Massage.
MuscleThighdeepBeyond Cert IVDraft

Vastus intermediusMusculus vastus intermedius

Deep quadriceps muscle lying on the front of the femur under rectus femoris, which straightens the knee.

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LatinMusculus vastus intermedius
Origin
  • Front and outer surfaces of the upper two-thirds of the femur shaft
  • Lower part of the lateral intermuscular septum of the thigh
Insertion
  • Deep part of the quadriceps tendon, to the patella
  • Tibial tuberosity, via the patellar ligament
Action
  • Extends the knee
NerveFemoral nerve (L2–L4)
GroupQuadriceps
NameLatin vastus, 'huge', and intermedius, 'in between' — it lies between the other two vasti.

Palpation

  1. Client supine with the leg straight; stand beside the thigh.
  2. Place your hands on the middle third of the front of the thigh, over rectus femoris.
  3. Ease rectus femoris gently to one side with broad pressure and sink slowly towards the femur; you are feeling through other muscles, not touching vastus intermedius directly.
  4. Ask the client to tighten the thigh with the hip relaxed; the deep layer firms under the rectus femoris.

Landmarks: Patella

Vastus intermedius is the hidden member of the Quadriceps. It lies directly on the femur, under Rectus femoris, and is hard to separate from Vastus medialis even in dissection. You cannot isolate it by touch, so in a relaxation routine it is worked indirectly through broad Compression and Petrissage of the whole front of the thigh.

Because it only crosses the knee, extending the hip does not stretch it any further, unlike rectus femoris. Deeper, sustained work such as Myofascial release through the overlying muscles is beyond Cert IV level.

Techniques

  • Compression — Pressing straight down into a muscle with the palm, fist or forearm, holding briefly, then releasing and moving on.
  • Petrissage — Kneading strokes that compress, lift and squeeze the muscle away from the bone, working the tissue between the hands.
  • Myofascial release — Slow, sustained, low-load pressure or stretch into the skin and fascia, held without sliding until the tissue is felt to soften, then followed as it gives.

Works with

  • Rectus femoris — Spindle-shaped muscle down the middle of the front of the thigh, the only quadriceps muscle that crosses the hip, so it both flexes the hip and straightens the knee.
  • Vastus lateralis — The largest quadriceps muscle, covering the outer side of the thigh, which straightens and steadies the knee.
  • Vastus medialis — Quadriceps muscle on the inner side of the thigh, forming the teardrop bulge above the knee, that straightens the knee and helps the kneecap track in its groove.

Opposes

  • Hamstrings — Group of three muscles on the back of the thigh, running from the sitting bone to below the knee, that bend the knee and extend the hip.

Same group

  • Rectus femoris — Spindle-shaped muscle down the middle of the front of the thigh, the only quadriceps muscle that crosses the hip, so it both flexes the hip and straightens the knee.
  • Vastus lateralis — The largest quadriceps muscle, covering the outer side of the thigh, which straightens and steadies the knee.
  • Vastus medialis — Quadriceps muscle on the inner side of the thigh, forming the teardrop bulge above the knee, that straightens the knee and helps the kneecap track in its groove.

Sources

  1. Wikipedia: Vastus intermedius muscle
  2. Wikipedia: Quadriceps femoris muscle
  3. Wikipedia: Femoral nerve