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The Spine

11/24/2018

1 Comment

 
There are 33 vertebrae.
  • 7 cervical
  • 12 thoracic
  • 5 lumbar
  • 5 sacral
  • 4 coccygeal

The spine has curves.
  • cervical curve concave to the back
  • thoracic curve convex to the back
  • lumbar curve concave to the back
  • sacral/coccygeal convex to the back

We begin life with one curve - rounded, convex to the back of the body. This curve is known as a primary curve, and the thoracic & sacral/coccygeal curves are primary curves.

As we develop, we learn to hold our head up and develop a secondary curve at the cervical spine, and later we develop a another secondary curve in the lumbar spine.

The vertebrae are numbered from top to bottom with the first letter of the section C1 to C7, T1-T12, L1-L5.

The first two cervical vertebrae have special names.
  • C1 is the atlas. (named after Atlas)
  • C2 is the axis. It has a pivot point for C1 to rotate.

Variation happens, and it's very normal.
Sometimes there are more or less vertebrae.

Each Vertebra, All Your Vertebrae
One vertebra (short a)
​Two or more vertebrae (long a)
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1 Comment
Linda Bestor
11/30/2018 07:16:39 am

Thanks for keeping me on your email list. I enjoyed the review of the spine Jen!

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    Jen Wilking

    A student at heart, Jen is passionate about learning and sharing what she has learned to empower yoga students and teachers. Jen is a physical therapist, yoga therapist, and yoga teacher. She teaches at Kindness Yoga and practices physical therapy at Vernon Physical Therapy & Wellness.

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