Musculoskeletal Health
Holistic care for injuries, structural pain, and chronic issues
...everything, actually!
Musculoskeletal health is a huge topic - it's more than just muscles and bones! That's because every muscle is connected to the skeleton and to every other muscle via a complex system of connective tissue - so damage to your pinky toe has ripple effects all the way to your skull!
And not only that - your organs are all woven into this system too, via that same connective tissue! So the things that happen to your muscles and bones ripple through to the health of your organs, too.
But wait, there's more: your bones don't just hold your body up! They provide mineral storage to keep your heart functioning properly. They produce immune responder cells. They have a huge range of functions - they even produce hormones that are possibly more important than adrenaline in the stress response - whoa!
And your muscles don't just move you around - did you know that muscles are involved in blood sugar regulation and circulation of blood and lymph?
So whether you're recovering from a sports injury or dealing with a chronic disorder, it's important that we keep your muscles, bones, and connective tissue happy.
In this course, you'll learn how to:
🌿Choose the right herbs to help your musculoskeletal system function at its best.
🌿Choose the best herbs to recover from injury and damage to the system - tailored to your body and your situation.
🌿Identify the root causes of chronic musculoskeletal conditions and build holistic strategies to recover.
🌿Support acute and chronic issues in tandem with your conventional therapeutics - you don't have to choose one or the other, we can all work together!
🌿Create complete protocols for chronic structural pain - including herbs, holistic strategies, and even alignment!
This course includes over 21 hours of video instruction, as well as PDF handouts, quizzes and homework assignments, and more - plus weekly live Q&A webconferences where you can talk directly with Ryn and Katja.
Welcome to Musculoskeletal Health!
Live Q&A sessions twice a week!
Mountain Rose Herbs + Foster Farms discount codes
How to use this platform
The "What's New" button on your dashboard
How to use the Discussions feature
Meet our Friends!
Chatting in the Community Space
Use of Course Material (Intellectual Property)
Herbalism (and health!) is Bioregional
Herbalism (and health!) is Bioregional [audio]
Every Body is Different
Course Outline
Action Prompt: Plan Your Herbs!
Musculoskeletal Anatomy & Physiology
Musculoskeletal A&P
Musculoskeletal A&P [audio]
Mechanoreceptors & Breast Health
Hexagons are the Bestagons
Quick Guide: A&P
Movement as Physiology - & Getting More of it for Every Body
Movement as Physiology
Movement as Physiology [audio]
Sitting is the New Smoking...
Sitting Is The New Smoking [audio]
Motivating Movement
Motivating Movement [audio]
Quick Guide: Dynamic Movement
A&P / Movement Quiz
The Geometry & Physics of our Physiology
Alignment Introduction
Alignment Introduction [audio]
Neck & Shoulders
Neck & Shoulders [audio]
Pelvic Alignment, Calves, & Hamstrings
Pelvic Alignment, Calves, & Hamstrings [audio]
Knee & Foot Alignment
Knee & Foot Alignment [audio]
Katy Bowman on Alignment
Quick Guide: Alignment vs Posture
Investigating Cultural Movement Norms
Walking & Physiology
Walking & Physiology [audio]
Functional Movement
Functional Movement [audio]
"Appropriate" Exercise
"Appropriate" Exercise [audio]
Quick Guide: Movement vs. Exercise
Movement vs. Exercise Quiz
Inflammation & Healing
Musculoskeletal Inflammation
Musculoskeletal Inflammation [audio]
Managing Inflammation Checklist [printable]
Quick Guide: Inflammation
Inflammation Quiz
In addition to the videos, we provide features to accommodate all the different ways people like to learn, so you can internalize the information easily!
Lifetime access - so you can review the content as many times as you like, forever!
Weekly live Q&A sessions with Katja and Ryn - to ask your questions directly, live and in person! (They're even archived, in case you miss one!) This course has 6 months live Q&A support.
Ask questions anytime - we're always just a click away: you can ask any questions in the integrated discussion forum, and we're committed to personally answering your questions, usually within 24 hours
Printable PDF materials - if you like to follow the videos along on paper, or keep them handy for a quick reference
Downloadable MP3 files - so you can review the content while you commute, workout, garden, ... anytime!
This represents the actual time of video instruction and live Q&A, as well as the time allocated for your capstone assignment, quizzes, and other assignments & activities required for completion of the course.
It is reasonable to plan about twice that much time to complete the work: this is because most students like to watch the videos more than once, review their notes, and many students complete more than the required activities. You might also enjoy joining a study group in our Student Community, and you might choose to work on extra activities together as a group to help you internalize all that you've learned.
Regardless of how long it takes you, there is never any pressure! You have access to this material for life, and in fact, when we add updates and new materials, you receive it all for free, automatically!
If new material is added after you have received your certificate, we are happy to send you a new updated certificate to document the additional time when you complete the new material.
Two heads are better than one!
Katja & Ryn almost always teach together. They each have particular talents and areas of interest, and their perspectives on certain issues are quite different! Together, they convey a fuller picture of the realities of herbal theory & practice than either one could do alone.
Katja is an herbalist and teacher working to help people rebuild their relationships with their bodies and their own ability to heal. She’s been in practice over 25 years, but it all began with a desire to make her own “fancy tea” at home instead of paying high prices for imported blends at specialty stores. She’s kept that do-it-yourself ethic close to her heart.
Ryn has been a practicing herbalist since 2010. He came to herbalism by way of martial arts, where his first experiences with herbs were focused on getting back into the game and becoming more flexible, adaptable, and resilient. Passing that experience on to others is what keeps him motivated every day.
Together, Katja and Ryn teach everyone from children to elders, as well as pharmacy students from Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Northeastern University School of Pharmacy, where they both serve as associate faculty. Ryn and Katja are the authors of Herbal Medicine for Beginners, and the creators of the weekly Holistic Herbalism Podcast.
Teaching isn't just about conveying information - there's also an aspect of being someone's "cup of tea".
So we want you to take the first 14 days to really decide if you love it or not. If for any reason you feel like this program isn’t right for you - if we're just not your cup of tea - we’ll give you a full refund. You don't even need a reason - just please let us know within 14 days of purchase.