1.

PROPRIOCEPTION
Even with your eyes closed, we have a sense of body position- where are arms and legs are, for
example, and that we are moving them. Muscles, tendons, joints and the inner ear contain
proprioceptors, also known as stretch receptors, which relay positional information to our brains. Our
brains then analyze this information and provide us with a sense of body orientation and movement.

For these two activities, you & your partner will take turns. Person 1 will read and explain the
procedure to person 2 and then you will switch off.

Activity 1: Finding Fingertips

Close your eyes and raise both hands above your head. Keep the fingers of your left hand totally still
(no wiggling!). With your right hand, quickly touch your index fingertip to your nose, then quickly bring
that fingertip back up and touch your left thumb. Quickly repeat this process (nose, finger, nose,
finger, etc.) while attempting to touch each of the fingers on your left hand in succession.

After you have touched all five fingers of your left hand with your right index fingertip, switch hands
and try again.

Now that you completed this activity with both hands, repeat the whole process but this time, wiggle
the fingers that stay in the air while your other hand goes from your nose to each finger and back to
your nose.

Answer these questions on your Lab Answer Sheet:

How successfully did you find each fingertip? Was there a difference when different
hands were used? Was there a difference when you “wiggled” the fingers in the air?

Activity 2: X marks the Spot

Mark an “X” on a piece of paper. Keep the paper on the desk in front of you. Pencil in hand, raise
your hand above your head, close your eyes and make a dot as near as possible to the “X.” Open
you eyes and check your success. Raise your hand above your head, close your eyes, and attempt to
make a dot closer to the “X.” Do this several times. Repeat with your eyes open.
Answer this question on your Lab Answer Sheet:
What did you observe through this process?

Activity 3: Handwriting Analysis

On a sheet of lined paper, write the word “muscle.” Place your pencil on the same line next to the
written word, close your eyes, and write “muscle” again.
Answer this question on your Lab Answer Sheet:
What difference, if any, do you see between the two words?

What’s Going On?

You are using proprioceptors in your muscles, tendons and joints to judge your body position in all of
these activities. Since most of us are highly dependent on visual cues for judging distance, position,
etc. proprioception is not enough to give us the fine detail of position, such as needed to complete
these activities accurately. Wiggling your fingertips in the first activity provides additional information
to your brain which helps us correctly locate our fingers in space. You may notice that with repeated
trails one can learn to complete the activities more successfully, and visual cues, such as looking at
the position of the “X” between trials, helps us to adjust our movements to complete the task. Most
people find that vision is not an important cue in reproducing written words, because we are used to
the “feel” of writing provided by proprioceptors in our hands and fingers.
2. OBSERVATIONS OF YOUR MUSCLES
*Be sure to write answers to questions on your Lab Answer Sheet

Activity 1: Muscle Action

Place your fingers along the angle of your jaw just in front of your ear. Grit your teeth and observe
what happens to your muscles when they contract.
1) What do you observe? (write answers to questions on your Lab Answer Sheet)

With the thumb and little finger of one hand, span the opposite arm’s biceps (front muscle of the
upper arm) from the elbow to as close to the shoulder as possible. Bend the arm and observe the
change in the length of the muscle.
2) What do you observe? (write answers to questions on your Lab Answer Sheet)

Wrap a strip of paper around your relaxed upper arm and mark the circumference of your arm on the
paper. Clench your fist tightly and mark the new circumference on the paper.
3) What do you observe? What is the difference as measured in centimeters? (write answers
to questions on your Lab Answer Sheet)

Activity 2: Tonus
The muscles of the body are normally in a state of continual and mild contraction. This is known as
muscle tone or tonus, and can be detected by feeling a slight rigidity of the muscle. Palpate muscles
(feel or massage) in the different regions of your body to detect the presence of tonus.

Tonus is concerned with the maintenance of body posture. While sitting erect, relax the abdominal
muscles.
4) What is the effect on posture of voluntarily relaxing these muscles? (write answers to
questions on your Lab Answer Sheet)

Next, observe the position of the mandible when it is allowed to fully relax. Hint: What usually
happens to your mouth when you fall asleep while sitting up?
5) When the mandible is fully relaxed, what is its position?
6) Explain how tonus is concerned with the posture of the jaw when one is conscious and
alert?
7) When do you think tonus is normally at a minimum?
Activity 3: Isotonic and Isometric Contractions
8a) Explain what isotonic contractions and isometric contractions are. (Look this up in your
book, don’t ask your teacher!)
8b) Give two examples for each type of contraction.
9) What is the advantage of isometric exercise?
10a) What is the main advantage of isotonic contractions?
10b) What impact does it have on cardiac and skeletal musculature?

Activity 4: Fatigue
Fatigue is a state of loss of excitability of a muscle or a group of muscles. Physiologists also
recognize psychological fatigue. Holding a heavy object can induce fatigue. Your textbook will be a
perfect tool to help illustrate this concept! This is a timed exercise so have your partner get the
stopwatch ready. Grasp your textbook between the fingers and thumb (fingers should be superior to
the thumb; thumb should be inferior to the fingers).
Extend the arm laterally (START TIME) and as soon as your arm sinks half way down, STOP the
time.
11) How long were you able to keep your arm holding the textbook extended?
12a) If a tourniquet was placed on your upper arm prior to the activity, how do you suppose
depletion of the blood supply would affect your endurance?
12b) WHY?
13) Indicate two factors which can contribute to fatigue and how do they contribute?
Activity 5: Effect of Fatigue on Muscle Action
Look at the following data collected when a student opened and closed a clothespin with their thumb
and index finger for 10 trials, each trial lasting 20 seconds. Each trial was conducted in quick
succession without a break or rest.

Effect of Fatiugue on Muscle Action # closures / 20

TRIAL sec.
50 1 42
closures per 20 second
Number of clothespin

40 2 38
3 41
30
4 36
trial

20
5 34
10 6 32
0 7 31
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8 31
Trial Num ber 9 29
10 28

14) What effect did fatigue have on the action of this person’s hand muscles?

Activity 6: Muscle Sounds

Some muscle, such as the masseter (cheek) and the biceps bronchii, emit detectable sounds on
contraction. These sounds can be heard in a perfectly quiet area (step just outside the room) when a
stethoscope is placed over the area of the muscle. The stethoscope can be placed over the side of
the face at about the region of the third molar (last tooth). You may also use the biceps of the anterior
portion of the upper arm. Place the stethoscope on your upper arm where the muscle forms a bulge
as you flex your arm. Each student should attempt this observation, taking note of the frequency of
the sounds and whether or not the quality of the sound changes as these muscles are intensely
contracted.
15) Describe what it sounds like to you.
16) Did you notice any difference in the sounds made by the cheek muscle as compared to the
biceps?
17) Explain why sounds are made when muscles contract.
Activity 7: Cool!
Stand in the doorjamb and stand straight. Abduct your arms until they hit each side of the doorjamb.
Push with both arms as firmly as you can for 1 minute. Immediately after the time has elapsed, step
into the classroom and consciously relax. THIS EXPERIMENT WILL NOT WORK IF YOU
CONSCIOUSLY OVERRIDE THE EFFECTS OF THE ARM AT COMPLETE REST!
18) What happened when you stepped into the room and relaxed?
19) Explain why this type of reaction occurred? What caused it?

Activity 8: Effect of Temperature on Muscle Action

Count the number of times you can make a fist in 20 seconds. Start with your hand completely
outstretched and make a tight fist each time. Do it as rapidly as you can. Record the count in Figure 1
on your Lab Answer Sheet.

Now submerge your hand in a bucket of ice water and leave it there for one full minute.

Remove your hand and immediately count how many forceful fists you can make in 20 seconds.
Record your data in Figure 1.
20) What conclusions can you draw?
MUSCLE LAB ANSWER SHEET Name ________________________
Period _______Date ____________
1. PROPRIOCEPTION
Activity 1: Finding Fingertips
How successfully did you find each fingertip?

Was there a difference when different hands were used?

Was there a difference when you “wiggled” the fingers in the air?

Activity 2: X marks the Spot

What did you observe through this process?

Activity 3: Handwriting Analysis

What difference, if any, do you see between the two words?

2. OBSERVATIONS OF YOUR MUSCLES

Activity 1: Muscle Action
1) What do you observe?

2) What do you observe?

3) What do you observe? What is the difference as measured in centimeters?

Activity 2: Tonus
4) What is the effect on posture of voluntarily relaxing these muscles?

5) When the mandible is fully relaxed, what is its position?

6) Explain how tonus is concerned with the posture of the jaw when one is conscious and alert?

7) When do you think tonus is normally at a minimum?

Activity 3: Isotonic and Isometric Contractions

8a) Explain what isotonic contractions and isometric contractions are. (Look this up in your book, don’t ask
your teacher!)

8b) Give two examples for each type of contraction.

9) What is the advantage of isometric exercise?

10a) What is the main advantage of isotonic contractions?

10b) What impact does it have on cardiac and skeletal musculature?

Activity 4: Fatigue
11) How long were you able to keep your arm holding the textbook extended?

12a) If a tourniquet was placed on your upper arm prior to the activity, how do you suppose depletion of the
blood supply would affect your endurance?

12b) WHY?

13) Indicate two factors which can contribute to fatigue and how do they contribute?

Activity 5: Effect of Fatigue on Muscle Action

14) What effect did fatigue have on the action of this person’s hand muscles?

Activity 6: Muscle Sounds

15) Describe what it sounds like to you.

16) Did you notice any difference in the sounds made by the cheek muscle as compared to the biceps?

17) Explain why sounds are made when muscles contract.

Activity 7: Cool!
18) What happened when you stepped into the room and relaxed?

19) Explain why this type of reaction occurred? What caused it?

Activity 8: Effect of Temperature on Muscle Action

Figure 1:
Temperature Number of Fists
Normal
Ice Water

20) What conclusions can you draw?