Siksha Srijan Academy (MT) 2 Sem: Body Planes and Their Movements

Siksha Srijan Academy (MT) 2nd Sem
Body Planes and Their Movements

The planes of the body are anatomical concepts often used by health professionals to describe how
your body moves during exercise or other activities.You can visualize them as flat surfaces that
divide the body into front and back, side-to-side, and top to bottom. Knowing the different body
planes can be useful in designing your workout program to ensure you’re moving and strengthening
your body in all directions.
This article tells you all you need to know about the three planes of the body, their movements, and
other useful anatomical terms.
What are the 3 planes of the body?
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What movements happen in the coronal (frontal)
plane?
The coronal plane is often referred to as the frontal plane. This divides the body into
the front (anterior) and back (posterior) sections.
Movements that occur in the coronal (frontal) plane are lateral or side-toside. These
include:
• Abduction: moving your limbs laterally, away from the midline of the body
(e.g., lifting your leg to the side)
• Adduction: moving your limbs medially, toward the midline of the body
(e.g., lowering your arm down to the side of your body)
• Elevation: raising your scapula (shoulder blade) upward
• Depression: lowering your scapula (shoulder blade) downward
• Inversion of the ankle: sole of your foot turns inward toward the midline of
the body (a component of supination
• Eversion of the ankle: sole of your foot turns outward away from the body’s
midline (a component of pronation)
Using the glass sheet example, imagine you lift your arms out to the sides
(abduction). If there was a glass sheet, your arms would glide along it, meaning
you’re moving your arms along the coronal (frontal) plane.
However, if you were to lift your arm straight in front of you, it would “break” the
glass sheet, meaning you’re moving in a different body plane (the sagittal plane).
Moving in the coronal (frontal) plane is less common in day-to-day life. However,
it’s important to include some of these movements in your fitness routine. Examples
include jumping jacks, side lunges, side shuffles, side bends, and lateral arm and leg
raises.
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What movements happen in the sagittal (longitudinal)

plane?
The sagittal plane, also known as the longitudinal plane, divides the body into left
and right halves.
Movements that occur in the sagittal (longitudinal) plane involve forward and
backward movements. Our day-to-day activities usually occur in this plane since we
usually move by swinging our arms and legs in front of us.
The movements of the sagittal (longitudinal) plane include:
• Flexion: bending a limb to decrease the angle at a joint (e.g., lifting a

dumbbell during a bicep curl flexes the elbow)
• Extension: movement that increases the angle at a joint (e.g., lifting your leg
behind you when standing extends the hip joint)
• Dorsiflexion: bending the ankle so the top of the foot and your toes move
toward your shin
• Plantar flexion: bending the ankle so the foot pushes down and your toes
point away
Considering it’s one of the most common planes of motion, there are many exercises
that move in the sagittal (longitudinal) plane. Examples include bicep curls, forward
or reverse lunges, squats, deadlifts, walking, and running.
What movements happen in the transverse (axial)

plane?
The transverse plane, or the axial plane, divides the body into upper (superior) and
lower (inferior) halves.
Movements that occur in this plane involve rotation or horizontal movement, which
include:
• Rotation: rotating the torso or a limb around its vertical axis (e.g., turning
your head to the left or right)
• Horizontal abduction: moving the arm away from the midline of the body
when it’s at a 90-degree angle in front of you
• Horizontal adduction: moving the arm toward the midline of the body when
it’s at a 90-degree angle to the side
Besides turning your neck or slightly rotating your torso, movements in the axial
(transverse) plane are less common but do play an important role in certain
exercises and sports activities.
Examples of exercises in the transverse (or axial) plane include swinging a golf club
or baseball bat, seated hip abduction/adduction, chest flys, seated twists, or any
move that involves rotation of the torso.
What is anatomical position?

Anatomical position is a specific body position used when describing human
anatomy. It’s often used by healthcare professionals to help discuss parts of the body
in a clear and consistent manner.
To be in anatomical position, a person should be standing upright with their arms at

their sides and feet pointing forward. Their forearms should be supinated (turned
out) so that their palms are facing forward.
Anatomical terms are often based on their positioning or direction in relation to a

standard position. To ensure consistent communication and understanding, we base
all anatomical terms on a human body in anatomical position.
Anatomical direction terms

Most anatomical terms are based on location, size, or purpose. Though, it takes time
to learn what the terms mean and how they apply to movement or body positions.
To help, here are some common anatomical direction terms:
• Medial: movement toward the midline of the body

• Lateral: movement away from the midline of the body
• Proximal: in proximity or closer to (often with reference to the center of the
body or a specific extremity, i.e., the knee is proximal to the ankle)
• Distal: distant or further away (often with reference to the center of the body
or a specific extremity, i.e., the wrist is distal to the elbow)
• Superior (cranial): upper or above
• Inferior (caudal): lower or below
• Anterior (ventral): front of the body
• Posterior (dorsal): back of the body
Learning these terms can help you better understand movement patterns as well as
anatomy since these terms give “clues.” For example, you should now know that the
superior vena cava sits above the inferior vena cava.
Another example would be the serratus anterior, which suggests the muscle sits on
the anterior (front) side of the body. Finally, the vastus lateralis sits on the outside of
the quadriceps (thigh) while the vastus medialis sits on the inner part.
Body cavities
In addition to the body’s musculature, the body holds important organs — or viscera
— in various fluid-filled cavities or spaces to keep them safe.
The two main body cavities include the ventral and dorsal cavities. The ventral
cavity can be further divided into the thoracic and abdominopelvic cavity, which is
separated by the diaphragm.
Thoracic cavity
The thoracic cavity sits above the diaphragm and contains the lungs, heart,
esophagus, trachea, and various blood vessels and nerves.
Abdominopelvic cavity
The abdominopelvic cavity sits below the diaphragm and is usually divided into two
smaller cavities: the abdominal and pelvic cavities.
The abdominal cavity contains the digestive tract (small and large intestines),
kidneys, and adrenal glands.
The pelvic cavity contains most of the urogenital system and the rectum.
Dorsal cavity
The dorsal cavity is smaller than the ventral cavity but can still be divided into two
smaller sections: the cranial (upper) cavity and the spinal (lower) cavity.
The cranial cavity contains the brain while the spinal cavity contains the spinal
cord.
The bottom line

Whether we’re exercising or just doing our day-to-day activities, our bodies move in
many directions, along planes.
The three planes of motion include coronal (frontal), sagittal (longitudinal), and
transverse (axial) planes. These planes involve moving side-to-side, front and back,
or rotationally, respectively.
By learning the way our bodies move in relation to anatomical directions, you can
begin to better understand how the body works, and how to program effective
workouts to develop well-balanced strength.

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Siksha Srijan Academy (MT) 2nd Sem

Body Planes and Their Movements

What are the 3 planes of the body?

Share on Pinter est

What movements happen in the sagittal (longitudinal)

The movements of the sagittal (longitudinal) plane include:

• Flexion: bending a limb to decrease the angle at a joint (e.g., lifting a

What movements happen in the transverse (axial)

What is anatomical position?

To be in anatomical position, a person should be standing upright with their arms at

Anatomical terms are often based on their positioning or direction in relation to a

Anatomical direction terms

• Medial: movement toward the midline of the body

The bottom line

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