Understanding Applied Kinesiology: Muscle Strength Vs Inhibition Regarding Manual Muscle Tests

Manual Muscle Testing (MMT) was first introduced at John’s Hopkins in the early 1940’s as a means of quantifying disability. First, a muscle is isolated by positioning the patient in a precise manner. (If testing an arm muscle, the arm would be extended to the side, for example.) The patient is instructed to push first, then the doctor meets that pressure and gives just a little more. The results are graded as follows:

5 Perfect. The muscle functions properly and adapts to the additional force. The extended limb remains unmoved by the doctor.

4 Suboptimal. The muscle is unable to adapt to additional force. It “folds” under the doctor’s pressure and the extended limb is moved with relative ease.

3-0 Overt neurological or muscle pathology. Results range from barely resisting gravity to complete paralysis.

Fast forward to 1964, when Dr George Goodheart of Detroit, Michigan, noticed one of his patient’s scapula (shoulder blade) sticking out more than the other. (The patient’s primary complaint was shoulder pain.) Dr Goodheart knew that the muscle responsible for pulling in the shoulder blade is serratus anterior, so he tested it bilaterally. Sure enough it was weak (4/5) on the same side as the bulging shoulder blade. He felt the muscle and found small discrete nodules, “like a bee bee under a piece of raw bacon.”” These nodules were near the origin of the muscle and were exquisitely tender. Dr Goodheart was exceptionally intuitive, so he rubbed the bee bee-like nodules. As he did this, the nodules ‘melted’ under his fingertips. Once finished, he re-tested serratus anterior and found it to be strong. His patient never had the same problem again. Dr. Goodheart had serendipidously discovered origin-insertion technique. He continued working with MMT, discovering a multitude of other techniques and phenomena until he eventually formed his own group of interested professionals. Dr. Goodheart called his approach Applied Kinesiology (AK).

Results under applied kinesiology are so rapid, they appear to be magical. For this reason, AK is frequently shunned as pseudo-science or psycho-somatic. It doesn’t help that some of his students formed their own techniques and taught students without a scientific background. MMT has been watered down to an extent that now there are charlatans on TV ‘testing muscles’. After muscles are shown to be weak, they tell the person to try on this ‘magic’ wristband. Then they do another sham ‘muscle test’ and miraculously show improved strength. “Buy this wrist band and you can be strong, too!”

There are some major differences between someone who knows what they’re doing and a con-artist.

1. A professional applied kinesiologist can explain in detail which muscle (s)he is testing.

2. A professional should be able to describe the difference between muscle strength and muscle inhibition:

A nerve running to a muscle is more than just one nerve cell, but for the sake of discussion we’ll choose a nice round number like 10. A muscle has billions of cells. Again, for convenience, let’s say 100. That means that in our example, each nerve cell divides at what is called the motor-end plate to innervate 10 muscle cells. This is also expressed in a nerve to muscle ratio as 1:10. In body builders, the division is even greater-they have many more muscle cells. Strength comes from the quantity of muscle cells.

Nerve inhibition is the most frequent cause of MMT ‘weakness’. Now, obviously, if we cut the nerve there is complete paralysis (0/5 MMT). What if we pinch it so that 1 nerve cell can’t get its signal to its muscle cells? That means that now the muscle as a whole can only fire 90 out of 100 muscle cells. It is 90% as effective as it could be. The muscle is still there, but it is less able to adapt. Inhibition is when a muscle tests weak due to a nerve related cause.

Simply put, a professional will be able to figure out why the muscle is testing weak (4/5) and explain how it can be fixed with detail. They will have a medical degree granting them primary care rights and a bare minimum of 100 hours certification in AK. Specialization is conferred by the title of Diplomate and designated with the credentials DIBAK after their name. For information on how to find a professional applied kinesiologist, visit the International College of Applied Kinesiology (ICAK) online.

Source by David C Renner, DC

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