One of the things that astonished me once I started working as a Professional Systematic Kinesiologist back in 2008, was that no-one asked me for copies of my hard-earned qualifications or insurance.  I spent 6 months training for my Foundation Certificate and 1 year for my Practitioner Certificate followed by 6 more intensive modules to gain my Diploma.  As part of the course I had to complete 2 case studies at least per week, carry out 2 observed kinesiology sessions on an independent person (ie not another student) and many many hours of practical training.  Additionally I hold Anatomy & Physiology ITEC level 3, Emergency First Aid at Work and a Nutrition Diploma - not to mention hundreds of hours CPD, and Tutor Training - all of which are required to be registered by my Professional Body - the Association of Systematic Kinesiologists.

I say all this, not to boast (although I am I feel justifiably very proud..!!) but to really stress the thorough nature of training I have gone through in order to be competent to see and charge clients a fee for my services.

The reason this has really hit home to me recently is that I had been approached by a few potential students wanting to "continue their studies" with kinesiology but who felt that they didnt need to start with the foundation course because they had already "done one".   Of course, I'm always delighted to take on new students, whether they be complete beginners, intermediate, refreshers or advanced, but before registering them for a more advanced level of training, need to understand and be confident that they have the required level of experience to warrant that.  It turns out that the courses they worked through were all online.   I was immediately mystified how such a practical and hands-on modality could possibly be learned online, but rather than judge blindly without any experience of the courses available I signed up for one to do it myself....!

What followed, horrified me.   That's not to say all of the written content was bad - much of it was actually very good - but the practical element of learning the muscle testing was, in my opinion, woefully inadequate and sometimes plain dangerous  (testing for food sensitivity/allergy with food in the mouth..!).  Each module was followed by a written test - which I just copied and pasted answers to - and needless to say achieved my "A+ Diploma in Kinesiology"..... without a shred of practical experience at all.   Of course, were this an introduction or starter for future training, that would be fair enough, but what is really galling is that this Certificate, which to all intents and purposes could be gained by ANYONE like me who deliberately took as little time as possible to finish the course, now means I can gain insurance and practice as a "Kinesiologist" (bearing in mind that it doesnt specify what TYPE of Kinesiology..) - after just several hours cutting and pasting in front of a computer..!!!

Don't get me wrong - I love online courses, and as a basic introduction this would have been fine.  I always encourage students to pursue other lines of study and not just take my word for everything, whilst teaching as thoroughly as I can.  But I really feel strongly that ANY practical modality - be it kinesiology, reflexology, massage, reiki - CANNOT POSSIBLY be learned to qualification level online. 

I am more than happy to discuss this further with anyone interested in learning such a wonderful discipline as Systematic Kinesiology, and explain in more detail why any course approved by ASK (update 2021 - now the Kinesiology Association) is far superior to any online course.  If you are considering receiving kinesiology sessions (or any other modality) - ANY Practitioner worth their salt would be DELIGHTED to show you and explain the training they have gone through.