Anatomy Bites Podcast

What did you think we were gonna say? SMH. Today's episode is all about the mighty shoulder abductors! It's a David vs. Goliath showdown between the deltoids and...you guessed it (or did you?!)... supraspinatus! Come on down to AB town for this next episode chock full of a double trouble episode for those O's, I's, and A's!

AB's back...back again! Y'all, we are excited to return with an all-new episode of Anatomy Bites. Today's episode features an exciting foursome: the quadriceps! Dive in deep or stay for just a bite of Os, Is, and As... your good old favorite origins, insertions, innervations, and actions of the rectus femoris, vastus medalis, vastus intermedius, and vastus lateralis. Stick around at the end to lea...

The trapezius is one of the most talked about muscles and, yet, is so often misunderstood. Tune in to learn more about scapulohumeral rhythm, force couples, and the OIAs (origins/insertions/innervations/actions) of this muscle. Nik also gives her hot takes on training the upper traps, and on burritos and friends.

In this episode, Nik discusses graduation and life after physical therapy school followed by a deep dive into the deep core. Learn about how the transverse abs go way beyond being one of the body’s primary stabilizers. The Soda Can Model and a touch of respiration mechanics 101 kick off the inaugural episode of Anatomy Bites’ fourth season. And of course, what would the AB be without a healthy dos...

In this episode, Nik returns on graduation eve to deliver tried and true tips for how she passed the National Physical Therapy Exam on the first try. Don’t freak out, we’re here for you! You got this, bb. From exam prep materials to structuring time to controlling test day jitters, Nik’s here to help you put your best foot forward in the quest to be ONE and DONE.

What’s in a name? Well, a lot apparently. Learn about the sisters of the adductor group, the Adductor Longus and Brevis, and their cousin Pectineus, and why communication about this area has to be crystal clear to avoid a whole lot of awkward conversation. Origins, insertions, innervations, and actions included — of course!

Welcome back to the Bites! Nik takes us on our inaugural journey of 2022 with Big Baddie Addy. Find out why this muscle is the rockstar of the adductor group, why soccer players need strength here, and how AdMag doesn’t need help doing the heavy lifting of three muscles. Origins, insertions, innervations and actions are just the beginning.

In this episode, Nik reveals a candid struggle with finding the right learning technique as a grad student. She discusses visual vs. kinesthetic. vs. auditory learners and how she finally found the optimal study tool for her during COVID. Zoom-School was finally good for something! Womp Womp. Listen and learn how she figured out how to learn… right at the end of her graduate school career (Doh!) …...

The Bites are back, bishes, and we’re coming in strong with fibularis longus and brevis. Nik talks origins, insertions, innervations, and actions of these lateral leg muscles. She discusses why crural is a ridiculous word along with how the peroneus longus works with tibialis posterior in a very functional way! Gait and pronation go hand in hand (err.. foot?) with this discussion as well as a move...

Join Nik as she reports back from the trenches of her first two weeks in the clinic! As a 3rd year DPT student, she already has some clinical pearls or life lessons to impart from her first full-time clinical experience. Her top two pieces of advice are condensed in a bite-sized chunk, and one of them may surprise you! We’ll be back with more anatomy in the next episode! This episode is recommende...

Love crunching numbers? Maybe physical therapy should be on your list of career choices... Join Nik as she explains how physical therapy is as much a science as it is an art. Learn how PT is more than cool exercises... it’s fun for data nerds as well. The scientific method is alive and well when you consider how each patient is a living experiment. Learn about how research and outcome measures are...

On the inaugural episode of Nik’s 3rd year of PT school, she shares the OIAs of 3 muscles that (after all the cadaver labs in year 1) continue to elude her. The deep posterior leg muscles (Tom, Dick, and Harry, or is it Dick, Tom, Harry?!) seem to somehow end up in a game of Twister in her mind. If Post Tib, FHL, and FDL trip you up too, you’re not alone. She also discusses how first year students...

Baby pack much back? Or is it just that tiiiight anterior pelvic tilt? Find out why your big butt might just be a short 1/4 of the quadriceps. Hate to break it to you that your quads may be behind the sway in your lumbar lordosis. Get Nik’s take on the red screen Silhouette Challenge on TikTok and how we’re all going to end up with low back pain if we keep using spinal curves to compensate for a t...

Sternocleido-who? SCM is a pain in the neck. Problems with this muscle affects everyone from the teeniest of babies to your Grandma who plays too much Candy Crush on her iPhone. Join Nik as she discusses origins, insertions, innervations, and actions of the two-headed beast in the front of your neck that hangs out with forward head posture, torticollis, and vigorous inspiration in Chronic Obstruct...

Join Nik for a meaty episode about the hamstring muscle group (Biceps femoris, Semitendinosus, and Semimembranosus). Here she gives real world examples from her days of teaching yoga on how "tight" hamstrings are making it hard to touch your toes in Forward Fold and why you don't need straight knees in Down Dog. Lastly, Nik gives another biomechanics lesson on muscle contractions (concentric, isom...

Today, Nik dives in DEEP... errr, and superficial on the posterior tibia to talk about all things gastrosoleus. She reviews dorsiflexion vs. plantarflexion, touches on the talocrural joint, and enters the wild world of passive insufficiency vs. active insufficiency with a live demo that you can follow along to feel it in your own body. Join the fun, and try not to give yourself a cramp in the calv...

In a totally appropriate, clinically-relevant way (obvi)! Join Nik as she talks ankles! The mortise joint ... also known as the joint that we all have upset at some time or another in our lives. Learn about the attachments and stabilizing structures of the TC joint as well as ways to make studying the ankle-foot complex less daunting.

Nik's baaaaack and talking about joint capsules, as promised!  Specifically, the GH aka glenohumeral joint capsule is making its debut on the show.  Learn how the capsule does and doesn't protect this joint and what happens when it fails.  A little tissue mechanics, a little anatomy, and a whole lot of rotator cuff stuff included in today's episode.  And let's not forget ligame...

Nik shares thoughts on being ok with being "good enough," battling perfectionism, and being a PT student during COVID.  She provides advice on checking in with your study habits and offers an interesting twist to being a better student in the virtual learning "Zoom school" era.  

TFL (aka tensor fasciae latae) isn’t your next order at Starbucks (although that's a pretty great meme if you've ever seen it).  It’s an important muscle of the hip.  But what does it do?  To find out tune in…discover where it starts, where it goes, and what it does in today’s anatomy bite.  Also, Nik shares an embarrassing story about TFL that you may not want to miss, involving a real life examp...

Today, we discuss the origins, insertions, innervations, and actions (OIAs) of the Psoas major and Iliacus (aka Iliopsoas), as well as their little buddy, Psoas minor.  These muscles span a big range, from the lumbar spine to the pelvis and femur.  Which ones act on the spine, which ones act on the hip?  To find out tune in…discover where they start, where they go, and what they do in today’s anat...

Today, we discuss the origins, insertions, innervations, and actions (OIAs) of the Gemelli TWINS and their cousin QF (Gemellus superior, Gemellus inferior, and Quadratus femoris).  These muscle are primarily hip rotators.  Find out what else they do in today’s anatomy bite. Contact me on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter:  @nikkidashrae Links to some of resources that may enhance the material in thi...

Today, we discuss the origins, insertions, innervations, and actions (OIAs) of obturator internus.  This muscle is a rotator of the hip and makes up part of the pelvic floor.  Find out what else it does in today’s anatomy bite. Contact me on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter:  @nikkidashrae Links to some of resources that may enhance the material in this episode: 5’6” Skeleton Model:  https://amzn.t...

Ahh, piriformis. You little stinker. Yoga teachers, fitness instructors, and trainers love to blame for this guy for so much… piriformis syndrome, for starters.  Today, we discuss the origins, insertions, innervations, and actions (OIAs) of this pyramid-shaped muscle.  Is pigeon pose going to cure all your piriformis ailments?  Let’s take a looksy. Contact me on Instagram/Twitter/Facebook:  @nikki...

The littlest of the glutes still deserves its day to shine.  Gluteus minimus gets the spotlight today.  Learn about the deepest of the glute muscles, including origins, insertions, innervations, and actions (the OIAs).  Play this recording to supplement your learning in your anatomy class or to simply nerd out on the wee glute. Contact me on Instagram/Twitter/Facebook:  @nikkidashrae Links to some...