Using Applied Kinesiology to Prevent & Treat Injuries

Whether you want to head to your weekly fitness bootcamp, love to hit the gym regularly, or are an athlete trying to reach peak performance, an injury can be painful and frustrating. The aim of applied kinesiology (AK) or manual muscle testing (MMT) is to restore balance in the body primarily through muscle testing. It can be an answer to finding the root cause of an injury and then being able to treat it effectively, so you can get back to doing what you do to stay active.

After trauma, muscles may become weakened and even “turn off”. This essentially means that the muscle will stop doing it’s normal job and other muscles will have to compensate to perform normal bodily functions. Over time this can cause even more pain due to muscle strain. Exercising a damaged muscle that has been switched off does not always turn it back on and the damaged muscle could potentially stay weak or get even worse. Using applied kinesiology can help to prevent and treat injuries in the long term and restore balance to your body.

What is Applied Kinesiology?

Applied kinesiology uses a holistic approach to pinpoint the underlying issues in a patient that may be causing problems. The full-body approach to healing seeks to rebalance the body’s natural flow of energy and bring about better mental and physical health. To do this, a unique form of muscle testing is practiced to find the problems, diagnose them, and then provide several treatment options.  

Related: What is Kinesiology?

When it comes to athletes, applied kinesiology allows you to reach peak performance, speed up recovery from injuries and help to prevent future injury. Applied kinesiology isn't just for athletes. People who experience chronic pain can also benefit great from it.

For example, someone involved in a minor car accident may experience a neck injury that switches off their hip flexors. How does that happen? Because of the body's interconnectedness you experience weakness in your lower hip flexors but, the problem is actually stemming from the neck. Using applied kinesiology should help locate and treat the source of your pain instead of just the symptoms. Once your neck is realigned, your hip pain would likely subside.

By looking at the body as a whole instead of focusing on individual muscle groups, as you do with applied kinesiology, you can evaluate the entire body. This means you can find out what you need for optimally functioning, full-body movement and performance.

What’s the Difference Between Applied Kinesiology and Physical Therapy?

When you think of preventing and treating physical injury, you probably think of physical therapy. Although there commonalities between physical therapy and applied kinesiology, understanding the differences can highlight that applied kinesiology uses a unique approach. While both aim to strengthen and improve the range of motion after an injury, they use varying methods.

Unlike physical therapy, applied kinesiology uses a more comprehensive approach rather than a targeted focus. It’s this holistic approach that helps to identify underlying issues that may be putting the body at risk of injury as well as pinpoint muscle weaknesses that could be causing pain in the first place. Kinesiologists work with all types of injuries and issues, whether it’s for someone with a problem with athletic movement or someone with a desire for a lifestyle change to improve their overall fitness and wellbeing.  

Whether you’re an athlete with muscle soreness or have recently had an injury, you need time to heal. One way to help cope with the pain caused by an injury or exercise is to take Hemp oil. When you use cannabidiol or Hemp oil, it boosts your endocannabinoid system which is involved in many different natural systems in the body, including pain management and inflammation. Sunwarrior’s Hemp oil combines vitamin D-3 and curcumin to help maintain healthy inflammatory response, reduce stress and ease pain.  

Sunwarrior’s Hemp oil can be a great natural alternative to Ibuprofen. Hemp allows your body to maintain a healthy inflammatory response that activates the body’s natural way of healing itself instead of allowing the type of inflammation that usually hinders healing.

The Hemp in Sunwarrior’s Hemp oil is also paired with Curcumin (turmeric) and vitamin D3 to further increase healing process. Curcumin extract has long been recognized for its ability to maintain health inflammatory response. Vitamin D3 regulates you entire immune and neuromuscular systems to further support a healthy inflammatory response throughout your muscles and joints.

Related: Hemp Oil, Curcumin & Vitamin D-3; Together Improve Mood, Reduce Inflammation, Ease Pain, and Promote Bone Health

A review in 2018 assessed how effective Hemp was at relieving chronic pain. It evaluated studies carried out between 1975 and March 2018. Based on these studies, researchers concluded that Hemp was an effective treatment for pain management. The scientists also didn’t report any negative side effects.

Preventing and Treating Injuries with Applied Kinesiology

Did you know that right hamstrings are often caused by their neighbors, the quadriceps, being weak. If you take a full-body approach and investigate this problem further with muscle testing, you may also find that your abdominal muscles are weak. You could use a foam roller or stretch out your hamstrings regularly and avoid injuries, but the root of the problem would persist the same meaning you’re not solving the issue and are still at risk for a major hamstring injury.  

By simply identifying the core of the problem, you can fix the underlying issue right at the root. This is just an example of how applied kinesiology uses a modern and alternative approach to traditional medicine. Applied kinesiology applies various healing techniques to restore the body’s flow of energy, alleviate muscle ailments and help individuals cope with physical injury.

To help strengthen muscles and prevent injuries in the future, it may be useful to incorporate extra nutrients into your diet such as magnesium and collagen. Sunwarrior’s plant-based collagen has been created to boost your body’s natural collagen production.

Collagen is the most abundant protein in the body and can help support joint health, boost muscle mass and prevent bone loss. So, it’s important to make sure you’re getting the nutritents needed for your body to produce its own collagen or taking a supplement to ensure you’re keeping your body at it’s healthiest.

Magnesium is also an essential mineral that has a ton of health benefits like supporting healthy bones and promoting sleep. Your magnesium levels are depleted daily so it’s vital that they get replenished through your diet. It’s thought that a large portion of the population is actually deficient in magnesium. One of the symptoms of magnesium deficiency is muscle tightness, weakness, and cramps.

Related: The Benefits of Magnesium; Why 80% of Americans Are Deficient

Magnesium naturally blocks calcium from binding to your muscles which helps them to relax. When there isn’t enough magnesium to compete against the calcium your muscles can contract too much, causing spasms and pain.

Back when I was in high school and used to dance at a pre-professional ballet boarding school, my muscles were always cramping because of the amount of stress I put them under. Often times, I was dancing for at least 3 hours per day minimum up to 7 hours a day, and my body just wasn’t producing enough magnesium to keep up with the rigorous exercise.

I tried eating more bananas, but that wasn’t enough. It wasn’t until I started taking a magnesium supplement alongside making changes in my diet that I was able to perform at my best without getting any muscle cramps whatsoever.

By supplementing magnesium, you can be sure that you meet your daily intake needs. Sunwarrior’s liquid magnesium is sourced from a non-GMO inland seabed and harvested naturally without any chemicals or solvents.    

What to Expect During a Visit to an Applied Kinesiology Practitioner

Applied kinesiology aims to restore the chemical, structural and mental factors. These three elements join together to create the ‘triad of health’. When an individual is in ill health or injured, the idea is that one of these factors or perhaps all three are involved. Kinesiologists focus on the whole body, starting inside and working their way out to help clients gain a psychological and physical awareness of how they move.

During an applied kinesiology session, the patient remains fully clothed while the practitioner carries out muscle testing. Throughout the body, they test muscle functions and apply a gentle amount of pressure to see how it reacts. This muscle testing is thought to help discover where the imbalances lie in the body. After this, you may also have some further tests to see how your muscles are working.

Applied kinesiology identifies underlying issues using a whole-body holistic approach to health and wellness. By having a better understanding of your body and how it moves through applied kinesiology, you can cope with and treat injuries. Whether you were in an accident or have a sports-related injury, this healing method can help to prevent further injuries by discovering the real root of the problem.

Natalie Bohin