Muscle Testing

Muscle testing is the term commonly used to describe a communication technique based on the broader, scientifically-tested discipline called kinesiology. The study of kinesiology first received scientific attention through the work of Dr. George Goodheart in the 1960's. He pioneered what he called "Applied Kinesiology." He found that the body would reveal a response to benign stimuli through the strengthening or weakening of a muscle. This is akin to the experience of feeling weak in the knees and legs when suddenly confronted with a fearful situation and the experience of gaining energy and strength when something wonderful and happy happens to you.

Dr. Goodheart found that a subject could be given a bottle of a natural sweetener, such as raw honey, to hold; when the practitioner pressed down gently on the subject's extended arm, the arm would remain strong and not be pushed down. When a subject was given a bottle of artificial sweetener to hold, the extended arm would weaken and fall down under gentle pressure. The implication was that the body knew and expressed through muscle testing what was good or bad for that individual.

In the late '70's, Dr. John Diamond refined this technique into a new discipline called "Behavioral Kinesiology." This new discipline was based on his important discovery that the tested muscles would respond with strength or weakness to emotional and intellectual stimuli, not just physical. When the client smiled, his or her arm would strengthen, but when the client repeated the statement, "I hate you," the arm would test weak. In Dr. Diamond's research, his subjects responded consistently to the point of being predictable, repeatable and universal.

Using Diamond's work, well-known psychiatrist Dr. David R. Hawkins began research on the muscle testing response to truth and falsehood. He observed a strengthening of the muscle in response to a statement which was objectively true and a weakening of the muscle in response to a statement that was objectively false. This was consistent, even when the subject did not know whether the statement was true or false.

Hawkins also established that test subjects did not need any conscious acquaintance with the physical substance or emotional/intellectual issue being tested. In other words, this phenomenon occurs independently of the subjects' own opinion or knowledge of the substance or topic being tested. The response proved cross-culturally valid and reproducible in any population. The test results fulfill the scientific requirement of replication. Further, he also used double-blind studies in mass demonstrations involving entire lecture audiences. Here, subjects universally tested weak in response to unmarked envelopes containing artificial sweetener and strong to an identical envelope containing a placebo. The same response appeared in testing intellectual values as well, such as testing for courage vs. fear.

Kinesiology is a broad subject dealing with the study of the muscular system. Applied Kinesiology, or muscle testing, is only one part of kinesiology and is used as a medium for communication. It is not the source behind the communication. It can be described as simply a mouthpiece. Healing Key Way practitioners use it as a means to access wisdom from the deepest levels of consciousness.

To access a client's answers, the practitioner can pose a question to which the answer is a simple yes or no, then press down on the client's extended arm to determine if they can easily keep their arm up or if the arm weakens and falls. Or, the practitioner can make a statement that is either true or false and test the arm in the same way. The arm of the testee will stay strong on a yes answer or true statement and go weak on a no answer or false statement. A person can learn to muscle test themselves by using finger strength rather than arm strength.

The use of muscle testing has become increasingly popular among naturopathic physicians, nutritionists and chiropractors as a means of determining the roots of imbalance, the direction of treatment and the choice of medicines, supplements, foods and spinal adjustments. Some patients now seek practitioners partly on the basis of whether or not they do muscle testing, preferring to have the addition of a tool that individualizes their treatment.

Muscle testing, like any means of testing that is scientifically validated, is still subject to error. Dehydration of the subject, muscle fatigue, and general fatigue in either the tester or the subject can all interfere with accurate testing. Muscle strength is affected by nerve impulses, which are an electrical phenomenon, so things that interfere with the energetic/electrical field around or in the body - whether physical, emotional or mental - can potentially affect muscle testing answers. If the tester or the subject has a strong opinion about which answer is preferable, this can also influence the test results. Healing Key Way practitioners are schooled in the release of ego and attachment to outcomes and answers. The intention is to access the client's highest guidance and deepest wisdom, without any interference.

Healing Key Way practitioners are carefully trained in muscle testing, and the protocol includes checks along the way to insure that testing is done with a high degree of accuracy and, if there are mistakes, they are caught and corrected. We do not use muscle testing for everyday logistical questions, such as whether or not the client should buy a certain car. Such questions will produce an answer, but it will not come from the deepest level of wisdom and is no better than a best guess. Clients are guided to seek their own answers to such questions, using their own inner resources. On the other hand, questions directly related to the healing process are of great value and can produce highly accurate test results. The source is from the deepest level of consciousness.

For more about the protocol, read a Description of the Healing Key Way.

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