Lesson: Muscle Recruitment Order

Lesson: Muscle Recruitment Order — Why Weak Muscles React First in Dysfunction

What Is Muscle Recruitment Order?

Your nervous system activates muscles in a specific order based on size & function, known as the Henneman Size Principle:

1. Small, slow-twitch (Type I) motor units fire first

2. Larger, fast-twitch (Type II) motor units are recruited only as needed

This makes your movement efficient & sustainable for long durations.

But Here’s the Twist in Tuite & Kyusho:

When force or sudden neurological input is applied (like a pressure point strike or lock):

• The natural recruitment order is disrupted

• Muscles may overfire, misfire, or inhibit

• Weak stabilizers (often smaller muscles) are confused or overwhelmed, leading to:

• Shaking

• Sudden collapse

• Loss of balance or posture

• Increased pain

Martial Arts Application:

When you:

• Strike a nerve-dense area like LI10

• Apply torque near a joint capsule

• Stimulate cutaneous and proprioceptive nerves simultaneously

You can override the normal recruitment pathway → resulting in instant dysfunction, even if the technique isn’t forceful.

This is why Tuite locks feel “weird” to the attacker — their brain is getting mixed recruitment signals & pulling back motor output to protect the joint.

Combine With:

• Progressive joint rotation to pre-exhaust stabilizers

• Cutaneous overload to confuse recruitment timing

• Angle-based resistance to “trick” the brain into wrong sequencing

Understand the Science. Master the Art! 🐼