What is Applied Kinesiology and what can it do for you?

Applied Kinesiology (AK), also called “muscle testing,” is the most major innovation in acupuncture in thousands of years. Forty years ago, chiropractor George Goodheart discovered that each organ in the body reflexes to specific muscles. If an organ is stressed, a corresponding muscle will commonly be in spasm, painful, or weak. For example, if the liver is under stress the rhomboid muscles in the upper back will likely be achy and sore. Other reflexes include lungs to shoulders, intestines to thighs, colon to hamstrings, and kidneys to the psoas muscles. Chronic pain and discomfort in an area of your body is often caused by a referred imbalance in an organ or meridian system. This explains why chiropractic adjustments, massage, and the application of heat sometimes provide only temporary relief. The underlying organ dysfunction must be addressed before permanent relief can occur.

To test the body using A.K., typically the patient lies on their back with their arms resting at their sides. A strong indicator muscle is found by having the patient resist as the doctor pulls one of their arms away from the body. Then, with their other hand, the patient is instructed to touch the major meridian/alarm points of the body: the immune system, the heart, liver, kidneys, and so on for the rest of the organs in the body. If there is a problem in one of these systems, the pulled arm will test weak. It’s as though the person is placing their hand over an electrical short circuit.

Let’s say the liver tests weak. With the patient’s hand still on their liver, various remedies are placed on the person’s body until a remedy is identified that makes the arm test strong. Everything has an energy field, and the body can recognize both positive and negative energies. We could speculate forever what the patient’s liver might need, but with A.K. the patient’s liver will reveal exactly what it needs for healing. The liver commonly needs dandelion root or milk thistle; the kidneys often vote for nettle tea or uva ursi; and the immune system asks for Echinacea or bioflavonoids – and so it goes for every organ in the body. In this way, Applied Kinesiology offers a way to tap into the wisdom of the body and find answers that were not previously available.

A.K. can also be used to determine, in a matter of seconds, which vertebrae are out of alignment and in which direction they should be adjusted; thus, making X-rays unnecessary for most patients when diagnosing common misalignment problems. A.K. can find out what foods a patient is allergic to, what supplements or medicines may doing them more harm than good, or what reflex points need stimulating to increase energy flow.

HEALING STORIES

Aspartame Poisoning

Once a woman came into my office with every symptom of heart disease: pain in her sternum upon exertion, pain running down her left arm, and irregular heartbeats. Yet her EKG was normal and her doctors were mystified. A.K. testing also indicated her heart meridian was fine. However, her small intestine meridian tested weak. I suspected she was eating or drinking something irritating to her body. After much questioning, she recalled that – similar to many middle-aged women – in her desire to lose weight she had upped her intake of sodas containing aspartame. Like many unsuspecting Americans, she was suffering from aspartame poisoning. Two weeks later, after months of experiencing “weird” symptoms, she was back to normal. A.K. provided the tools to track down what was going on and what was needed to remedy her situation.

Kidney Disease

An older man came in complaining that every joint in his body was aching. His back was especially sore. A.K. revealed that his kidneys were quite stressed and that nettle tea would be helpful. Later, he told me his excruciating back pain started to diminish within three hours of his commencing drinking the tea. After a simple back adjustment and new water filter, he said he felt better than he had in years. Recently I met him on the street and his formerly gray complexion had turned into a youthful, ruddy glow.

Psychological Issues

Applied Kinesiology can also be of great help to people experiencing emotional and mental difficulties. I once treated a woman who had severe physical and emotional problems. By the time I saw her, she was almost completely incapacitated by typical midlife changes. Using A.K., I determined she was deficient in omega 3 oils, and I sent her home with a bottle.

Ten days later she returned to my office. She was ecstatic, rather than her usually depressed state, and she shouted, “They’re gone! They’re gone!”

I asked her what was “gone,” and she replied, “The rages, the rages are gone!” She went on to describe how she was angry so much of the time that she had been arrested for causing disturbances at Safeway, in the post office, and just passing someone on the street. The slightest irritation would set her off into a full-blown rage attack. She was still taking omega 3 oil supplements four years later, and her quality of life has continued to increase.

There is much ongoing scientific research to corroborate and expand the understanding and use of A.K., but most of all, it must be experienced. Applied Kinesiology doesn’t provide the answers to everything, but it may provide answers for you.