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person
may be somewhat dehydrated which
can potentially affect consistency in results. Invite
them to drink water and retest |
B. Testing
1. To keep it simple
one can check the arm held in two positions.
a. Hold the arm at 45’angle in front of the body keeping
your elbows straight. Testing is to push it straight
back towards the body.
b. The second position is with the arm held straight out
in front of the body palm down, shoulder level, elbow
straight, arm parallel to the floor.
2. Tester places his or her hand above the wrist and
applies slow, steady, gradual downward pressure against
the forearm. Gentle to medium pressure works as well, if
not better, than heavier pressure. The key is in the
smoothness of the pressure, not necessarily the amount
of pressure.
a. Using a cue word like ‘hold’ or having the subject
say ‘push’ helps to synchronize the testing. Using the
word ‘resist’ is not advisable, as it will make it
harder to assess if the muscle is letting go.
b. Keep eyes in one position when testing and breathe
normally.
3. We are looking for the muscle to give a ‘locked’ or
strong response (to be able to maintain steady position
against pressure being applied to it.)
4. Let the person being tested know that what we are
looking for are differences in muscle strength and
performance. Tell them, that “Its ok to let the muscle
go or relax” if they feel it give or are struggling to
hold it in that position.
5. If the muscles lock easily then go to step C. If the
muscles give or feel spongy then:
a. Rub firmly the spaces between the ribs, next to the
breastbone (rib spaces 3-4-5) and on the back (T 3-4)
for about 10 - 20 seconds with medium to firm pressure.
The person being tested can rub their own front points.
b. Retest the muscle. The muscle should now ‘lock’ when
tested. |
C. Check for a
Clear Muscle Circuit
After assessing that the muscle can
give a locked or strong response, you want to make sure that the
muscle can also give an unlocked response. Occasionally, a muscle
has a blocked circuit that does not allow a feedback response from
the nervous system. If this occurs, then the muscle will stay strong
all the time regardless of what you are testing. Therefore, its
necessary to determine before you do any testing with it that is has
a clear muscle circuit. To check for a clear muscle circuit:
1. Test the muscle. It
should be strong.
2. Push your thumbs, or thumb and index finger, together
towards the belly (bulging part near |
|
the center) of
the muscle going with the length of the fibers. On
retesting, this should now turn the muscle OFF. To
strengthen the muscle, pull apart from the belly toward
the ends.
3. If the muscle does not turn off (weaken) then put the
muscle in the testing position. Push up firmly against
resistance and then push down against resistance (like
an isometric exercise) for just 2-4 seconds.
4. Recheck step 2. The muscle should now turn off. |
Note:
Different systems of kinesiology will probably have some variations
in their muscle testing protocols. There is no one standard way of
setting up the testing procedures. This way works well for me and
for the most part is what is taught in Touch for Health Kinesiology
and the PKP (Professional Kinesiology Practitioner) trainings. It
helps assess some of the variables, like dehydration and switching,
which can affect accuracy and consistency. It also addresses what to
do if a muscle does not respond to a stressor (i.e. checking for
clear circuit).
Again, my recommendation for learning the art of muscle testing is
find an experienced kinesiology teacher who takes time to teach all
these refinements and can give you ‘firsthand’ feedback. This is a
subtle skill that requires lots of hands on training and supervision
in the early stages of learning.
Variables that can affect Muscle Testing
|
1. Skill
2. Intention
3. Confidence
4. Dehydration
5. Drugs and Alcohol
6. Blood sugar
7. Neurological disorganization (i.e. switching)
8. Severe emotional stress
9. Fatigue
10. Blocked circuits (see procedure step C.)
11. Inappropriate use of muscle testing
12. Having a bias to the results or expectation
13. Polarity imbalance |
Intention and
Ethics
Once a person has taken a class or classes and has gained
knowledge of techniques, communication skills, and even a level
of confidence, perhaps one of the most important and yet subtle
keys to success in accurate muscle testing is intention.
The role that intention plays in affecting results in muscle
testing may not be as obvious as the techniques used, but it can
be as profound. Both unconscious intention and conscious
intention can effect muscle testing. An example of where one’s
unconscious intention could influence results would be in the
relationship between consistency and accuracy, and the degree of
confidence a tester has. Novice muscle testers often miss the
subtle muscle imbalances when testing, and though that is partly
due to lack of experience with the physical technique,
confidence seems to play a
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