Skeletal Muscle is the only type of muscle which is voluntary, meaning we can consciously control its movements.
Everything from talking to walking requires skeletal muscles.
We can break voluntary muscles can be broken up into Fast and slow twitch fibres.
Skeletal
Muscle
Fast twitch fibres contract quickly, but are relatively inefficient in using oxygen, they also tire quickly.
Top sprinters, such as Usain blot, have more ‘fast twitch’ fibres than slow twitch.
Slow twitch fibres contract slowly, but use oxygen well and keep going for a long time. Endurance athletes tend to have more ‘slow twitch’ fibres than fast twitch.
There are 11 main voluntary muscles that you need to know. Scroll over each of them to see the muscle and its function
Lets take a deeper look at the triceps and biceps.
Each muscle compliments the other. Notice how one end of each muscle is attached to the scapula or humorous and the other is attached to the bones in the forearm. Yet only the forearm moves during the motion.
The area where the muscle is attached to a fixed bone is called the origin, in this case it would be the scapula or humorous.
The place where the muscle attaches and causes the bone to move is called the insertion. This is cause the bones in the forearm.
Most muscles come in pairs.
One muscle will contract to move in one direction, while other will contract to move in the opposite direction.
Such as triceps and biceps, or quadriceps and hamstrings.
The prime mover is called the agonist, while the relaxing muscle is called the antagonist.
