How does mj defy gravity

On the left, how the body is supposed to bend; on the right, how Michael Jackson did it. When the human body bends forward with the back straight, the doctors explain, the erector spinae muscles that run parallel to our vertebrae "act like cables" and support the body as the center of gravity shifts. But when the focus of bending is switched to the ankles, those erector muscles aren't the major support. Instead, the strain is put on the calf and Achilles tendon, which aren't really built for that role.

Though Jackson was in marvelous shape, even he couldn't do the maneuver without help. So he and his team invented a special shoe that would anchor him to the floor during the tilt. Michael Jackson's patented shoe. Patented on October 26, , the shoes "have a specially designed heel slot which can be detachably engaged" with a "hitch" such as a nail projected through the stage surface "by simply sliding the shoe wearer's foot forward, thereby engaging with the hitch member," according to the US Patent Office description.

You need a very good core of strength, and that strength was in Michael Jackson and his Achilles tendon. Yagnick agreed: "Normal people, even with the shoe, probably can't do it. It takes a lot of practice to develop the core muscles, abs and central trunk muscles to get the strength to do it.

Not only would most people need intensive training to accomplish the move, said Atlanta physiatrist Dr. Jose Garcia-Corrada, but they could seriously injure themselves if they fell.

Garcia specializes in the medical rehabilitation of the spine at Emory School of Medicine. In fact, the researchers found that MJ kept most of the strain of the pose in his Achilles heel. Without the shoes, even extremely fit professional dancers could only do a maximum lean of 25 to 30 degrees.

You can see the gravity-defying lean live on stage, and the mechanism behind it, in the video below. But the real question the researchers were looking into was how Michael Jackson challenged our understanding of spine biomechanics. According to this team, he definitely played a role. Dr Tripathi said: "The chances of injury to the ankle are significant. You need strong core muscles and good support around the ankle. It's not a simple trick.

Dirty Dancing leaves couple out cold. Journal of Neurosurgery- Spine. Image source, Manjul Tripathi. How MJ did it.