And What That Means for Moving Through Life

Here's something most movement practitioners won't tell you: your body doesn't follow instructions.

Not really.

You can't command your fascia to hydrate, your cells to repair, or your tissues to glide smoothly. You can only create conditions. You can only invite, take reasonable risks, open the possibilities. And accept that consequences are simply your next round of possibilities. 

This invitation to tempt fate works through something called stochasticity: a fancy word for organized randomness that might just change how you think about moving, healing, and living in your body.

If you care about moving sustainably through life (not just through your next practice/workout/session), this matters more than you think. This paper is part of the Molecular Mover series, bringing the science into language we can use.

Check out this carousel for the social version.

The Toothbrush Problem

John Sharkey, my dear collaborator, mentor and friend, likes to say that defining fascia is like sharing a toothbrush.

He's right of course. Nobody wants to use somebody else's toothbrush!

So what does that have to do with fascia?

After four decades of teaching fascia-focused dissection, movement, and manual therapy, John has watched definitions of fascia multiply faster than anyone can reasonably track.

Every discipline needs its own version. Every context demands a different emphasis. That's the toothbrush problem. The definition that works for one person rarely works for another…

This paper grew out of years of conversation around that exact issue.

Fascia is continuous, yes. That part is now well established. 🥱

What hasn't been appreciated is how fascia adapts, reorganizes, and stays viable over time. For everyone.

That's where "stochastic" or stochasticity comes in. It sounds technical, but it isn't complicated. It is also important.

It simply describes how small variations at the cellular level give rise to reliable patterns at the tissue level. It is its own emergent property…♻️

I wrote this blog to help clarify what that actually means, and to connect the pieces of the puzzle through recent research.

Raindrops to Puddles: Understanding Stochasticity

Imagine standing outside during a light rain, which is pretty much all we've gotten here in Scotland nonstop for the last 43 days.

Each raindrop falls differently. Pulled by gravity, nudged by air currents, pollen, particulates of all descriptions... each drop responding to the exact conditions of that moment. You can't predict exactly where the next one will land, but each one is responding appropriately to the forces acting on it (and generating forces that influence others).

When each droplet hits the ground, it doesn't fall randomly. It responds to the terrain; flowing toward low spots, following existing channels, pooling where the ground is already saturated. After enough time, you'll see puddles forming in predictable places (seems to be several forming inconveniently right outside my front door).

That's a good starting point for stochasticity.

Individual events vary based on local context. But the pattern that emerges is reliable and useful.

Your fascia works the same way. For our purposes, let's define fascia as the cells that secrete structural matrix together with that matrix. For example, fibroblasts (cells) secrete collagen (matrix), the structural backbone; but fasciacytes specialize in secreting hyaluronic acid (HA), the hydration molecule that enables gliding. Both are essential.

Individual cells don't follow a master plan. They respond opportunistically to their immediate environment: the chemistry around them, the mechanical forces they feel, the signals from neighboring cells. Each response is contextually appropriate, bounded by the conditions present, locally intelligent.

But together, they create coherent tissue behavior. They maintain gliding surfaces. They adapt to load. They heal injuries. They keep you moving. The more HA that fasciacytes secrete, the more gliding happens, which stimulates more HA in precisely the planes that need it.

The paper describes it beautifully: "Stochastic processes allow individual cells to respond variably based on local context, yet collectively produce coherent tissue-level outcomes."

Think of it like footsteps creating a path through a field. No single person decides where the path goes. But after enough people walk through (avoiding the perfectly respectable concrete/roadways), each one responding to the terrain, avoiding obstacles, following the easiest route based on what they encounter: a clear path emerges.

Nothing was random. Each person responded appropriately to their local context. The avoided the road because it was too busy or awkward, or maybe the short-cut was just too tempting to resist. The variation was bounded by real conditions: slope, moisture, obstacles, previous footsteps, traffic psychology is its own thing.

Nobody designed the path, there was no committee decision. Everyone created it through contextual responsiveness.

That's how your fascia works. Millions of cells, each responding opportunistically to local signals, creating organized tissue structure through bounded variation through contextual responsiveness.

Why This Matters for Planet-Conscious Movers

If you're reading this, you probably care about sustainability; not just for the planet, but for your own body.

You want to move in ways that last. That don't break down the very tissue you're trying to shore up. Movement to support a body that doesn't require constant intervention, expensive treatments, or replacement parts.

You want to be the person still hiking, dancing, playing with grandkids, and living fully at 80+.

Understanding stochasticity is key to that vision.

Here's why: Your body doesn't run on commands. It runs on conditions.

You can't force your fascia to be healthy any more than you can force a garden to grow or a child to self-regulate by yelling at them. But you can create the conditions where health (the ultimate in self-regulation) emerges naturally.

When you understand that your tissues are self-organizing systems (not machines following blueprints) you stop trying to "fix" your body and start learning to tend it. To practice non-attachment.

You move more variably, because variation feeds the system. 

You rest more intelligently, because rest is when reorganization happens.

You hydrate, load, and glide your tissues, because those are the conditions that allow stochastic processes to work in your favor and allow you to keep doing the intense exercise your body also needs. But, and here is what appeals to the yoga-minded among us, we are not permitted certainty. You have to go all-in with managed expectations.

This isn't just about feeling good today, but about building a body/mind that remains resilient, adaptable, and viable for decades and accepting when that doesn't exactly happen. Because probability tells us that despite all our efforts, some people get cancer. 

Fascia Isn't Structure: It's a Living Field

For too long, we've thought of fascia as scaffolding. As wrapping. As the stuff that holds the "important" parts together.

The new science tells a different story. Fascia is a mesenchymal tissue as much as it is a connective one.

As a living, responsive, adaptive field, it continuously reorganizes itself based on how you move, how you load it, and what information it receives.

It's not passive structure. It's active participant in signaling; it has its own kind of comms built into the molecular weight of HA.

The paper puts it this way: "Fascia is not merely a structural scaffold but a dynamic, mechanosensitive tissue that continuously adapts its composition and organization."

Think of fascia less like the frame of a house and more like a river system; constantly flowing, constantly adjusting its channels, responding to rainfall and drought, carving new paths and abandoning old ones.

Your fascia is doing that right now. As you read this. As you breathe. As you shift in your seat, your cells deform and the calcium-ion-sensitive channels open, ions flood into cells and the signaling continues sensing.

Cells are always sensing mechanical load, responding to chemistry, and reorganizing at the micro level to match the demands you're placing on it (or not placing on it).

And here's the kicker: the process may be characteristic of embryonic development, but it never stops. Mesenchyme (middle soup) is always changing how it secretes its goods and provides the services characteristic of whatever body region it has learned to become.

The paper emphasizes this: "This plasticity governs not only mesenchymal cells during development but also persists throughout life."

You're not stuck with the fascia you have. You're constantly growing and sculpting, baking and tilling the fascia you're using. And not using is a special kind of torture for fascia, as we all know.

Water and Charge: The Foundation Nobody Talks About

Here's something that might surprise you: your fascia is mostly water.

Not collagen or elastin. Not the tough, fibrous stuff we see in anatomy books.

Water.

Specifically, structured water held in place by hyaluronan (HA) — a molecule that can hold up to 1,000 times its weight in water.

The paper describes fascia as "a charged, hydrated continuum" where water isn't just filling space — it's creating the conditions for everything else to work.

Think of it like this: collagen fibers are the ropes in a suspension bridge. But the water is the air that allows the bridge to sway, to absorb shock, to remain flexible under load.

Without water, fascia becomes brittle. Sticky. Prone to adhesion and injury.

With water, it glides. It distributes force. It communicates.

And here's where it gets interesting: the water in your fascia isn't ordinary water.

It's structured by charge. It forms layers around molecules. It creates what Gerald Pollack calls "exclusion zones" where normal chemistry doesn't apply.

This isn't woo. This is physics.

The paper cites Pollack's work on the "fourth phase of water," which is a gel-like state that forms at charged surfaces and plays a crucial role in cellular function.

That your fascia is full of this stuff is not coincidental; movement keeps it flowing.

When you move, you're not stretching fibers. You're pumping water through a charged field. You're maintaining the hydration that allows everything else to work.

The paper describes fascial gliding, differentiating from "sliding." Gliding is smooth and frictionless like sliding is, but the distinction becomes clear when we consider the molecular roots. Sliding comes from oiled surfaces, discrete and mechanical. Gliding results from hydration buffering, where the planes are connected via the water matrix that results in movement feeling effortless but only when properly hydrated.

That's what healthy fascia feels like. That's what we're aiming for.

The GO/GROW Spectrum: Your Cells Aren't Binary Machines

Here's where stochasticity really shines.

For years, scientists thought cells were either one thing or another. Epithelial or mesenchymal. Stable or mobile. Structure or repair.

Turns out, that's not how it works.

Cells exist on a spectrum — what the paper calls the GO/GROW spectrum.

GO (epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition) is when cells become mobile, exploratory, and repair-focused. They "go" to where they're needed. They respond to injury, inflammation, and change.

GROW (mesenchymal-to-epithelial transition) is when cells settle down, form stable structures, and complete the repair process. They "grow" new tissue and restore organization.

But here's the key: cells don't flip a switch between these states.

They glide along the spectrum. They exist imperfectly in intermediate states. They respond opportunistically to local conditions: reading the chemical signals, mechanical forces, and neighboring cell behavior in their immediate environment.

The paper emphasizes this repeatedly: "...stochastic spectra, not binaries."

Some cells in your fascia are more GO right now. Others are more GROW. Most are somewhere in between. The research is largely based on studies from the cancer literature, because cancer is nothing more than our own cells stuck in pathological GO/GROW states.

And that's exactly how it should be... not wishing cancer on anyone, obviously! But the molecular mechanism that underlies cancer is the very same that powers stochasticity.

Variation.

This variation is the feature. This bounded flexibility, where each cell makes contextually appropriate choices based on what it's actually experiencing, is what allows your tissue to adapt smoothly, to respond to complex demands, to heal without scarring, to remain viable over time. And yes, for cancer to emerge, take hold, and metastasize.

If every cell followed the same rigid program, your fascia would be brittle, unable to adapt to the infinite variations of real-world movement and load. The price we pay for the variability and variation we need is, unfortunately, the potential for cancer.

The stochasticity allows cells to remain responsive and adaptive rather than locked into predetermined responses. Each cell reads its local context and responds appropriately. The variation in those responses—bounded by real conditions, guided by actual signals—creates tissue-level intelligence.

It's not randomness. It's contextual responsiveness at scale.

And that's exactly how it should be.

This variability (this randomness at the cellular level) is what allows your tissue to adapt smoothly, to respond to complex demands, to heal without scarring, to remain viable over time.

The randomness is the feature, not the bug.

The Missing Link: The Calcium-HA Axis (CHA)

So how does your fascia actually "know" what to do?

How do mechanical forces (like movement) translate into cellular responses (like hydration and repair)?

For years, this was a black box. We knew movement helped. We just didn't know why.

The paper dives into the void, highlighting Kirkness & Scarlata's recent proposal: the calcium-hyaluronan (CHA) axis. Check out the blog post How Calcium and HA (the CHA Axis) Create Fascia's Self-Adjusting System to get a plain-English explanation. 

Here's how it works:

1. You move. This creates mechanical load and deformation in your fascial tissues.

2. Fasciacytes (fascia cells) sense this deformation. They have mechanoreceptors (calcium ion channels) that detect stretch, compression, and shear.

3. Calcium ions (Ca²⁺) flood into the cells. This is the universal signal for "something is happening."

4. The ion influx activates HAS2 — the enzyme largely responsible for producing hyaluronan (HA).

5. HA is released into the extracellular space, where it immediately starts binding water, creating hydration, and enabling gliding.

The paper describes calcium as "the universal translator between mechanical and biochemical signals."

It's the bridge. The missing link. The reason movement works (especially micromovement).

And here's the beautiful part: this process is inherently stochastic.

Not every cell responds the same way. Not every calcium spike produces the same amount of HA. Not every bit of HA binds the same amount of water... there is a lot of variation and heaps more molecular activity involved in the cellular "Rube Goldberg" machine.

But collectively, the tissue responds coherently. Hydration increases. Gliding improves. Adaptation happens... and crucially, genes are influenced to change accordingly (known as epigenetics).

The paper puts it perfectly: "Individual cells respond variably based on local context, yet collectively produce coherent tissue-level outcomes."

You don't need to control every cell. You just need to create the conditions where the system can self-organize.

And the condition is simple: movement.

Movement as Information

This is where everything comes together.

Movement isn't just exercise. It's not just "good for you" in some vague, general way.

Movement is information.

Every time you move, you're sending signals through your fascial network. You're activating the CHA axis. You're triggering stochastic processes that maintain tissue health.

The paper describes it as "dynamic equilibrium" — a constant dance between loading and recovery, deformation and reorganization, GO and GROW.

When you move regularly and variably, you maintain this equilibrium. Your fascia stays hydrated, responsive, and adaptive.

When you don't move (or move in the same repetitive patterns), the system stagnates. HA production drops. Water leaves the tissue. Gliding surfaces become sticky. Adhesions form.

The paper is clear: "Gliding maintains dynamic equilibrium through the CHA axis."

Not stretching or strengthening. Not "releasing." And it is all happening before your nervous system even gets a whiff.

Gliding.

The smooth, varied, multi-directional movement that keeps your fascial layers sliding past each other, pumping water through the system, and maintaining the conditions for health.

This is why yoga helps. Why walking helps. Why dancing, swimming, climbing, and playing help.

Not because they "stretch" your fascia, but because they inform it.

They create the mechanical signals that trigger the stochastic processes that maintain tissue viability.

Practical Application: How to Move Stochastically

So what does this mean for your actual movement practice? It is important not to get gimmicky here... there isn't a direct translation. But we can certainly bring these concepts with us to movement, because that is what this evidence base is all about.

Here are the key takeaways:

1. Vary your movement. Stochastic systems thrive on variation (intensity, format, direction, length, pace, all the things). Don't just repeat the same patterns, especially if you know you tend to be one-trick pony. Explore the periphery of your modality. Walk on uneven ground. If you are normally yoga-only, maybe have a word with yourself and grab a kettlebell. Reach in unusual directions. Play.

2. Prioritize gliding over stretching. Instead of holding static "stretches", focus on smooth, flowing movements that create shear between fascial layers. Think mobility, not more length.

3. Load your tissues regularly. The CHA axis responds to mechanical load. You need compression, tension, and shear to trigger HA production. Gentle, regular loading beats occasional intense effort.

4. Rest intelligently. Stochastic reorganization happens during recovery. Sleep, gentle movement, and downtime aren't laziness: they're when your fascia adapts to the information you've given it.

5. Stay hydrated. Your fascia can't hold water if you're not drinking/eating it. Consider a pro-hydration diet of all the crunchy vegetables. Hydration is foundational and it is better eaten within the ion vehicles.

6. Think long-term. Fascial adaptation is slow! It is notoriously slow to flare up (often starts hurting long after we've knackered it) and slow to resolve. You're not "fixing" anything in a single session. You're creating conditions for gradual, sustainable change.

This isn't about perfection, or an almighty plan. It's about tending the conditions that allow your body's inherent intelligence to do what it does best: self-organize, adapt, and remain viable even and especially while imperfect.

Why This Matters for the Long Game

If you're committed to moving through life (not just through your 30s or 40s, but through your 70s, 80s, and beyond) understanding stochasticity changes, well, everything.

You stop chasing quick fixes. You stop trying to "correct" your body. You stop thinking something is "wrong" that needs to be "fixed." Most importantly, you can relax into the paradox: you don't have to live in this body for hundreds of years, so keeping it in immaculate shape isn't the point. The real game is learning to enjoy it in ways that don't exact too much of a toll, while also letting go of that new car smell just a bit. Because you're halfway through the lease! Time to let some crumbs tumble.

Instead, you recognize that your fascia is a living, adaptive system; one that responds directly to the conditions you create.

And here's the thing: your fascia thrives on this. It doesn't need perfect conditions. It needs varied, honest conditions. That's exactly what stochasticity means.

You become a gardener, not a mechanic; a guide, not a god.

You tend. You nourish. You create variety, allow time for growth, avoid the shit you know is toxic.

And your body will respond. Not perfectly, but reliably. Over time, in ways that build resilience, vitality, and long-term health.

This is the difference between a stochastic system and a deterministic one: you're trusting a process, not guaranteeing an outcome. You can't just add the right ingredients and expect a lifetime of cake (sorry) but you can create conditions where your body's intelligence does what it does best.

That's what it means to work with your body's stochastic intelligence, not against it.

The Bigger Picture

This paper isn't just about fascia. It's about how living systems work.

It's about recognizing that order emerges from variation, not from control.

It's about understanding that health is a process figuring itself out, not a state.

It's about appreciating that your body is smarter than any protocol, and your job is to create conditions, not dictate outcomes.

The science of stochasticity gives us a framework for this. It shows us that randomness at the cellular level isn't chaos, it is fluxtable, where flux is the foundation of adaptability.

It's how your fascia stays viable. How your tissues heal. How your body remains resilient in the face of constant change.

And it's why movement matters so much, because movement has always been the only constant! So our bodies not only need change, but they cannot exist without it.

Not because it "fixes" you, but because it informs you. It feeds the stochastic processes that maintain health. It creates the conditions where your body's inherent intelligence can do what it does best.

Want to Go Deeper?

This blog post barely scratches the surface of what's in the paper (and the work by so many authors that this paper brings together).

If you want the full story (the detailed mechanisms, the research citations, the implications for manual therapy and movement practice) I highly recommend reading the original paper and diving into the research.

It's open access, which means it's free for everyone. No paywall/subscription fees.

Read the full paper here: https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/15/12/1924 

It's technical in places, but it's also narratively written and full of insights that will change how you think about your body.

And if you're a movement teacher, manual therapist, or bodyworker, this is essential reading. It provides the scientific foundation for why what we do works. And how to do it better.

Your fascia is listening. It's adapting. It's responding to every move you make (and every move you don't make).

The question is: what information are you giving it?

Move well. Move often. Move variably.

Your future self will thank you.