Home Study Courses

Home Study continuing education (CE) courses are designed to allow you to learn from the comfort of your own home, at your own pace, while earning CE credit!

The home study courses are availabe exclusively on our LearnMuscles Continuing Education (LMCE) subscription service (at no additional cost beyond the subscription fee).

If you feel that you did not learn well enough the basics of musculoskeletal anatomy, physiology, and kinesiology; or if you would like to deepen your knowledge of these subjects while earning CE credit, these courses are for you!

Dr. Joe Muscolino’s books are written in a simple and clear manner, but also thorough. His publications are award winning and are translated into nine foreign languages!

Note: All CE credit is awarded through the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (NCBTMB).

Every time I finish a chapter in Kinesiology, I feel so empowered to be a better trainer and therapist because you have given us so much practical knowledge and foundation to undergird the physical work that we do. For example, I’ve learnt about postural analysis for many years now and even taught it to students under Pilates training, but having just read through your chapter on Posture and Gait Cycle, I feel like I have been teaching without truly understanding the topic deep enough!
Thank you for giving of yourself and creating this text book for us. I can only imagine how much work must have gone into it. I really felt that I needed to write to you to thank you for giving me the tools to become a better trainer because this deeper level of understanding that I’m gaining now is allowing me to reassess again how I train and teach the people that come my way, and to make a genuine difference in their lives.
I’m going back to finishing up my chapters now. 4 more chapters to go and I’ll be officially ready to receive my COMT Certification from you!
It’s been a long journey but one that I’ve been so enriched by. Thank you Joe! Much blessings.Angie, Fitness Trainer and Pilates Instructor

Dr. Muscolino: I enjoyed the book and format for your self-study course. I have only taken a few home study CE courses, but I have to say yours was far and away the best. The content and layout of material and the quizzes themselves were more challenging than some hands-on courses I have taken. Having sat in a classroom with you for many semesters, I believe you have created a home study product that is as close to being in your classroom as you could achieve without actually being there yourself. Megan H., Massage Therapist

I am contacting you regarding the Home-Study version of COMT Certification-Regional Approach. I have completed the two home-study book-related course modules, as well as two of the on-line workshops. Copies of the certificates of completion of each of the quizzes are attached… I plan to remain a subscriber to Digital COMT and have completed one additional on-line workshop and several other lessons. This is a great resource and I’m planning on attending two upcoming workshops in September in Kalispell, MT, along with my wife who is an LMT and Pilates instructor (and subscriber to Digital COMT). Gary B, LMT, Florida

Dr. Joe Muscolino has two home study sets of courses, each one based on one of his two textbooks, The Muscular System Manual, 3rd or 4th Edition, and Kinesiology, 3rd Edition.

Each set of courses is divided into modules, each module covering one chapter of the book. Each module can be taken separately. Most courses, once successfully passed, award CE credit.

For each set of courses, the only content necessary is the book (and any companion video content that comes with the book). It is important to make sure that you have the correct edition.

If you do not already own the book for the course set that you are looking to take, click here to order the book. Once you have the book, you can start reading, learning, and earning CE credit!

Following are the two home-study sets of courses that are offered:

Note: Completion of these two sets of courses (Kinesiology & Muscular System Manual books), can augment your full COMT Certification.

Kinesiology, The Skeletal System and Muscle Function, 3rd Edition : (Click HERE to order the book)

There are 19 separate CE course modules/chapters, corresponding to 19 of the 23 chapters of the textbook. For each chapter module, first read the chapter, as well as consult the companion DVD when indicated (there are call-out icons in the text when there is associated DVD content to view). Each chapter/module can be taken in any order that you like, although it is recommended that you follow the order of the chapters of the book.

These CE courses are:

Chapter 1: Parts of the Human Body
Chapter 2: Mapping the Human Body
Chapter 3: Skeletal Tissues (4 CE hours)
Chapter 4: Fascia
Chapter 5: Bones of the Human Body
Chapter 6: Joint Action Terminology
Chapter 7: Classification of Joints
Chapter 8: Joints of the Axial Body (4 CE hours)
Chapter 9: Joints of the Lower Extremity (5 CE hours)
Chapter 10: Joints of the Upper Extremity (5 CE hours)
Chapter 11: Attachments and Actions of Muscles – There is no CE course for this chapter. If you would like CE credit for learning the muscles of the body, please see the CE courses for the Muscular System Manual, 4th Edition.
Chapter 12: Anatomy and Physiology of Muscle Tissue
Chapter 13: How Muscles Function: the Big Picture (4 CE hours)
Chapter 14: Types of Muscle Contractions (3 CE hours)
Chapter 15: Roles of Muscles (5 1/2 CE hours)
Chapter 16: Types of Joint Motion and Musculoskeletal Assessment
Chapter 17: Determining the Force of a Muscle Contraction (3 CE hours)
Chapter 18: Biomechanics – There is no CE course for this chapter.
Chapter 19: The Neuromuscular System (3 CE hours)
Chapter 20: Posture and the Gait Cycle (3 CE hours)
Chapter 21: Common Postural Distortion Patterns
Chapter 22: Stretching
Chapter 23: Principles of Strengthening Exercise

The Muscular System Manual, The Skeletal Muscles of the Human Body, 3rd Edition or 4th Edition (Click HERE to order the book)

There are 19 separate CE course modules/chapters, corresponding to 19 chapters of the 3rd or the 4th edition text (in other words, you can complete these quizzes with either the Muscular System Manual, 3rd edition OR the Muscular System Manual, 4th edition). For each chapter module, first read the chapter, as well as consult the companion CD when indicated (there are call-out CD icons in the text when there is associated CD content to view). Each chapter/module can be taken in any order that you like, although it is recommended that modules/chapters 1-3 are completed before taking the other modules/chapters.

Note regarding the companion CD: The companion CD primarily corresponds to chapters 4-19. This CD is interactive and is extremely valuable toward learning the individual muscles, as well as learning their relative locations to each other. There is no exact time usage that is required when working with this CD. Please make use of it to your own comfort level.

These CE courses are:

Chapter 1: Basic Kinesiology Terminology (2 CE hours)
Chapter 2: The Skeletal System (2 CE hours)
Chapter 3: How Muscles Function (2 CE hours)
Chapter 4: Muscles of the Shoulder Girdle Joints (3 CE hours)
Chapter 5: Muscles of the Glenohumeral Joint (3 1/2 CE hours)
Chapter 6: Muscles of the Elbow and Radioulnar Joints (3 CE hours)
Chapter 7: Muscles of the Wrist Joint (2 1/2 CE hours)
Chapter 8: Extrinsic Muscles of the Finger Joints (3 1/2 CE hours)
Chapter 9: Intrinsic Muscles of the Finger Joints (3 1/2 CE hours)
Chapter 10: Muscles of the Spinal Joints (5 CE hours)
Chapter 11: Muscles of the Rib Cage Joints (2 1/2 hours)
Chapter 12: Muscles of the Temporomandibular Joints (4 CE hours)
Chapter 13: Muscles of Facial Expression (2 1/2 CE hours)
Chapter 14: Muscles of the Hip Joint (5 CE hours)
Chapter 15: Muscles of the Knee Joint (3 1/2 CE hours)
Chapter 16: Muscles of the Ankle and Subtalar Joints (3 1/2 CE hours)
Chapter 17: Extrinsic Muscles of the Toe Joints (2 1/2 CE hours)
Chapter 18: Intrinsic Muscles of the Toe Joints (3 1/2 CE hours)
Chapter 19: Functional Groups of Muscles (3 1/2 CE hours)

Note: A CE certificate is issued for each chapter/module that you have successfully completed and passed. If you successfully complete and pass ALL the module/chapter courses for one of the textbooks, then a further Art and Science of Kinesiology Certificate will automatically be generated.