Wednesday, October 31, 2007

I Give Up- Here Are Your Free Charts

We can't fight it. Every time we turn around we around we see our reflexology charts on web sites, blogs and so forth. All of this without permission.

So we have decided to open the charts up to certain uses. We have selected a Creative Commons License that allows you to copy, distribute and transmit the work but with the following restrictions. You must attribute the charts to us, Barbara and Kevin Kunz, Reflexology Research Project. (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/3.0/)

No Derivative Works.You may not alter, transform, or build upon this work without our permission.

If you put these charts on your web site, blog or written material we request you include a link to our page. Seems fair payment.

There you go. You can print these charts out, include them on promotional/educational material, web sites, blogs or educational Powerpoint presentations. Give them to family, friends and clients. But please do include proper credit. It isn't a lot to ask.

Here are the links to free charts.

Foot Reflexology Chart-http://www.reflexology-research.com/footchart.html

Hand Reflexology Chart-http://www.reflexology-research.com/handchart.html

Enjoy.

Kevin Kunz

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Calf Loosening

Calf loosening isn't what cowboys do. Rather it is one of two really easy ways to loosen the foot.

The calf muscles tend to pull the foot flat in the act of trying to propel us forward in a footstep. The foot muscles try to maintain an arch. There is a type of oppositional relationship between the calf muscles and the foot muscles. The more you can loosen the calf muscles the more you loosen the foot muscles.

Stretching is an easy way to stretch the calf muscles. Here are some simple calf stretches. Walkinghealthy.com. http://www.walkinghealthy.com/walkinghealthy/Stretching/CalfStretch.asp

You can even buy a devices to help you stretch. But I like free.

I like to hang off a step. It is simplest of the stretches and very effective. And it resets the stretch receptors so every step you take requires less energy and lessens the impact on your body.

The second approach to foot loosening is a foot roller. You simply roll your foot up and down on the roller. There are a wide variety of foot rollers to choice from. Find one you like.

Resetting your foot muscles to a more relaxed state is easy. And the dividends are many. There are more details in Complete Reflexology for Life. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN=0756628520/reflexologyreseaA/

Kevin Kunz

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

It's The Stress, Stupid


Politicians are quite fond of saying,"It's the economy, stupid." This is a phrase to describe why people vote the the way they do. Until the Iraq war it held up pretty well as a truism.

Recently the American Medical Association in a commentary in its Journal said that stress is a "powerful risk factor".

... stress is not “just” some benign complaint. Instead, it’s a powerful risk factor for disease, notes a recent commentary in The Journal of the American Medical Association. The article focuses on evidence showing that stress is linked to an increased risk for heart attacks, depression, cancer and the progression of H.I.V. and AIDS. Notably, an accompanying article in JAMA notes that workplace stress may be as bad for your heart as smoking and high cholesterol. And marital strife also poses a major risk to your heart health, the Archives of Internal Medicine reported this week. Tara Parker-Pope, Giving Stress More Respect, New York Times October 24, 2007.

So why aren't we saying "It's the Stress, Stupid." when confronted with the skeptics that question why rubbing feet and hands or many other "alternative therapies" can have an effect on a wide variety of disorders and yes, even diseases.

Reflexology is frequently put down as a "feel good" services. But "feeling good" is important because it means your stress level has been interrupted and the stress is lower than it was before.

Wellness is about feeling good. Feeling good lowers the risk factors that weaken our bodies and threatens our health.

It is interesting that you can't feel good and be depressed at the same time. There are a myriad of things that cannot thrive when you feel good.

So next time you feel stressed look for the things in your life that make you feel good and go for it. You might just save your life.

Kevin Kunz

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

The Feet's Features- The Importance of Your Feet

Your feet are important for a variety of reasons. When you think about buying cheap shoes versus more expensive shoes or you think you don't have time to take care of your feet or you override the pain in them think about the following facts:

• Feet provide you with the ability to move from place to place.
• Feet have an impact on your overall physical and mental health.
• Feet help shape how the body’s energy is expended.
• Feet have the ability to trigger the relaxation response.
• Feet if cared for continue to provide the capability to maintain independent living throughout your life into later years.

Keep your feet going and your feet will keep you going. But you must speak the language of your feet and that is the language of pressure, stretch and movement.

These are the signals that reset the foot's tension level and these are the signals that cause a relaxation response throughout your body. And finally these are the signals that will help them to keep in shape.

So grab your feet and get acquainted. What are you going to do for them today? And remember small investments in your feet can mean big returns.

Kevin Kunz

Friday, October 19, 2007

Reboot Your Feet- Reboot Your Body

Your feet and your body have a very "tight relationship". The feet help set the tension level for the body. the reason is simple. Standing upright requires tremendous coordination between the feet, the brain and the rest of the body.

Part of this is the proper tension level or "tone". Too little tone and you won't make it upright. Too much tone and you are wasting energy and placing a lot more demand on your body then is necessary.

So we are going to work on resetting the tension level of the feet and in turn resetting the tension level in the rest of the body. In computer parlance we are going to reboot the system.

Here are some of the things to help reboot your feet and reboot your body.

• Be aware of your feet and how they feel
• Pay attention to your feet: take an active role in keeping your feet happy
• Give your feet something new to think about: give them some stimulation
• Relax your feet by interrupting their stress frequently
• Avoid stressing your feet
• Strengthen your feet through exercise

This all about how much demand you place on your feet. We often are unaware of our feet and the stresses they face. We override their feelings. We expect them to function even though we may pay more attention to our car tires. If feet had tear ducts they would cry.

Feet are encased in a sensory deprivation tank of sorts, the shoe. Feet are quite simply bored to death from living in this environment and walking on flat unyielding surfaces.

Feet crave stimulation. Feet want to relax. And feet are willing to exercise.

I have a saying, "If your face was in that shoe instead of your feet you would take a lot better care of them". The feet are quite good at their job and that includes overriding overuse and even abuse. They can mask their feelings quite well.

So if you want to reboot your stress system start by taking care and maintaining your feet. Your feet will love you for it. Happy feet make for a happy body.

We are going to talk about rebooting schemes in the next few weeks as we head into the holiday season. And as you know rebooting is important to avoid system crashes. Holiday crashes.

Kevin Kunz

Thursday, October 18, 2007

A Stumble Caught in Time

A famous neurologist once called a footstep "a stumble caught in time". The art of walking takes an enormous amount of communication from our brain to the foot and the foot ot the brain. It also requires the integration of our balance mechanism into this whole process. If this any of this fails we fall. It is that simple.

As we age the communication between our brain and our feet starts to get dimmer. One reason is that shoes have an impact on this information superhighway. If you think of the foot as a sensory organ then a shoe in a sense is a "sensory blindfold" or a roadblock.

Currently there are research projects underway to amp up the signals from the bottom of our feet and from the very complex communication center, the ankle. It is very promising for preventing seniors from falling.

In one approach subconscious signals are sent through shoe inserts to the foot and on up to the brain in one project. The purpose is to keep seniors from falling by simply sending more information. More information means better righting position and better recovery from starting to fall. The translation is simple- less hip fractures, the killer of the elderly.

But falls also involve toppling over so another team is amping up the signals from your ankles. This device wraps around the ankle and "talks" to the brain about your ankle's position in relation to the ground. If you start to tip it feeds more information up the side where the tipping is taking place.

How to do this at home.

Until these devices are perfected there are a lot of things to do.

1) Take that sensory blind fold off or simply translated it means
remove your shoes. This alone amps up the signal from the foot to the brain.

2) Roll the bottom of your foot on a foot roller. A simple foot roller can do worlds of good in reawakening these lines of communication. And the bottom of the foot is the key to staying upright.

3) Add the element of touch and the communication is even richer. Research has shown that partner reflexology can be quite beneficial with patients undergoing chemotheraphy. The reason is simple. We all react very well to human touch.

Go to a reflexologist or find a foot friend to trade sessions with. And there is nothing that can truly measure a mother's touch. Family reflexology doesn't just provide a physical benefit but can be a lasting memory.

4) Rotate your ankles. This affects all four major muscle groups coming down from the legs. It also reawakens this communication hub we call the ankle.

Rotating the ankles moves nerve signals and both blood and lymph fluids through the bottleneck of the ankle. It opens up the traffic jam that occurs here and starts things flowing again.

To rotate your ankles simple rotate your ankles first in one direction then the other. You can use your big toe to draw a clockface in the air if you like but cover both clockwise and counterclockwise directions.

There are a lot more ways to open up these pathways. We will cover them in upcoming blogs. But remember the more information we get from the feet the better chance we have to stay upright into a ripe old age.

Kevin Kunz

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

The First Boomer

Last night on the news they had a story on the first baby boomer to receive Social Security. The question that looms is whether we as a society can absorb the 79 million aging boomers.

I think about the medical costs we face or let say the generations following us face. And I think about the quality of life we face as we age. (Hell you can stick the kids with the bill but what about me?)

It was interesting that this report was also followed by a report on the decline in cancer statistics, The news report gave the all of the credit to the medical advances. Early detection and so forth is the key to this decline according to the news.

While I believe that early detection has contributed a tremendous amount there wasn't even a mention of self empowerment. There was no hint that people taking proactive steps towards nutrition, stress reduction, exercise and so forth could be contributing. Well I guess they know where their advertisers come from.

So on that note I plan to do a series of "Boomer Alerts" or things you can do empowering yourself to better health and being less of a burden on society and mostly your kids. We all don't want to be slackers, do we?

1st "Boom Alert" Have you ever notice how older people's chins are headed toward their belly buttons? This is gravity moving us out of alignment from a position where our head is supported in alignment with the rest of our bodies to where our head is dangling out ahead of us headed for our feet.

This does a number of interesting things. It makes us fragile and easy to topple over. Hip fractures contribute billions of dollars to health care costs.

We are more stressed as we have to adapt to this new stance. The feet tend to lock up since we shift our center of mass forward locking up the middle part of our feet or the locking wedge as it is called it.

This locks the the metatarsal heads (ball of the foot), our heart/chest/lung reflex area and locks the mid-tarsal joint which is right over the pancreas/adrenal reflex area.

Instead of circulating fluids they stagnant in not only the feet but the rest of the body as well. Stress is placed on the heart, kidneys and so forth.

The shoulders round over and a nice hump forms. The gait changes to adjust to this new stance. Sound familiar?

So here is a simple remedy for detaching your chin from your belt buckle. Bend back the other way. If you are sitting in a chair bend back and over the back of the chair and hold this for a few seconds. Or reach for the sky, partner. Only make sure to bend back as you do that. Again hold it for a few.

Or take up Yoga. But make sure you are bending in the opposite direction to the forward pull of gravity.

Break up that pattern of stress that is forming in your posture. Remember interrupt stress and do it frequently.

I will write more on the feet part of this solution in the next Boomer Alert. We need to unlock those feet before we get pounded to death.

Kevin Kunz

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Help the "Widgie Boy"

Our Irish friend, Michael calls me the "Widgie Boy" for my love of widgets. (It was "Widget Boy" but Michael does come up with the phrases.)

If you don't know what a widget is it is a small application that can tell you time, temperature or any of a thousand things. They are fun and can be very functional and educational. Or they can be just plain silly.

DK, our publisher, developed a hand reflexology widget for the release of Complete Reflexology for Life . the widget lights up various areas with you draw your mouse over it and tells you what area is related. It is a lot of fun and is spreading across the Internet like wildfire. http://www.clearspring.com/widgets/46dd6d7d25ffd441?p=46dd6d7d25ffd441

But just for fun I would like to see ithe widget spread even faster. Would you send the widget on to 10 friends and help spread the word about reflexology? (And of course, you will be helping us sell books as well.)

It is easy to send the widget on just click on "get & send" the button bar at the bottom. And be sure to click on the "Read Your Hand" bar to get to the big interactive charts.

Become a part of this vast conspiracy.

Kevin Kunz

Monday, October 15, 2007

I used to work for wild oats

> I am working at a benefit walk this weekend, Saturday, October 20. I am giving
Reflexology sessions after the walk and wondered if anyone has experience with short sessions.


I used to do the employee benefit plan for Wild Oats Health Market. The "front end" employees (cashiers) had 15 minutes with me. That meant 7 and a 1/2 minutes per foot.

Walkers have the same issues but may be not as severe. Standing is harder on the feet and legs than walking.

What I focused on was loosening the foot. Cashiers in the US stand all day so reversing the effects is a key. Traction is a fast and simple technique.

I used a lot of techniques we developed called "Stride Replication". The techniques are basically cupping, tapping and percussion applied to the foot (and sometimes the hands.) the ball of the foot and the ankle are great targets for cupping. It causes the whole foot to relax and resets the proprioceptors. (These techniques are in our latest book, Complete Reflexology for Life, http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN=0756628520/reflexologyreseaA/)

A quick pass through the endocrine glands and some desserts and you are onto the next foot.

I loved this job. It was fun. It also was very challenging. The challenge was different than working on a clients. It requires focus and flexibility.

One night as I was checking out from the service counter the guy behind the
counter snapped my picture with a Polaroid camera. Next thing I know he is on
the loudspeaker telling the store of the employees appreciation award I was being given.

I still run into people from Wild Oats who know me as the "foot guy". And I still have that award.

Kevin Kunz

Friday, October 12, 2007

Undercover Work

Yesterday I received a call from a friend whose mother was in the hospital. She asked me
to come over to the hospital to see if the reflexology might help.

The surprise was the young doctor who showed up and watch what I did for over an half
an hour. He was quite curious and we had a very pleasant chat. I talked about some research with
him and he respond very well to that.

But then he turned very serious and asked how medical personnel respond to me working
in the hospital. I replied that I used to call it "undercover work" years ago since I quite
literally worked under the covers. And when medical personnel approached I would
withdraw my hands.

I told him quite a few years ago I notice quite a bit of change. My grand nephew came
down with flesh eating bacteria and nearly died. I work on him everyday (most days- twice
a day) for 23 days while he was in intensive care.

Then one day a female doctor walked in. I backed up from the bed to let her gain access to
Jake. She said that it was all right, continue with my work and she would work around me.
So I did.

When she was finished her exam, she turned to me and said, "Now make sure you work on
the lungs," and then left. I looked around to see what planet I was on.

The young doctor was amused with my story. I ended up giving him a copy of Complete
Reflexology for Life. He seemed so very interested.

All in all a very nice experience.
Kevin Kunz

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Stepping on a Tack

I just ran across an old quote of mine that Reflexology Association of Canada liked.

"Kevin Kunz, one of the pioneers of reflexology, puts it best -- 'Imagine stepping on a tack. Your whole body reacts because of something perceived by the foot. Reflexology with a full range of pressure sensors, utilizes the same body system of fight or flight to relax the body.' Indeed,the feet and hands are more sensitive than most people realize. Similar to how we use our eyes to detect light, the hands and feet detect pressure, stretch, movement and weight distribution."

As we age our feet and hands lose communication with our brains. So stimulating the feet and hands as a sensory organs with different signals like pressure, stretch and movement can reconnect that trunk line between our extremities and our brain.

Even heat/cold, vibration and the scratchy surface of a loofah sponge or hairbrush can reestablish those lost connections. So when you think of the whole body reacting to stepping on a tack that same communication system can keep all our body parts connected to each other.

So you don't have to step on a tack to get the same effect.

Kevin Kunz


Tuesday, October 9, 2007

Judging a reflexology session

Judging a reflexology session
by Kevin Kunz

How long the relaxation effect lasts between reflexology sessions is a good indicator of how effective the session has been. It can also give you a sense of how long it may take to achieve some results.

If the relaxation effect lasts only a short period of time it may mean a number of things. It may mean that your stress level is high and may take some time to lower. Your body is literally in a state of emergency. Or it may mean that you did not respond very well to the session because of a number of factors. Or you may not be comfortable with reflexology as a modality. Sometimes it can be a reaction to a particular practitioner.

If your relaxation response lasts a moderately long period of time this is good news. It may take less time to achieve a conditioning effect or to reach the goal you are seeking. Work with the practitioner with self help to stretch out this effect.

Finally you may have just needed a nudge and the reflexology session has had long lasting effects. You are one of the lucky ones who respond well to reflexology. It will probably take a brief period of time to achieve your goals. With some self-help you can help speed along the results.

I look at it this way. When our stress load is extremely high all our resources are focused on surviving. If we can move the stress gauge down a bit the body responds by starting its own self repair process. Finally if we can lower the stress load sufficiently we can achieve a state of wellness where you feel good almost all of the time.

Awareness of your relaxation response is a key element in achieving success through reflexology sessions. Never feel timid about talking to the reflexologist about your progress. And finally find the reflexology style and reflexologist that best creates the relaxation effect you need for wellness.

Kevin Kunz

Monday, October 8, 2007

Oat Bran and Reflexology

No this isn't a blog on reflexology and digestive issues (although reflexology has done very well with this according to research). It is about the state of research in reflexology and prejudice towards the feet as impacting health.

Two scientific studies were done on oat bran. They show positive results on digestive issues.

Farmers suddenly couldn't plant oat bran fast enough to keep pace with the demand for in the marketplace. Now the consumption of bran in some form is a daily habit for millions of people.

We have documented 163 studies with a 90% positive rating for reflexology and various disorders. (The bulk of the negative studies have to do with the reflexologist's diagnostic abilities. Duh...) The research studies are detailed here. http://www.reflexology-research.com/Abstracts.html

Don't get me wrong. Reflexology is doing very well. But it is still fighting a strong headwind of prejudice towards the feet as having an impact on the health of people. Even though there is scientific evidence that it does impact health.

Any thoughts as to why this resistance?

Kevin Kunz

Saturday, October 6, 2007

What is Reflexology?








What is Reflexology?

Just updated the page "What is Reflexology/". Take a look. click here.
http://www.reflexology-research.com/whatis.htm

All the best,
Kevin Kunz
Complete Reflexology for Life

Reflexology: Health at Your Fingertips
Over 370,000 sold- 18 languages
Interactive Foot Chart- http://www.dk.com/reflexology
http://www.reflexology-research.com

Friday, October 5, 2007

Rock and Roll Your Feet

Here's a simple way to break up the patterns of stress that form in your feet during the day. This exercise is also very good if you stand for long periods of time. It resets the pressure sensors in the feet and legs. And it strengthens the lateral muscles of the legs that are frequently under stimulated.

First stand with your feet about shoulder width wide. Bend your knees slightly. Next gently rock from side to side. You kind of roll across the foot.

If you have trouble with balance be sure to hold onto the back of a chair.

A lot of time you will hear popping and cracking as the joints loosen up. Nothing to worry about. The joints re simply releasing their tension.

You don't have to do it for long periods of time. It is actually better to do it several times a day for a few seconds than to do it for a long period of time. And never push it to extremes.

One of my clients does it after every session to open her feet up even further. And when you reset the tension level in the feet you also reset the tension level in the rest of the body.

So rock and roll your feet to better health.

Kevin Kunz

Complete Reflexology for Life

Thursday, October 4, 2007

Reflex Revival Technique





Could a reflex technique provide a helpful technique for one of the world's leading causes of
death - sudden cardiac arrest?

Worldwide, some three million people a year suffer a sudden cardiac arrest with a survival rate estimated to be less than 1%. Yet, by applying a reflex technique, reflexologists Kevin Kunz and Larry Clemmons have revived individuals who had, to all appearances, experienced sudden cardiac arrest. Given the serious nature of sudden cardiac arrest with slim chances of survival and the devastating impact on those left behind, the possibility that reflexology could make a difference is worth exploring - after all it made a difference for three individuals who encountered Kunz and Clemmons.

Read More
http://www.reflexology-research.com/revival.html

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

The "Poop Nurse"

The "Poop Nurse"
by Kevin Kunz at

We used to know a nurse down in Lubbock, Texas. She was nicknamed the "poop nurse" for her work with infants.

Infants have to defecate and urinate within a certain period or real trouble will ensue. This nurse used her reflexology skills to trigger a response. Thus her nickname came into being.

At one point a new supervisor came into the hospital. she forbid her from doing her infant reflexology work. So the poop nurse quit her job and move on to the next hospital that was more than happy to hire her.

Infants have tiny feet so it doesn't take much pressure to effect the organs of elimination. Gentle pressure to the bottoms of the feet does wonders.
For further information try


Tuesday, October 2, 2007

Bubbles on my feet











> hi All,
> I am looking at my feet right now and they look fine. I notice some nites there are
> bubbles on my feet just above my spine reflex from my heel to the end of my arch. what
> does this mean? Debbie
>
Debbie

Have you ever injured your tailbone? Frequently these bubbles connect this to injury to the tailbone and/or the back. By pressing on the heel with the flat of the thumb you can bring these areas out. We call this "press and assess".

Fractures tend to be more pronounced but all kinds of injury can produce these bubbles. Child birth can even cause injury to the tailbone. But sometimes people don't recall the injury but do notice discomfort sitting for long periods of time for example, extended plane flights.

The good news is you now have "targets" for technique application. Point it out to your practitioner. A golf ball or even a superball can be used to apply self help technique.

A side note: Technique application to the heel will often lessen the overall foot tension. But Jim Ingram of FRAA came up with a great tip. Work this tailbone area to loosen the foot. It has the same effect without wearing out your thumbs on tough heels.

Kevin Kunz

Monday, October 1, 2007

A Simple "Read Your Feet" Tip

A Simple "Read Your Feet" Tip
by Kevin Kunz

If you have worked on feet or even if you work on your own feet you may have noticed "white areas". As I said in a previous post "white areas" tend to indicate that the body is having trouble getting blood to an area. The Chinese saw this as a depletion of energy.

If you are working on the big toe reflex area as an example, it may be reflecting a lack of circulation to head/neck or sinuses. See these charts.

With practice and some careful questions you can often find the source of the stress. A neck injury can show up as a white streak on the base of the big toe. Go here for an example. http://www.reflexology-research.com/stresscue.html

Note that there are two white bands with a red area in between. This was a severe throat infection.

Now here is the clever bit. If you have noticed these white areas have you ever taken note on how fast they fade away? The longer they take to fade away the more chronic or severe in general the condition. By asking follow up questions you can usually figure out whether it is a current stress, severe stress, chronic stress or not much of a concern.

You have to try a lot of feet to get a feeling for this. But with observation you can get pretty good at this. I sometimes just press and hold an area and then release it to see how long it takes to normalize. I have even timed it.

You can do this with self help as well. Try pressing on an area and then releasing. How long does it take to fade?

Does it stay white? Does this match your assessment of the corresponding area? Can you see changes in the area after you apply technique for awhile? Does it get better after a series of sessions with a reflexologist or with consistent self help application?

Let me know what you observe.

Kevin Kunz