Kinesiology is an holistic health disciplines which uses muscle monitoring to access information about a person’s well-being. Developed in the 1970’s, it combines Western body mechanics and Eastern wisdom to promote physical, emotional, mental and spiritual health. Kinesiology identifies the elements which inhibit the body’s natural internal energies and accessing the life enhancing potential within the individual.
Kinesiology began in the United States in the work of 1930’s ‘human movement’ or Kinesiology academics. Chiropractors found application of the muscle monitoring techniques useful and began to apply them when working on muscle function in their patients. In the early 1960’s, Detroit chiropractor Dr. George Goodheart theorized that muscle monitoring could also access the functional status of other physiological systems. Goodheart went further along this path and explored using muscle monitoring along the energy pathways described in Chinese medical literature. From this exploration Goodheart claimed to have discovered a valid entry pathway into the information held as energetic patterns within the human body.Applied Kinesiology originated from this work done by Dr George Goodheart and other professional chiropractors in the US in the early 1960’s.
Muscle Monitoring developed into a means of evaluating the integrity of many different systems. The techniques grew to include the meridian system (for energetic flow), Bennett Reflex Points (for vascular function) and Chapman Reflex Points (for lymphatic function).
To distinguish their holistic work from the original bio-mechanical approach of Academic Kinesiology, the group defined themselves as Applied Kinesiologists, otherwise “AK” practitioners. Dentists, chiropractors, medical doctors, psychotherapists, educators and other health professionals also now use Applied Kinesiology.
Today ‘Kinesiology’ refers to a rapidly expanding suite of specialized modalities practiced in over 50 countries. Muscle monitoring as the basic feedback mechanism into the human “bio-computer” is what they all hold in common.
As with many holistic health disciplines, applied kinesiology focuses on prevention of illness.
The efficacy of kinesiology lies in its ability to trace imbalance, identify where and why function is blocked and to facilitate a release driven by the person’s own healing process.