Have you ever thought about the muscles working in the human body? This article answers your question regarding muscle count and female muscle anatomy.
Muscular anatomy involves all muscle types working in coordination to perform daily activities. Muscles are voluntary and involuntary according to their muscle type and physiologic functioning. Female muscle anatomy involves all muscular powers of the female body and their relations with each other to perform daily activities.
Muscles in the human body vary according to the type of muscle. It is estimated that there are more than 650 skeletal muscles in our body. Talking about smooth muscles, there are billions of smooth muscle cells at a tissue or cellular level to maintain the performance of various systems. These muscles work in coordination to serve different movements, maintain posture, pass food through your digestive tract, and help to pump blood across the body.
Female muscle anatomy is far beyond the discussion of this article to grasp the details related to it. This article summarizes the essential concepts and points related to female muscle anatomy. Read on to absorb ultimate knowledge concerning muscle types, functions, and other significant features.
What are the basic types of Female Muscle?
Before knowing the female muscle anatomy, let us have some information about various types of muscles. Muscles are classified into three basic categories to understand their functions and anatomical relations to each other. Let us have a detailed look at the main types of these muscles.
Skeletal muscle
The skeletal muscle type is basically attached to your skeleton with the help of tendons. Every muscle consists of thousands of muscle fibers working synergistically to perform movements. The skeletal muscles are organized into a proper striped orientation, also known as striated muscle. The prime function of skeletal muscle is maintaining body movement by the contraction of muscle fibers. Skeletal muscles are voluntary, indicating you can command these muscles at your own will. These are the only muscles that are voluntary.
Smooth muscle
Smooth muscles are basically found in different organs of our body. These muscles also form the major systems like digestive, respiratory, renal, cardiovascular, and reproductive systems. Smooth muscles pose a special shape, round at the center and tapered towards the sides. They indicate a specific uniform shape of this muscle. Smooth muscles are involuntary, working on their own to perform functions. Every cell contains a chain of filaments, connecting with the neighboring cells to form mesh-like networks. This connection maintains uniformity in the muscles.
Cardiac muscle
As the name indicates, cardiac muscles are specific to the heart. These muscles help your heart to beat continuously without missing any beat. Cardiac muscles are specifically present in the myocardium layer, lying between the endocardium and pericardium. Cardiac muscles also exhibit an organized pattern like skeletal muscle with a striated appearance. Every cardiac muscle is connected to another cell through intercalated discs to maintain continuity. Similar to the smooth muscle type, cardiac muscles are involuntary and only respond to electrical impulses generated by your heart.
Skeletal muscle anatomy
Skeletal muscles are everywhere in your body to coordinate different movements. Here are some basic functions that skeletal muscles perform.
- Maintains movements of the body
- Provide support to the skeletal system
- Maintains the posture of the body
- Produces heat through metabolic processes to maintain body temperature
- Provide amino acids as a byproduct of different metabolic processes
- Provides energy during the starvation phase
As skeletal muscles are present throughout the body. Therefore, we’ll discuss these muscles according to the body part. Let’s now move in to know in detail the female muscle anatomy.
Muscles of the head and neck
This muscle group controls the major movements related to the face, head, and neck. There are multiple structures present in this group. Muscles are associated with these structures and organize the movements related to them. Here are some examples of the main muscles present in this region.
| Muscle name: | Region: | Function: |
| Zygomaticus: | Zygomatic bone | The Zygomaticus muscle is a paired facial muscle to orient facial expressions. It helps to lift the corners of the mouth during a smile. |
| Masseter: | Muscle of mastication, present in the jaw | Masseter muscle helps to perform the masticatory movements. It is used to close the mouth while chewing the food. |
| Extraocular muscles of the eye: | Present in the outer region of the eyes | It is a group of muscles orienting the movements of the eye like opening and closing eyelids. |
| Tongue muscles: | Present in tongue | The tongue, being muscular, performs a variety of movements like elevating and lowering the tongue and also moving in and out. |
| Sternocleidomastoid: | Present along the sides of the neck | It is a major muscle that helps you to move or tilt your head. Moreover, it also helps in the forward movement of the head. |
Muscles of the trunk
The trunk consists of the torso and the abdomen. It also consists of multiple skeletal muscles to offer a variety of muscular features under the female muscle anatomy.
| Muscle name: | Region: | Function: |
| Intercostal muscles: | Along the ribs | These muscles are present around the ribs to help in inhaling and exhaling movements. |
| Diaphragm: | Located below the lungs | It is the major muscle of respiration that helps in the normal breathing pattern of the lungs. This muscle contracts to cause inhaling and relaxes to induce exhaling. |
| Rectus abdominis: | Present in the abdomen | This muscle is vertically running muscle fiber present in the fourth layer of the mid-region. It causes flexion of the trunk and stabilizes the pelvis. |
| Erector spinae: | Along the spine | These muscles support your spine and help to perform movements like bending, twisting, and arching of the spine. |
| Thoracic cage muscles: (Pectoralis major, pectoralis minor, serratus anterior, subclavius, intercoastal, subcostal, and transversus thoracic muscles) | Attached to the upper limb | These muscles support the thoracic cage and perform different movements of the upper limb and respiratory structures. |
| Pyramidalis | Found in the lower abdomen | It also helps in the movements of the lower region. The main function of this muscle is to provide tension force for the linea alba. |
Muscles of the upper extremities
The upper extremities include the shoulders, arms, wrists, and hands. The muscles associated with these structures perform the movements of these structures. Here are some of the main muscles present in the upper extremities.
| Muscle name: | Region: | Function: |
| Deltoid muscle: | The uppermost region of the arm or shoulder | The shoulder, being a ball and socket joint, connects the arms to your body. It helps to perform different movements of the arm. It also stabilizes your shoulder joint. It works to rotate or lift your arm at the shoulder level. |
| Biceps brachii: | Front of the upper arm | The prime function of this muscle is to perform flexion and outward rotation (supination) of the forearm. Flexion is the bending of your elbow. |
| Triceps brachii: | Dorsal aspect of the upper arm | It is a horseshoe-shaped muscle present on the posterior aspect of the arm. It helps to extend the elbow joint and perform extension movement. |
| Pronator teres: | Present in the forearm | It pronates the forearm and helps in the flexion of the elbow joint. Pronation is the turning type movement so that the palm faces the posterior direction while being in an anatomical position. |
| Flexor digitorum superficialis | Present in the wrist | This muscle causes the flexion of the wrist which is actually the downward movement of the wrist. |
| Intrinsic muscles of hand: (Thenar, hypothenar, interossei, lumbrical muscles) | Within the carpal and metacarpal bones | These intrinsic muscles balance the movements of the fingers and maintain a broad sweeping movement. In addition, these muscles also perform abduction and adduction of the fingers. |
Muscle of the hips
The hip joint is a ball and socket joint that holds the weight of the body. This joint performs a variety of movements with the help of different muscles. Here are some muscles that hold the stamina to perform movements under the female muscle anatomy.
| Muscle name: | Region: | Function: |
| Iliopsoas: | Present in the hips | It causes the hip flexion that moves your knee towards the chest. This muscle not only causes the flexion of the hip joint but also stabilizes the joint. Moreover, it also works in coordination to cause abdominal flexion and hip stabilization. |
| Sartorius muscles: | Present in the hips | This muscle performs different functions at different levels. At the level of the hips, it causes flexion, and weak abduction and also helps to rotate the thighs in the lateral direction. Whereas, at the knee level, it causes flexion of the leg while the knee is also flexed. Moreover, it also helps to rotate the legs in the medial direction. |
| Gluteus maximus: | Present in the hips | This muscle is mainly utilized for the movements of your hips and thighs. In addition, it helps to maintain posture and go upstairs. Moreover, it also balances the position while standing up from the sitting position. |
Muscles of the lower extremities
The lower extremities involve the region of the legs and feet. There are multiple muscles that work in coordination to perform walking and running-like movements. Here are some most common muscles of the lower extremities that work synergistically to coordinate movements.
| Muscle name: | Region: | Function: |
| Quadriceps femoris: (Vastus medius, vastus lateralis, vastus intermedius, rectus femoris) | Present in the upper leg | This is a group of muscles that works collectively to perform a bundle of movements. It helps to increase the angle at the knee level while maintaining the lower leg in a straight position. Moreover, it also helps to cause extension of the knee while kicking. |
| Hamstring muscle: (Biceps femoris, semitendinosus, semimembranosus) | Present in the back area of the thigh | This muscle works opposite to the quadriceps muscle. It causes knee flexion which is the bending of the knee from a straight position |
| Gastrocnemius muscle: | Present in the back of the calf | It also contributes to the small amount of knee flexion. |
| Tibialis anterior: | Present in the anterior area of the lower leg | The main function of this muscle is the dorsiflexion of the foot at the level of the talocrural joint. In addition, it plays an important role in walking, hiking, and kicking while stabilizing the knee joint. |
| Soleus muscle: | Present in the back region of the lower leg | Working as a skeletal muscle, it coordinates with other calf muscles to induce strong plantar flexor movement. It is a major postural muscle while you are running, walking, or dancing. It helps to lower the sole towards the ground. |
Smooth muscle anatomy
Smooth muscles are the main framework of almost every organ. Their function varies according to the place they are present. There are some specific systems and functions of the smooth muscles according to their location.
Respiratory system – smooth muscles present in the lungs or respiratory systems help to widen and narrow the airways to cause smooth breathing.
Cardiovascular system – blood vessels contain smooth muscles. These blood vessels are the major transportation system to carry blood towards and away from the heart. In addition, it also helps to regulate blood pressure.
Digestive system – smooth muscles being part of the digestive system performs various contractile movements to push food along the tract.
Renal system – smooth muscles maintain the output and flow of urine from the urinary bladder.
Reproductive system – in females, smooth muscles are the major muscles to induce contractions during pregnancy. In the case of males, it helps to propel the sperm along the tract.
Cardiac muscle anatomy
Cardiac muscles are specific for the heart. Every cardiac muscle cell is a tubular structure, containing a chain of myofibrils. These myofibrils contain sarcomere which are the main contractile units to perform movements. Cardiac muscles maintain the heartbeat. Cardiac muscle works in response to electrical stimulus, produced by the pacemaker cells of the heart. These signals move from the upper to the lower part of the heart. Cardiac muscles are closely connected to perform a coordinated rhythm of heartbeats.
What are the common medical problems related to female muscle anatomy?
A wide range of diseases and disorders can affect the muscles. In addition, any injury can cause problems and affect the functioning of the muscles. Here are some common medical problems related to the muscles.
Chronic pain – fibromyalgia or any other kind of myalgia can cause chronic pain in your muscles.
Infections – there are multiple viral and bacterial infections that can cause damaging effects on the muscle fibers. The most common infections of the muscle fibers include malaria and Lyme disease.
Cardiovascular disorders – these disorders include multiple venous and arterial diseases. Commonly, it involves the blood vessels relevant to the heart. Moreover, myocardial infarction usually occurs because of weak muscles in different blood vessels.
Cancer – metastatic growths may arise in any muscle fibers leading to various muscle problems.
Genetic problems – muscular dystrophy is a common genetic disorder. This disorder is related to permanent muscle weakness.
Medications – there are different medicines that leave side effects on various muscles. Chemotherapy includes such agents that leave drastic effects on the muscles.
What are the common signs and symptoms of any muscle-related problems?
Muscle problems are associated with different signs and symptoms that indicate any disorder. Here are some common symptoms related to the muscles.
- Movement disorder
- Posture problems
- Disturbed balance level
- Difficulty in swallowing, shortness of breath, and other respiratory problems
- Muscle pain or cramps
- Twitching sensation in the muscles
- Muscle weakness or loss of mobility
- Paralysis
- Vision problems like double vision
- Drooping eyelids
- Tingling or numbness in the muscle
Sometimes, these symptoms are not indicative of any serious medical problem. Pain is usually relieved by taking enough rest and maintaining hydration. If any of these symptoms start suddenly and last longer, consult your healthcare physician. Sudden muscle weakness and mobility loss may indicate any serious understanding of medical problems.
Conclusion
Female muscle anatomy circulates about all the skeletal and smooth muscles present in the human body. In addition, there are also cardiac muscles present in the heart to maintain the rhythms of the heartbeat. There are almost more than 650 known muscles in the human body. Besides them, smooth muscles also perform functions in the form of specific body systems. Skeletal muscles mainly work to maintain movements and body posture. The brain and nerves coordinate with the muscular system to perform body movements to maintain a neuromuscular system.
Muscles are prone to multiple infectious and traumatic disorders. These disorders can disturb the normal functioning of the muscles. Moreover, any nerve injury can lead to severe muscle weakness or paralysis. If you suffer from such acute muscle weakness, consult for immediate medical care.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
Which muscle is the largest in the human body?
The gluteus maximus is the largest muscle in the human body. In addition, it is also a powerful muscle because it keeps the torso in an erect position. Moreover, this muscle also works against the gravity forces while moving upstairs.
Which is the smallest muscle in the human body?
The smallest muscle in the human body is connected to the smallest bone, the stapes, of the ear.
Which is the strongest muscle of the human body?
The strongest muscle, based on weight, in the human body is the masseter muscle. It is located inside the jaw to perform the movements of mastication while chewing food.
