Fascia!
Your fascia is just reason #999 to stay well hydrated.
What is Fascia?
Fascia is all the rage/buzzworthy right now, but what exactly is your fascia? Short disclaimer: I’m not a medical professional, fitness expert, or fascia expert. Fascia gives you shape. I know you think it’s your bones, but your fascia surrounds all your bones, your organs, your muscles. It’s actually what keeps you upright.
It’s made up of ground substance, and that ground substance has collegen fibers and blood vessels — and a whole lot more. Click herefor a really deep dive into fascia (it’s fascinating!). I also highly suggest watching the Fuzz lecture here.
Your fascia actually gives your body feedback on your the state of your muscles, and is important in proprieception (figuring out where you are in time and space).
Makes sense that taking care of our fascia is important, right?
Ground Substance is thirsty
Ground substance is 70% water. Many liken it to a sponge, as you can see in this post here:
When a sponge dries out it becomes brittle and hard. It can easily be broken with only a little force because of how crispy it has become. However, when a sponge is wet and well hydrated it gets springy and resilient. You can crush it into a little ball and it bounces back. You can wring it and twist it, but it is difficult to break.
Hydration is important to your fascia, and once you’re dehydrated, it begins to stiffen and stick to itself — and you feel knots and stiffness, too. You can’t completely hydrate your fascia by drinking more, but good hydration is a good first step to keep your fascia happy.
Fascia is also hydrated by movement (this is where foam rolling can come in), although not by repetitive movement — like running — which is why cross training is so important. Running can be good for your fascia — but only running, not so much.
Rest is important too (you know I’m always harping on that!). Tom Myers, an expert on fascia and author of Anatomy Trains (Amazon Affiliate link here), writes:
The fascia gets temporarily weaker and then comes back stronger after a heavy workout. Always alternate work-outs with periodic rest to allow for maximum integration and strengthening of the fascial network.
You can also check out his YouTube channel here.
Coach Debbie @ Coachdebbieruns is a Fasical Stretch Therapist. Read her post hereabout how FST can make you a better runner (someday we’ll be able to do this again!).
Did you know what fascia is?
Are you more motivated to help your fascia stay happy?
What do you do when you feel stiff in the morning?
ICYMI: Feeling in need of a longer stretch after a run? When I shot my postrun stretch video for the 21 Day Yoga Challenge (sign up here), I went a little long on my first try. Like double the amount of time that short video should have been. When you have time to take more time stretching it out, try out my new Post Run Stretch Video here.
Chocolaterunsjudy 
Fill in the blank? Hydration is essential to life!
I’ll be stretching my fascia this weekend. It’s begging for it!
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Hydration + breathing, right?
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I’m not going to argue.
I’m sure water is good for you and your fascia.
Just never been a fan. Unless it is really hot and during a race.
Similar to how I feel about foam rolling and stretching.
I know I should but I don’t.
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Hydration doesn’t have to be water. Although alcohol doesn’t really work so well. 🙂
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True. I don’t drink anything all day long. Just one cup of coffee in the am and one glass of wine in the pm.
I feel good but I’m sure water would be better. Just don’t think of it.
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My mom is like that, although she does drink some tea. I would feel horrible if I had so little fluids.
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I doubt your mom is as active lol. I’ve just never been a drinker if it’s not very warm. I run my virtual halfs with nothing. I do miss race water stops.
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She’s definitely not as active as you. But she’s actually been a lot more active recently. For her. Which is great.
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That is great. I wish my mil would move more.
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We weren’t quite sure how it would go when my dad passed. Would she follow him quickly or not?
She’s doing so much better now. Walking more. Going outside more. With a mask, of course. Doing the online exercises they have there.
Before it was all about my Dad & going to doctors. Now if I can just figure out how to go. Where to find a clean bathroom.
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I guess you’ll have to stop all that hydration. Just kidding. Gloves Lysol mask. Stop at any gas station. Find a wooded area and pretend you’re doing a long run lol. Guys have it easy.
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Guys do have it easier (although he would definitely have a problem as well). Not sure I would trust a gas station to be clean. Never had to do that on a long run. We’ll see.
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That’s amazing that you’ve never had to go while running lol.
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Only in one race. Due to food poisoning, I think. And I’m always well hydrated too!
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So far, never in a race (not even during 26.2) . I do drink during a race depending on the water stops. So pretend you are running 18 miles during your visit to your mom lol
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That took less time than going to my moms would take, unfortunately (even thought it took a long time). Not just me either. At least the dogs just need grass (sometimes not even that).
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So interesting! Thank you for this, Judy.
I never knew how important hydrating, stretching and moving is to prevent fuzz from building up. I watched the Fuzz video where he mentioned that fuzz represents time. So true!
I clicked on your Post Run Stretch video link but unfortunately, the video is set to ”private”.
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Thanks for letting me know, Catrina! That is weird, because I know i scheduled it — it’s live now, anyway.
I knew movement was important for fascia, but I hadn’t really made the connection about how important hydrating was for it! Luckily I’m a good hydrator. 🙂
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Perfect, thanks! Works now! 🙂
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Hydration is key 😉 I hadn’t thought about it in relation to fascia, but that totally makes sense. When I first began my Invisalign treatment, I was worried my hydration would go down because I wasn’t allowed anything other than plain water (other than for meals, snacks, etc.). I used to drink flavored water round the clock because I’ve never like plain water. Much to my surprise, I think I’m actually drinking more water now days than ever before…apparently my fascia approves because I haven’t had any discomforts in a long time 😉
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Can you drink tea with the invisalign? I’m guessing not. I actually do like water, but I also really enjoy my tea so that would be hard (mostly herbal).
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Not only would tea (most likely) stain it, the heat would possibly melt it LOL I had to remove the trays for eating and drinking anything other than plain water. It’s not a big deal, just a slight inconvenience needing to brush/floss every time anything goes in my mouth. I’m done with the “straightening” treatment now, but have retainers to wear for awhile.
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Oh my! I never thought about them melting.
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I can always use more post run stretching. I will check out your video for sure. I drink water all day long ( and visit the bathroom all day) hydration is great for the skin too. I am taking a virtual fascia self massage class on Sunday w massage balls. I should have mentioned it to you sooner I bet you would like it. I will send you a link just in case via FB messenger.
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Thanks for the link, Deborah! I don’t think I’m going to be able to make it, but I’ve used massage balls before & really like them — of course I rarely actually make enough time for them.
I do tend to skip on post run stretching too — even though I know better!
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I only know what fascia is because I had plantar fasciitis. Not fun! Thanks for the explanation of fascia being like a sponge. It makes so much sense that hydration is important for fascia when you describe it that way.
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Well, to be fair, I didn’t come up with fascia being like a sponge. 🙂 I’ve known about fascia, kind of, but there’s just so much more about it than meets the eye!
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Happy fascia = happy life! I learned all about fascia and myofascial release years ago when I returned from a hamstring injury. Gotta keep moving, but in a variety of ways. It’s a fascinating balance.
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I agree — it really is a fascinating balance. Well, to some of us anyway. 🙂
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I found out first-hand about fascia when I had my first deep tissue massage on my IT band, years ago. I was literally in tears. Now I foam roll, do yoga, and get massages (under normal circumstances anyway).
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I really miss massages. I’m not even sure the place I went to will reopen — they were all subconractors.
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Great informative post, Judy! I’m lucky that I love water and drink it all day long. I drink a full glass as soon as I get up up in the morning. When I do let myself get dehydrated, I get a headache, but just as soon as I drink some water it goes away. About foam rolling… I haven’t used my roller since I got injured and haven’t been running regularly. I know I should be using it, but i just don’t think of it since it’s part of my post-run routine.
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I do warm lemon water first thing in the morning. I’ve also been making my own herbal teas, so I make a big thermos of that when I get up too. I’m very well hydrated — but I agree, I get headaches when I’m dehydrated too.
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I’ve always been a water drinker. I don’t know that I always drink enough though but it is usually my beverage of choice. But during this Quarantine I’ve been drinking a lot of juice ( my husband likes to buy orange juice)
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I used to be a big water drinker. Now I’m a big tea drinker — but mostly herbal, so that counts. 🙂
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Thank you for the informative post. I always try to be well hydrated.
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That’s great! Too many runners totally ignore hydration.
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