We Asked:What muscle(s) do you find most fascinating and why?

Here is what you told us...

The heart—it is always in perfect balance of work and rest. We can learn a lot from it if we listen.
Viktor Bek,
Rocky Hill, New Jersey

Trapezius is beautiful, spreading from shoulder to shoulder. The weight of the world goes on trapezius. Without trapezius, I would not be able to do massage, which is my life.
Dene Hager,
Bellevue, Washington

I think the iliacus is a very fascinating muscle because it is very obscure and not readily accessible, and most people don’t even know it exists. But when worked, it can change the way you walk, stand, move and feel.
Rebecca Nau,
Greensboro, North Carolina

The subscapularis is remarkable. Its extended connections to the neck, arm and low back make it a pivotal muscle in the release of any problems in these areas. While it does not exactly live in anonymity, it is one of the least-touched muscles in the body.
Gary Gammon
St. Cloud, Florida

The muscle that I like most is the latissimus dorsi, the shape that it makes in the human body—a wing shape.
Katherine Jimenez
Weston, Florida

The adductor muscles. I ride horses and find that my adductors get the biggest workout. These muscles need massage as much [as] or more than any others, yet are usually avoided due to their location. What a great group of muscles to use and massage!
Kristina West
Sherwood, Oregon

The subscapularis is very interesting. I love to work the armpit, so this is a fun one. It is interesting because not a lot of people realize there is a muscle on the anterior aspect of the scapula. People are very interested and amazed at how sore [it is] and how much that muscle does not get worked.
Ashley Avery
Fort Collins, Colorado

Traps/lats/rhomboids—because they are often very descriptive in their accumulative funk. Glutes because they are so reflective of soft-tissue distortions of the hips and elsewhere. SCM’s, scalenes, upper traps—they cry so elegantly.
Renee Hankins
Kettering, Ohio

The subscapularis is the most interesting muscle, hidden away under the scapula, stabilizing the scapula by way of the ribcage, having links to the neck, arm and low back and affecting each by way of myofascial links. It is more than the linchpin of the area, it can be a [triggerpoint] curse for many pathologies and secondary [triggerpoints] in the neck, arm and low back.
Gary Gammon
St. Cloud, Florida

Latissimus dorsi muscle is very beautiful in my opinion. Because of its origins and insertion, it reminds me of our angel wings.
Dawn Bennett
Colfax, Washington

The quadratus lumborum is the most fascinating of the muscles. This muscle has an enormous impact on our posture and gait, and thus on our sense of our self. To me it demands examination on every client, regardless of presenting need. In my experience all [quadratus lumborums] need love!
Laura Deming
Virginia Beach, Virginia