Locomotor System: Planes and Body Regions

Introduction

The locomotor system is responsible for sculpting our corporal structure, shaping our body, promoting the movements and protecting some delicate organs.

It is made up of two big parts: skeletal and muscular systems.

Planes and body regions

The different parts of the body

Just before studying the skeletal and muscular systems, we must describe the different body regions and the body planes. It makes finding or locating different anatomic parts, bones and regions easier.

The body planes are layers that cross the body. There are different planes according to how they transect the body. The three most relevant are:

• Frontal plane: it longitudinally crosses the body, dividing it into anterior and posterior parts.
• Sagittal plane: it is perpendicular to the frontal plane and divides the body into right and left parts.
• Transversal plane: it crosses the body transversally and divides the body into upper and lower parts. It is transversal to the sagittal and frontal planes. 

The different regions of our body can be named according to standard anatomical names. There are many regions with concrete anatomical names. This is a diagram of the most relevant ones.