Our skeletal muscle is a fascinating biological tissue able totransform chemical

energy to mechanical energy. It is the most abundant tissue inthe human body

(40-45%) of total body weight and provides strength andprotection to the

skeleton.

1. Pick any musculoskeletal activity in daily life or sportand identify the main

muscles responsible for the movement and their roles in themovement

2. What are the typical types of fibers in these muscles, howare these fibers

organized and how does this architecture affect your selectedmovement from

a functional perspective?

3. What are the main factors that determine the forcegeneration in these

muscles?

4. How is the mechanical behavior of a single muscle fiber intension different

from the whole muscle? What is the functional value?

5. Do your selected muscles cross more than one joint? Whatare disadvantages

associated with muscles that cross more than one joint?

6. Draw a free body diagram for your movement and calculatethe muscular

strength of one of these muscles. What factors affect thismuscular strength?

You may make any assumptions as needed

7. Calculate the muscular power and muscular endurance. Again,make

assumptions as needed

8. Model the activity of one of your muscles using a musclemodel from the

slides or the Literature. Describe the role of eachelement

9. How are these muscles and thus the activity affected byage?

10. How are these muscles and thus the activity affected bypre-stretching and

exercise?