2.1 Anatomical Positions

• Core Anatomy:

  • Transverse Abdominis
  • External Abdominal Oblique
  • Internal Abdominal Oblique
  • Rectus Abdominis
• Transverse Abdominis; located under the obliques, it is the deepest of the abdominal muscles and wraps around your spine for protection and stability.
• External Abdominal Oblique; located on the side and front of the abdomen
• Internal Abdominal Oblique; located under the external obliques running in the opposite direction
• Rectus Abdominis; located along the front of the abdomen, this is the most well-known abdominal.
• Rectus Abdominis; Often referred to as the "six pack"
• Planes of the Body:

  1. Sagital Plane
  2. Frontal Plane
  3. Transverse Plane
• Sagital Plane; cuts the body into left and right halves. It is more on forward and backward movements.
• Frontal Plane; divides the body into the front and back or the anterior and posterior side
• Transverse Plane; cuts the body into top and bottom halves
• Anatomical Terms of Location:

  1. Medial and Lateral
  2. Anterior and Posterior
  3. Superior and Inferior
  4. Proximal and Distal
• Medial and Lateral; imagine a line in the sagital plane, splitting the right and left halves evenly.
• Medial; towards the midline
• Lateral; away from the midline
• Anterior; refers to the "Front"
• Posterior; refers to the "Back"
• Superior and Inferior; a term that refers to the vertical axis
• Superior; means "higher"
• Inferior; means "lower"
• Proximal; means "closer" to its origin
• Distal; means "further away"
• Proximal and Distal; used in structures that are considered to have a beginning and an end.