On Track Equine Sports Therapy

Part 5: Now we can come back to the muscle that started this entire conversation: the brachiocephalicus.

The brachiocephalicus is easy to see, particularly when it becomes prominent along the lower neck, but what we're seeing may not be the original problem.

It may be evidence of how hard the horse is working to solve one.

First, the brachiocephalicus is a movement muscle. Along with the omotransversarius, it contributes to protracting the forelimb.

Under normal circumstances, advancing the forelimb is part of a coordinated conversation.

The scapula moves, the humerus changes position, the trunk organizes around the limb, and muscles increase and decrease their activity as the horse moves through each phase of the stride.

But what happens when that movement is no longer freely available?

Moving the limb against resistance

In the compensation pattern we've been following, the pectorals are maintaining excessive tone and the muscles surrounding the upper scapula are providing additional stability.

The shoulder apparatus now has less freedom, but the horse still has to bring the leg forward.

The brachiocephalicus and omotransversarius therefore have to work within a system offering more resistance to the movement they're trying to create.

They may need to generate more effort to accomplish the same task and that increased workload can influence their development.

Increased effort during protraction may only be part of the story.

The dynamic between the pectorals and rhomboids influences how effectively the trunk is supported between the forelimbs.

The chest can settle lower between the shoulders, the base of the neck drops, and the horse becomes increasingly loaded toward the front end.

Now the horse has another problem to solve:
How do I keep myself balanced over my feet?

One strategy is to elevate the head and neck.

As the horse's balance shifts forward, the dorsal cervical musculature can become increasingly recruited to elevate and retract the head and upper neck in an attempt to rebalance.

But lifting the upper neck doesn't restore dynamic support through the base of the neck.

Instead, it can create an inverted cervical posture: the base remains dropped while the upper neck and head are carried higher and an inverted neck still needs to be stabilized.

This is where the brachiocephalicus can take on a very different role.

It contributes to stabilizing the lower cervical region while the dorsal cervical musculature stabilizes from above.

The result is something closer to a muscular brace around the cervical spine.

The neck becomes less of a dynamically moving structure and more of a relatively rigid lever the horse can use as part of its balance strategy.

What happens underneath the brace?

The brachiocephalicus is one of the easiest muscles in this pattern to see from the outside, but underneath it are deeper structures that make this compensation particularly important.

Among them are the scalene muscles at the base of the neck.

The scalenes connect the lower cervical vertebrae with the first ribs and contribute to stabilization and flexion of the lower cervical region, as well as elevating the first rib to aid in inspiration.

They also have an important relationship with the nervous system.

Several spinal nerves that eventually become part of the brachial plexus travel through the tissues at the base of the neck.

When the base of the neck is dropped and the cervical region is being held in a chronic stabilization strategy, the scalene muscles also maintain increased activity.

What happens to the nerves traveling through a region that has become chronically braced?

If muscular tone, cervical position, or surrounding tissue relationships reduce the available space around these neural pathways, irritation or mechanical compromise of the nerves contributing to the brachial plexus becomes something worth considering.

Those nerves ultimately contribute to the sensory and motor supply of the forelimb and the environment directly impacts their ability to function.

So a prominent or hypertonic brachiocephalic may be one visible clue within a much deeper pattern of altered cervical and shoulder organization.

Equine chakras are pretty much the same as human ones.
I find this endlessly fascinating.
Often when doing bodywork, apart from physical injury, the location of the injury can tell you a bit about the emotional state of the horse.

I had a friend who used to get laryngitis a lot.
When talking one day, I suggested that maybe she might be holding back about having a hard conversation. Long story short, she had a very controlling mother and had deep seated issues with her.

One day she exploded and a whole lot of stuff came out in a tirade about her mum.
The two of them went to therapy together and she only ever got laryngitis again when she was holding a resentment.

Root Chakra- is the basis of life. Survival, safety and basic needs being met.

Sacral Chakra - governs procreation, sexuality, relationships and creativity.

Solar Plexus - personal power, self esteem and will.

Heart Chakra - Love, healing emotional expression.

Throat Chakra - communication, self expression, vulnerability and truth talking.

Crown Chakra - oneness with spirit, God, universal connection.

Brow/ Third eye Chakra - third eye, self acceptance, intuition, conscious mind.

👀 TRAIN YOUR EYE 👀 | PART 4 OF 5

The Sternum

Most owners never think about the sternum - yet it’s one of the most important landmarks I assess during an appointment.

The sternum (breastbone) sits along the midline of the chest and forms the central attachment point for many of the muscles that support the forehand, ribcage and thoracic sling - because of this, it can tell us a great deal about how a horse is carrying itself.

What am I looking for when I assess the sternum?

I’m not trying to decide whether the sternum is ‘good’, or ‘bad’.

Instead I’m asking myself questions such as:

✔ Does the sternum appear central between the forelimbs?
✔ Does it appear to drift towards one side?
✔ Is there even muscle development either side?
✔ Does the chest appear symmetrical?
✔ Is the horse carrying itself evenly through the front end?

Remember…

A horse that consistently unloads one limb may also change how the muscles surrounding the sternum develop over time.

See the picture below - this horse often unloads his front forelimb, and the musculature surrounding the sternum are moderately underdeveloped on the right hand side, in comparison to the left (pecs and axillary space).

Why does it matter?

The sternum provides attachment for several important muscles including the pectorals and abdominal musculature.

These structures help to:

➡ support the trunk
➡ stabilise the thoracic sling
➡ transfer force between the forelimbs and the body
➡ influence posture and balance
➡ contribute to efficient movement

When one side of the body consistently works harder than the other, the surrounding musculature can adapt accordingly.

That doesn’t automatically mean something is painful.

It simply tells us the horse may be moving or loading differently.

Looking beyond the obvious

A sternum that appears slightly off-centre in one photograph isn’t a diagnosis.

The horse could simply be:

• resting one forelimb
• standing unevenly
• turning its head
• compensating momentarily
• photographed from an angle

That’s why we never assess one body part in isolation.

The sternum is just one landmark.

It becomes useful when combined with everything else:

✔ posture
✔ thoracic sling
✔ pectoral symmetry
✔ ribcage shape
✔ movement
✔ palpation
✔ clinical history

Only then do the pieces begin to fit together.

Train your eye, not your assumptions.

The purpose of this series isn’t to encourage owners to diagnose their horses from photographs.

It’s to help you understand what experienced practitioners are observing during an assessment and why every small observation contributes to the bigger picture.

Because the horse doesn’t move in separate pieces.

It moves as one connected system.

Observe. Compare. Question. Learn.

Tomorrow: Part 5 – The Ribcage