Kinesiology, (pronounced kin-easy-ology) is a science that investigates and analyzes human motion. When we use kinesiology in the contexts described here, however, it has a different meaning. Kinesiology uses the body’s own biofeedback system via muscle testing to promote health. The aim is to restore balance—either to the body as a whole or to specific areas related to one’s specific difficulty, and to restore wellness at a physical, emotional, and spiritual level.
Multi-dimensional healing specializes in using kinesiology to target brain areas or circuits that can be involved in a wide variety of difficulties. These include learning, memory, attention, emotional difficulties, allergies, post-traumatic stress, head injury, depression, anxiety, or specific situational stress problems such as reactions to specific relationship, loss of a job, or pain and illness.
The origin of contempory-applied kinesiology is traced to 1964, when George Goodheart Jr., D.C., first observed that in the absence of congenital or pathologic anomaly, postural distortion often is associated with muscles that fail to meet the demands of muscle tests designed to maximally isolate specific muscles. He observed that tender nodules frequently were palpable within the origin and/or insertion of the tested muscle. Digital manipulation of these areas of apparent muscle dysfunction improved both postural balance and the outcome of manual muscle tests.
Goodheart and others have since observed that many conservative treatment methods improve neuromuscular function, as perceived by manual muscle testing. These treatment methods have become the fundamental applied kinesiology approach to therapy. Included in this approach are specific joint manipulation or mobilization, various myofascial therapies, cranial techniques, meridian therapy, clinical nutrition, dietary management, and various reflex procedures. With expanding investigation, there’s been continued amplification and modification of the treatment procedures.
Applied kinesiology interactive assessment procedures represent a form of functional neurologic evaluation and functional biomechanical, which refers to the clinical assessment of posture, organized motion such as in gait, and ranges of motion.
An applied kinesiology-based examination and therapy are of great value in the management of common functional health problems when used in conjunction with information obtained from a functional interpretation of the clinical history, physical and laboratory examinations, and from instrumentation. In assessing a patient’s status, it’s important to understand any pathologic states or processes that may be present prior to instituting a form of therapy for what appears to be functional health problems.
It was my privilege, as a student, to be an invited guest of the early seminars given by Goodheart. He said, “Learn how to observe your patients and listen for they are your authority in seeking diagnosis. For example, when a man stands, check his hip height, shoulder level, head level, etc.” He said that in his many studies, he found a man who stood straight, with a level head, most often exerted common sense. When I see a photo of all the Chief Justices sitting together, it’s hard to ignore their body language. IBI