The following table organizes some of the hindlimb muscles with their actions, origins, and insertions in a different way than is presented in the text. Some students find learning a group of muscles that have the same action simpler than learning each muscle's action independently. Origins and insertions are added to illustrate that some of the muscles with the same action have very similar origins and insertions.
Please note - these are not all the muscles you have to know the origin, insertion, and action for! They are just some of the hindlimb muscles, to show you a different way of learning the material. If this methods works for you, you may want to complete the chart for the rest of the muscles on your syllabus.
Table courtesy of Danielle Dodenhoff
| Action | Origin | Insertion | Muscle |
|---|---|---|---|
| extends thigh | pubis | femur | adductor femoris adductor longus pectineus |
| ischium | femur | semimembranosus | |
| adducts thigh | ilium | tibia | sartorius |
| patella | rectus femoris | ||
| ischium | tibia | gracilis | |
| extends leg | femur | patella | vastus medialis vastus intermedius vastus lateralis |
| ilium | rectus femoris | ||
| abducts thigh | ischium | tibia | biceps femoris |
| vertebrae | femur | gluteus maximus gluteus medius |
|
| patella | caudofemoralis | ||
| flexes thigh | lumbar vertebrae/ilium | femur | iliopsoas |
| flexes leg | ischium | tibia | semitendinosus gracilis |
| patella/tibia | biceps femoris | ||
| extends foot | patella/tibia | calcaneus | gastrocnemius |
| fibula | soleus | ||
| flexes 2nd phalanges | tibia/patella | flexor digitorium brevis | plantaris |
| flexes foot | fibula/tibia | metatarsal 1 | tibialis anterior |
