Large Intestine

General Characteristics

Organ / Meridian Muscle Group	General Bodily Area	Associated Tissue / Functioning	Associated Bodily System
Large Intestine (LI)	Outside of Arms, Neck, & Shoulders	Venous Blood Flow	Cardiovascular,Digestive

Meridian Muscle Group (MMG) Information

The Large Intestine MMG is a yang meridian in the upper body, traversing the anterior lateral aspect of the arms.

Large Intestine is balanced by Lung, a yin MMG that traverses the posterior medial aspectof the arms.

Kinetic Movement Pattern

Catching

Associated Ailments

Associated Physical Concerns

Elbow, neck, tennis elbow

Associated Injuries

Upper back, shoulder posture, swimmers shoulder, shoulder external rotation, shoulder dislocation, triceps strain, surfers elbow, carpal tunnel, stiff neck, head injuries

Physiological Concerns

Problems with elimination, raised and tensed shoulders, weak grip strength, venous blood flow problems, blood pressure irregularities, hypersensitive skin on top of feet, frozen shoulder, dehydration, water retention

Associated Illness and Disease

Large intestine problems, colds, colon, constipation, high blood pressure, parasites, toxic poisoning

Psychological Concerns

Frightened, obsessive-compulsive

Large Intestine Muscles

The following is a list of muscles associated with the Large Intestine meridian. Note that specific muscles are concomitant with specific meridians while some muscles are associated with several meridians. It is especially important to note that this list was created from: the exact muscles that acupuncture needles puncture through to access individual meridian points; muscles that are along the meridian pathways; muscle group agonist and antagonists; stretching experiences; trigger point theory and practice; muscle synergists.

Major Muscle Groups

Upper trapezius, levator scapula, posterior deltoid, levator labii superioris, supinator,extensor pollicis longus, extensor pollicis brevis, extensor carpi radialis, extensor retinaculum, adductor pollicis, dorsal interosseous, extensor indicis, extensor carpi radialius longus, extensor carpi radialis brevis, abductor pollicis longus

Large Intestine(TARGET) and Lung(BAL.) Meridian Muscle Groups

Large Intestine Meridian

Large Intestine and Lung Meridians

Meridian Muscle Group Relationships

These are the balancing, opposing, and completing meridian muscle groups for the Large Intestine meridian muscle group (MMG).

Balancing	Opposing (Superficial)	Opposing (True)	Completing
Lung	Pericardium	Kidney	Stomach

Visualizing Your Muscle Groups

There are a large number of muscles in your body. Is there a way to think about them or visualize them in a way that makes them easy to understand? Of course. Here’s how.

Think of your body as eight cylindrical tubes, four stacked on top of each other, or sixteen half tubes. In your lower and upper body, there are tubes on the front, back, outside, inside and on the four angles in between. Each of those eight cylindrical tubes contain muscles in groups that go from your feet into your trunk and head, or from your arms into your face or trunk. Well, it just so happens that each of those tubes is also exactly where the meridians are in TCM! So each major muscle group is concomitant with one meridian in TCM.

Balancing Muscle Group

Balancing muscles are located directly through the bone across from each other and have opposite directions of action. In Western anatomy, these same muscles are called agonist and antagonist of one another. Because the sixteen meridian muscle groups balance as eight pairs of muscle groups, they are called Balancing Meridian Muscle Groups. The balancing muscles are dependent on each other to make possible maximum shortening and lengthening movements, because as one side of the body shortens the other lengthens. But because both the strengthening and stretching of any muscle depends on the flexibility of its balancing muscle, the balancing muscle group is always the determining factor in developing the strength and flexibility of the muscle (assuming there is no unusual damage to the muscle group you are trying to strengthen or stretch).

The Large Intestine MMG is a yang meridian in the upper body, traversing the anterior lateral aspect of the arms.

Large Intestine is balanced by Lung, a yin MMG that traverses the posterior medial aspectof the arms.

The stretch length of the Large Intestine MMG is limited by its balancing muscle group's ability to shorten (Lung). Stretching the balancing muscle group increases its ability to both shorten and lengthen.

The target muscle group (Large Intestine) will stretch more successfully after the balancing muscle group has been stretched. If you still are not making optimal flexibility gains in the Large Intestine MMG, you will need to stretch and strengthen the superficial opposing muscle group (Pericardium).

Aspect of Body

Upper
Body

Target and Balancing MMG

Upper
Body

Opposing Muscle Group

The muscles that are perpendicular to one another are called opposing muscle groups (to be distinguished from balancing muscle groups that are located directly through the bone across from each other and have opposite directions of action). The action of opposing muscle groups is surprising. Their level of strength and flexibility govern the proper rotation of the muscle group that you are stretching. If your target muscle being stretched (Large Intestine) does not increase in flexibility by stretching its balancing muscle group (Lung), then you'll need to stretch the opposing muscle groups.

Stretch the superficial opposing MMG (Pericardium) to troubleshoot the target muscle group (Large Intestine). Stretch the true opposing MMG (Kidney) to develop the high personality traits necessary for optimal Large Intestine functioning and development.

Target and
Superficial Opposing MMG

Upper
Body

True Opposing MMG

Lower
Body

Completing Muscle Group

Completing muscle groups are the 'top' for lower body muscle groups and the 'bottom' for upper body muscle groups. The Large Intestine MMG traverses the anterior lateral aspect of the legs and its completing MMG, Stomach, traverses the anterior lateral aspect of the arms.

Target MMG

Upper
Body

Completing MMG

Lower
Body

Energy Flow Trellis

In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), energy flows from one meridian muscle pathway to the next in a very specific order. In TCM this order is called the 'energy cycle'. This order is determined by the depth of the muscles in the body and begins with the muscles associated with the gall bladder, with the next always being its balancing muscle group, in this case liver, and then on through all the rest. The cycle always includes two lower body, then two upper body meridian muscle groups, and then repeats two more of each. Ultimately all 16 have been completed.

In the energy trellis diagram, the horizontal pairs are balancing organs in Traditional Chinese Medicine, and they are also balancing muscle groups. The diagram also houses other secrets about the interrelationships of muscles, organs, and personalities. The stretches directly above and below each other are completing meridian muscle groups, the same muscle groups above and below in your body. The stretches diagonal from each other aresuperficial opposing meridian muscle groups. The superficial opposing muscle group's completing muscle group is the true opposing muscle group.

Large Intestine Personality Type

The Genius of Perfection and Completion

High and Low Personality Traits

High Psychological Traits	Low Psychological Traits
AmbitionCompleting, perfecting, idealistic, fair, principled, serene, resolved	Obsessive-CompulsiveHypercritical, controlling, procrastinating, stoic, manic

High Emotional Traits	Low Emotional Traits
FriendshipI have many friends.	DepletedI am not ambitious for myself.

High Spiritual Traits	Low Spiritual Traits
FairnessI strive to be fair.	ObsessedI can't control my obsessions.

Personality Group: Spiritual

Instinct	Time Reference	Awareness	Function
Moral / Amoral	Relative	Alive / Suffering	Reactive

via: The Genius of Flexibility.