitofrontalis is one of thirty mimetic muscles – muscles that express emotion. Prolonged stress, concentration, or fear can exhaust this muscle.
Tension can set up trigger points which can cause headaches and eye pain. It’s easy to access this muscle to massage it; you probably do it often without even realizing.
In this depiction by Primal Pictures you can see the frontal and occipital bellies, but not the connecting tissue. The muscle belly at the side of the skull is the temporalis muscle.
