what is the physiology behind muscle tension?

Question

is it something to do with the cross bridge cycle

when your muscle feel tense at rest

when your muscle feel tense at rest

Answer 1

Muscle tone (aka residual muscle tension or tonus) is the continuous and passive partial contraction of the muscles. It helps maintain posture and is often present during REM sleep.

Unconscious nerve impulses maintain the muscles in a partially contracted state. If a sudden pull or stretch occurs, the body responds by automatically increasing the muscle's tension, a reflex which helps guard against danger as well as helping to maintain balance.

Some present the idea that constant daily resistance training, or training at high intensities, will increase one's muscle tone, as the neurological system becomes more tense after constant exertion to stay in a state of greater readiness for the tension.

Physical disorders can result in abnormally low (hypotonia) or high (hypertonia) muscle tone.

The presence of near-continuous innervation makes it clear that tonus describes a "default" or "steady state" condition. There is, for the most part, no actual "rest state" insofar as activation is concerned

Answer 2

Stress.