The Body Knows
The Body Knows is a podcast hosted by Leigh Ankrum, founder of the Ankrum Institute and a teacher of whole-body manual therapy. In short, clear conversations, she explores how the body actually heals. Episodes cover topics such as fascia, the nervous system, the body's pressure systems, movement, and the deeper patterns underneath pain. The show is for anyone who has sensed there is more to their symptoms than they were told. Listeners are invited to tune in and learn what the body is telling them.
Episodes
The Two Triangles That Hold You Up
Your neck is not what holds your head up. In this episode I introduce the two triangles the body actually stabilizes on: an inverted one whose point is the fourth thoracic vertebra, with sides running up to the base of the head, and an upright one that starts at the third lumbar vertebra and runs out to each hip joint and down the legs. I explain why the neck is for orienting rather than
Scars and Adhesions: Different Beginnings, Same Trouble
Scars come from a cut or an opening: the body sends fibers to stabilize the wound, and it keeps sending them long after. Adhesions start differently. Every structure in the body except unmyelinated nerves is wrapped in fascia, and when an organ or muscle stays in dysfunction long enough, that fascia changes from fluid to crystalline and sticks to its neighbor. In this episode I walk throu
Two Exercises for Real Pelvic Floor Tone
Most of the medical world hands women one answer for the pelvic floor: Kegels. But most pelvic floors are either far too tight or under-toned, and tightening everything at once helps neither. In this episode I share the two exercises I actually recommend: the elevator, where you tighten floor by floor from the perineum up to ten and come back down one floor at a time, and the one-opening-
How Your Ankle Actually Works
Your ankle is not the two bumps on either side of your foot. In this episode I walk through the mortise, the joint your two lower-leg bones form around the talus, and why it has to open a little on every single step you take. I explain what happens when the tibia and fibula freeze and stop opening, why the whole back of the leg then has to overstretch, why runners feel it most, how a half
The Central Chain: From Your Head to Your Pelvis
Everybody says the body is all connected — but what does that actually mean? In this episode I introduce the central chain: the line of fascial connections running from the top of your head, deep through the neck, to the heart, the liver, the small intestine, and down to the pelvic floor. I walk through why trouble in any one structure pulls on all the others, how the chain creates the fo
Learning to Read the Body: What Posture and Gait Reveal
When I look at a body — standing still or in motion — it tells me a story. In this episode I share how I read that story: the three things I'm looking for (position, mobility, vitality), why a high right shoulder usually points to the liver, what the arm swing and the stride reveal about the fascia underneath, and the quiet figure-eight the hips are meant to make when we walk. My hope is
Concussions Are Cumulative: What Most People Never Learn
Most people think a concussion comes from a hit on the head — but concussions can begin as early as birth, and each one adds to the ones before it. In this episode I walk through the many ways concussions happen, what concussive force actually does to the brain, the long list of symptoms it can create, and the story of a high-school football player whose life stopped after his fourth conc
Your Leg Actually Starts at Your Belly Button
Our bodies are designed to move with ease — but stress, repeated patterns, and hours of sitting slowly take that flow away. In this episode I look at how that happens, then walk through the way we're actually meant to sit down, stand up, and walk: folding from the tops of the legs, reaching for the chair with the sit bones, and letting each step begin at the level of the navel. A few smal
Dizziness, Headaches, and Your Body's Pressure
Your body is pressurized — from the top of your head to your pelvis, in cavities that all work in relationship to each other. When those pressures shift, it can show up as dizziness, headaches, shoulder pain, sluggish digestion, or ringing in the ears. In this episode I walk through what the pressure system actually does, a few simple things you can do for it yourself, and where a skilled
Understanding Fascia: The Body's Connective Web
In this episode of The Body Knows, I want to help you get to know fascia — the continuous web of connective tissue that surrounds every muscle, organ, nerve, and bone in your body. I walk through the three layers of fascia, the many roles it plays, and what happens when it becomes dehydrated or begins to adhere. My hope is that you come away seeing fascia the way I do: as one of the bigge
A Car Accident Affects More Than Your Neck
Almost everybody thinks a car accident is about what happens to your neck — but the effects reach much further than that. In this episode, I walk through what whiplash actually does to your jaw, your heart's pericardium, your diaphragm, your left kidney, and your brain, and why symptoms can keep developing long after the first day or two. Then I share what I'd suggest for the person who's
