It's 11pm and you're still awake, typing "what is kinesiology" into your phone. A friend swears by it, and you can't tell if it's science, massage or something else.

I'm Vildan Alihodzic, a PKP kinesiologist at Intelligentle Healing in Moorabbin. People ask me that most weeks, so here's the straight answer, including exactly what happens on the table.

What is kinesiology, in plain English?

Kinesiology means "the study of movement". In a clinic like mine, it's a gentle, hands-on practice that reads how your body holds stress. I do that reading with muscle monitoring, which the Better Health Channel calls a form of biofeedback.

That's why searches get confusing. The same word covers two different things. One is the university science of how the body moves, the field behind sports rehab. The other is the hands-on practice I do, and it's what this page is about. If you searched kinésiologie or Kinesiologie, it's the same word in English.

A kinesiologist in that second sense reads your body through muscle monitoring, then uses gentle techniques to help it settle. The method I trained in is PKP, short for Professional Kinesiology Practice. It's one of the many types of kinesiology the Australian Kinesiology Association accredits for training. You'll also see it called kinesiology therapy or energy kinesiology. The federal review uses "specialised or energy kinesiology".

How does kinesiology work?

Kinesiology works by reading a muscle's response as a signal. I press lightly on an arm or leg, feel how it responds, and follow what it shows me.

Here's what that looks like. You lie on the table, fully clothed. I hold your arm out and press gently, around 2 kg, about a firm handshake. Then I ask you to bring a situation to mind, and I feel whether the muscle holds or softens.

Now the part people misread. A muscle that softens isn't weak, and I'm not testing your strength. I'm reading a small change, and that change tells me where to look next. The federal government's 2024 review describes this muscle testing as a way "to assess imbalances expressed in the body".

What happens in a kinesiology session?

A first session runs 75 minutes, you stay fully clothed, and it starts with a conversation, not the table. I explain what I'm doing as I go. There's nothing to prepare and nothing special to wear.

A first session, step by step

  1. Arrive and settle. The room is calm and private, and nobody rushes you.
  2. Name what you want to work on. I take a short history and we agree on one theme.
  3. Muscle monitoring. You lie on the table while I test a muscle and read how it responds.
  4. The balance. I use gentle techniques such as acupressure, breath and eye movements.
  5. Reflect. I talk you through what came up, in plain words.
  6. The plan. I tell you straight whether more sessions would help.

You don't have to retell your whole story or relive anything out loud. You can pause or stop at any point. Some people feel a wave of emotion on the table, and others go quiet. And if you walk in sceptical, that's fine.

Who is kinesiology good for?

Kinesiology suits people whose stress has moved into the body and who want a hands-on way to work with it. In my clinic I mostly see senior professionals who look fine from the outside. They run teams and hit targets, then lie awake replaying the day. Most come in with stress, anxiety or an old emotional load that talking hasn't shifted. Healthdirect lists changes in sleep, exhaustion and muscle tension among the signs of stress.

I know that state because I lived in it for years. I came to PKP more out of curiosity than hope. Staying stuck costs more than it looks. Say you lie awake for an hour, five nights a week. That's 260 hours a year, more than six working weeks spent braced in the dark.

What I work toward is a steadier baseline, a body that can stand down after a hard day. If a dysregulated nervous system sounds like you, that's the first pattern I look for. I pace each session to what your system is ready for, so nothing gets forced.

Where did kinesiology come from?

Kinesiology came out of chiropractic in the 1960s, when Dr George Goodheart started using muscle testing to read the body. He called it applied kinesiology. In Australia it stays with registered health professionals such as chiropractors, the 2024 review says.

The big change came in 1973. A chiropractor named John Thie published Touch for Health, a simpler version anyone could learn. It's now used in more than 100 countries, and today's hands-on kinesiology grew out of it.

PKP came next. Dr Bruce Dewe lectured in anatomy and physiology at the Auckland Medical School. He met applied kinesiology in 1977 and began the research behind PKP in 1982. He then built the protocol with Joan Dewe, and it's the one I trained in. I've also spent 18 months as head kinesiologist at a holistic rehabilitation facility. I worked every day with people in deep nervous system distress.

How does kinesiology compare with talk therapy, physio and reiki?

Kinesiology starts with the body, talk therapy starts with words, physio works on joints, and reiki is mostly rest. They do different jobs, and you can use more than one.

Who you see Starts with What a session looks like Your part
Psychologist Thoughts, feelings and patterns Sitting and talking You talk it through
Physiotherapist Joints, muscles and movement Hands-on work and exercises You do the exercises
Reiki practitioner Rest and relaxation Lying still, light or no touch You rest
Kinesiologist The body's stress response Clothed on a table, muscle monitoring Your muscle responses guide it

Of the four, kinesiology is the one where your body steers. With reiki, you rest while the practitioner works. With a psychologist, you work through words. On my table, your muscle responses decide what happens next.

PKP Kinesiology is self-regulated and not AHPRA-registered, as Ahpra's list of professions shows. I don't diagnose or treat conditions, so my work is support alongside your GP or psychologist. In a crisis, call Lifeline on 13 11 14, or 000.

How much does a kinesiology session cost?

A first session costs $270 for 75 minutes, and follow-ups cost $220 for 60 minutes. It's one-on-one with me every time. Online costs the same as coming to the clinic at 229 Chesterville Road, Moorabbin. Those are the full prices, with no booking fees on top.

Medicare doesn't cover kinesiology, and private health funds stopped covering it in 2019. So the price you see is the price you pay. You don't need to commit to a course up front. A first visit is one session, fully clothed, with a straight answer at the end about coming back.

Want to feel how it works in your own body? Book a first session or a free clarity call. The call is free, and you can ask me anything before you book a paid session.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does kinesiology hurt?

No, kinesiology doesn't hurt. You stay fully clothed on a padded table. The pressure on your arm or leg is light, about a firm handshake. There are no needles, no joint cracking and no deep tissue work. The techniques are gentle too, things like acupressure and breath. Nothing happens without your say-so, and you can pause or stop whenever you like.

What does a kinesiologist do?

A kinesiologist uses muscle monitoring to read how your body responds to stress. Gentle techniques then help it settle. In a PKP session with me, that's a short history and one agreed theme. Then comes monitoring on the table, and a plain talk-through at the end. I follow what your body shows me rather than a fixed script, so no two sessions run quite the same.

How many kinesiology sessions will I need?

There's no set number of kinesiology sessions, because it depends on what you bring in. One session is enough to see how I work and whether it suits you. At the end of it, I'll tell you straight whether more would help. Follow-ups run 60 minutes and pick up where the last one left off, so you never start from scratch. You can stop whenever you like.

Can you do kinesiology online?

Yes, you can do kinesiology online, over video. I guide you through testing your own muscles, and the session follows the same steps as one in the clinic. It costs the same as coming in, and I see people this way from across Australia. All you need is a quiet room, a steady connection and somewhere comfortable to sit or lie down.

Is kinesiology evidence-based?

The research on kinesiology is thin, and I'd rather tell you now than have you find out later. In 2024, Cochrane Australia reviewed kinesiology for the federal government. It found one trial that met its bar, a PKP trial of 70 people with chronic low back pain. That trial reported a moderate effect over a sham version, but the reviewers rated the evidence "very uncertain". Results vary, so judge it by your first session.

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