Biomechanics -- Drinking Coffee

Every morning I drink my coffee. First I flex my arm at the shoulder to reach for the mug in the sagittal plane about the frontal axis. Then I simultaneously flex at the elbow and extend at the shoulder to bring the mug towards my face. Both of these actions are done in the sagittal plane about the frontal axis. Finally, I perform ulnar deviation or abduction at the wrist in the frontal plane about the sagittal axis to tilt the mug so that I can take a sip.

When performing elbow flexion, the prime movers are the biceps brachii, the brachialis, and the brachioradialis, and they all concentrically contract. In this open kinematic chain, the humerus forms the fixed convex surface, and the olecranon of the ulna forms the moving concave surface. The surface of the olecranon moves anteriorly on the surface of the humerus. The head of the radius is also a concave surface moving on the fixed convex surface of the humerus, so the surface of the radial head also glides anteriorly on the surface of the humerus.

Image retrieved from: https://www.pexels.com/search/cup%20of%20coffee/

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