Understanding the Human Body Muscular System
Name
Date
The Muscular System
Far Out Fac: The longest muscle in
your body is the sartorius, which begins at your
hip and stretches clear down to knee. your
Webwise: http://howstuffworks.com/muscle
A muscle is an
organ that contracts and expands, creating movement. In your body, there
are more than 600 muscles. Some of your muscles are very large and others are very small.
Muscles not only help you move, but they also help give your body shape and produce heat in
your body. Every minute of the day and night there are always some muscles moving in your
body.
There are two main
groups of muscles-the voluntary muscles and the involuntary
muscles. Voluntary muscles are muscles that you control consciously (in other words, you think
about when and how to move them). The
involuntary muscles are those that work automaticaly
(you don't have to think about them).
Look at each muscle listed below. Think about whether they move by themselves, without
you having to think about it,or if they move because your brain tells them to. Put a "V" by those
thatare voluntary and an " by those that are
involuntary.
1. heart 2. finger muscles
3. leg muscles 4. lungs
5. arm muscles 6 back muscles
7. stomach muscles 8 intestinal muscles
9. neck muscles . 10. eye muscles that make you blink
11. Can you think of some muscles that sometimes work on their own, but which you can also
choose to control for a time?
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Understanding the Human Body Muscular System
Name: Date
What Makes a Muscle?
Far Out Fact: When you take one step forward, you use over 200 muscles
Use the words in the box to fill in the blanks in this information about the makeup of
muscles.
oxygen cells tendons organ
fibers bones myosin
signals sliding vessels
Muscles are just like any other. because they are made up of
groups of and tissue working together. The basic muscle cell has two
types of protein filaments called actin and - When a muscle is at work,
these two filaments are. - past each other.
Muscles have nerves through which they receive. from the brain
to move.They also have blood- . in them, through which they can receive
the water, food, and - they need to stay alive.
Bundles of muscle cells (sometimes called muscle -)are grouped
together, surrounded by connective tissue.
Muscles are attached to the with strong, stretchy bands of tissue
called.
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Understanding the Human Body Muscular System
Types of Muscle Tissue
Far Out Fact:
Eye muscles move more than anv other muscle... maybe more tnan
100,000 times a day.
Webwise: www.innerbody.com (click the muscular
on
system)
There are three types of muscle tissue in
your body.
Skeletal muscles: These muscles move bones. Thev are attached to the bones with tendons
(thick bands of tissue). They are the voluntary muscles (that you choose to move). Ihey are
the most common type of muscle in your body. Under look striated (or
a microscope, they
striped). Ihey contract and relax quickly. Blood vessels bring them oxygen and food, and nervees
connect to them to bring them the messages from brain about when and how to
your move
Smooth muscles: They are involuntary (work automatically). They are found in the walls of
many of your organs, such as your intestines and blood vessels, and in your skin. They move
the organs as needed. They contract and relax slowly. They are not striated. They are thin
muscles. They have a nucleus in the middle of each cell.
Cardiac Muscles: This type of muscle is found only in the heart. It is involuntary (works on its
own). Like skeletal muscle, it has striations, but the cells weave together a little differently. This
type of muscle contracts nonstop all day and night for your whole life.
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Understanding the Human Body Muscular System
Name Date:
Muscle Up!
Far Out Fact: The largest muscle in your body is the gluteus maximus (in your
buttocks).
Under each heading in the chart, list muscles in your body that are that type.
Skeletal Muscles Smooth Muscles Cardiac Muscles
1. 1.
2. 2
3
. 4
5. 5
Why is it a good thing that not all of your muscles are voluntary?
REST STOP
5 MILES
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Understanding the Human Body Muscular System
Move Those Muscles!
Far Out Fac:The smallest
ear.
muscle in vour body is the stapedius, which is inside your
So.Just how do all those skeletal muscles help our bodies move?
A Skeletal muscle is
hooked to a bone in two places. At one end, called the
muscle is hooked origin, the
directly
to the bone. At the other
end, called the insertion, the muscle is
attached to the bone with a tendon-a
very strong, stretchy band of tissue, sort of like a thick
rubber band.
Muscles can't push, they only pull. Muscle movement always happens with pairs of
muscles, pulling in opposite directions. Here's
what happens when you bend your am.
Your brain sends a signal to
your arm muscles.
The cells in your muscle use
chemical energy from the food Tiny fibers slide past each other
you eat to make them contract
like a sliding door.
and then relax.
When you bend your arm:
The muscle on your upper arm
The muscle on the underside
contracts. The tendon attaching it of your arm relaxes,
to your bone stretches to allow it getting
longer and thinner. The tendon
to shorten.
shortens.
When you straighten your arm:
The muscle on your upper arm The muscle on the underside
relaxes, getting longer of your arm contracts,
getting
and thinner. shorter.
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