Muscles of the Human Body

Muscles of the Human Body

What are Muscles?

Muscles are a form of soft tissue and make up the bulk of the fleshy part of most animals including humans. All muscles have attachments and are capable of contraction; Contraction simply means that the muscle is getting tighter or shorter. Although all muscles contract, there are a vast variety of muscles in terms of their shape, size and function. For example, most muscles come in pairs, one on the right side of the body and one on the left however the diaphragm does not meet this rule. The diaphragm is the main muscle that facilitates healthy breathing. Some muscles are postural - helping to keep the body upright - whilst others are used for specific functions such as muscles that allow us to form fascial expressions such as shock or delight.

How Many Muscles are there in the Human Body?

It's hard to define exactly how many muscles there are in the human body because it largely depends on how they are classified. For example, the psoas muscle (which is a deep hip flexor) can be split up into the psoas major and psoas minor. By some counts, there are over 600 muscles in the body however this list contains 281 of the muscles most commonly referred to. Over time we will be adding more information for each of the muscles listed, starting with the larger, more obvious ones and slowly working in towards the smaller more obscure ones. Please check back regularly for updates.

Featured Muscles

The Full List of Muscles