The Emerging Science
Discover the research and evidence behind Fascia & Movement that powers our life-changing techniques.
Origins of FST™
In 1995 at Arizona State University, Ann Frederick did a videographic research analysis with a PhD mentor in exercise science. She wanted to study the effects of manual, assisted stretching with subjects on a massage table.
One of their legs was gently restrained to prevent movement, so that she could use the straight leg raise test to measure outcomes due to stretching the hamstrings.
"Range of motion in the straight leg raise measurement increased from a low of 37% to a high of 52% (mean average 45%) with subjects in her PNF modified stretch group compared to controls."
FST got its start with an attempt to scientifically see if it made any sense or had any credibility. It obviously got off to a good start.
Fascia and Neuroscience
At the First Fascia Research Congress attended at Harvard Medical School in 2007, it was revealed that for hundreds of years, fascia was discarded as an annoying wrapping that got in the way of anatomy dissectors.
Today, the world of fascia research has turned our perceptions of body form, function, and physiology upside down. Fascia has become the new darling of science, with novel discoveries surfacing at a rapid pace.
- Only 20% of our proprioceptors are myelinated nerve endings in muscle and joints.
- The other 80% are free nerve endings found in the fascia and connective tissue.
- 90% of those connect to the insula cortex, fundamentally changing how we view movement re-education.
The Second Pillar
The Science of Postural Restoration
Why your body holds patterns it can't break — and how PRI changes the equation at the neurological root.
Founded 2000 · Ron Hruska, MPA, PT
Your Body Was Never Symmetrical
The Postural Restoration Institute® (PRI) begins with one foundational truth: the human body is inherently, predictably asymmetrical — and that asymmetry drives most chronic pain and movement dysfunction.
Your heart sits left of center. Your liver anchors the right side. Your right diaphragm has two crura; your left has one. These structural realities create predictable muscular dominance patterns that develop from birth and are reinforced thousands of times per day with every breath you take.
"Postural asymmetry is not a problem to be corrected — it is a biological reality to be managed. PRI gives clinicians the tools to do exactly that."
— Postural Restoration Institute®
The Zone of Apposition
Breathing as the Master Pattern
PRI places the diaphragm at the center of postural science. The Zone of Apposition (ZOA) — the dome-shaped region of the diaphragm apposed to the lower rib cage — determines whether you breathe efficiently or compensate with your neck, shoulders, and hip flexors.
When the ZOA is compromised, as it is in most people who sit for extended periods or train without postural awareness, the body recruits secondary muscles to assist breathing. Over 20,000 breaths per day, this locks in chronic tension throughout the neck, thoracic spine, and pelvis.
- Restoring ZOA mechanics decompresses the lumbar spine and relieves SI joint stress without manipulation.
- Proper diaphragmatic breathing resets the autonomic nervous system, reducing cortisol and pain sensitivity.
- PRI breathing drills have been shown to immediately alter hip range of motion without any manual tissue work.
Polyarticular Chain Theory
The Nervous System Chooses Patterns, Not Muscles
Traditional rehabilitation isolates individual muscles. PRI research challenges this entirely. The nervous system does not recruit individual muscles — it recruits polyarticular chains: coordinated sequences of muscles spanning multiple joints that produce movement and posture together.
When one link in the chain is overused — as is predictably the case with a dominant right hip flexor or left posterior thorax — the nervous system locks the entire pattern. Stretching a single muscle rarely produces lasting change because the pattern is neurological, not structural.
- PRI uses specific repositioning exercises to give the nervous system an alternative pattern — a new neurological "home base."
- Research shows PRI techniques alter pelvo-ocular reflexes, visual-vestibular integration, and even jaw and dental occlusion patterns.
- Athletes trained with PRI principles demonstrate measurable improvements in rotational power, deceleration mechanics, and injury resilience.
Where It All Comes Together
FST™ + PRI: A Complete System
Each modality is powerful on its own. Together, they create results that neither can achieve alone.
FST™ Works Outside-In
Structural · Fascial · Joint Capsule
Fascial Stretch Therapy addresses the connective tissue matrix that surrounds every muscle, joint, and nerve in the body. Through traction, oscillation, and circumduction of joint capsules, FST creates genuine structural slack — decompressing joint surfaces, hydrating fascial planes, and unlocking the mechanical restrictions that limit range of motion.
The result is immediate: clients leave sessions taller, looser, and with profound reductions in joint compression pain. But without addressing the neurological patterns that created those restrictions, the body tends to return to its habitual state within days.
PRI Works Inside-Out
Neurological · Breathing · Postural Pattern
Postural Restoration Therapy targets the neurological and respiratory drivers of chronic muscular tension. By restoring diaphragm mechanics and repositioning the pelvis and thorax out of dominant asymmetrical patterns, PRI resets the nervous system's baseline — giving the body a new postural "home base" it can return to automatically.
The challenge: PRI repositioning exercises require a degree of joint mobility and tissue extensibility to execute correctly. When fascial restrictions are present, clients struggle to access the positions needed to complete the neurological reset.
The Synergy
Why the Combination Produces Lasting Change
Step 1: Release
FST opens the fascial and joint capsule restrictions that prevent the body from accessing new movement. Tissue becomes receptive, joints decompress, and the nervous system down-regulates its threat response.
Step 2: Reposition
With tissue mobility restored, PRI repositioning exercises can now be performed correctly. The diaphragm resets, the pelvis and thorax move into balanced alignment, and the nervous system installs a new postural baseline.
Step 3: Retain
The neurological pattern installed by PRI anchors the range of motion gained through FST. Instead of tissue returning to its old state, the new mobility is "programmed in" — producing results that accumulate session over session.
FST clears the structural canvas. PRI rewrites the neurological program. Together, they address the two root causes of most chronic pain and mobility limitation — not just the symptoms. This is why clients who have tried years of massage, chiropractic, or conventional physical therapy often experience breakthroughs within their first few sessions at Equilibrium Fitness Solutions.
Art of manual therapy merged with science.
Science shows that the NeuroMyoFascial system must be incorporated for optimal results in pain management, rehabilitation and functional training. Stretch to Win - Fascial Stretch Therapy™ has evolved into a complete system successfully used in medical, fitness and sports facilities worldwide.