Sarah Key Method practitioner training
Join the waiting list for upcoming courses and for our free introduction to the 5 Stages of Spinal Breakdown — built for hands on therapists who want to feel more confident the next time a complex back walks through the door.
Our Services
We provide evidence-based spinal training to Physios, Osteopaths, Sports therapists and clinics. From certification courses to 1:1 mentorship and clinic-wide programs, blending online learning theory with live practical workshops.
Understanding spinal breakdown
The Sarah Key method integrates a mixture of educational delivery via online theory by Sarah and intensive hands-on & feet-on practical sessions taught by Cara and Kay. This offers therapists advanced, proven techniques to diagnose low back pain with their hands and a unique style of treating their patients using their feet.
You will gain deep understanding the five stages of spinal breakdown and how spinal segments breakdown over time. You will better understand spinal anatomy, identify problems and have language that is easily adaptable for clients to comprehend their spinal mechanical. Better equipping you to treat complex chronic back problems that have failed to resolve by other means.
A spinal segment loses mobility and can no longer circulate nutritional fluids through the intervertebral disc. The segment becomes stiff, sore and tender to touch. Sarah Key believes this simple mechanical stiffness accounts for over 90% of low back pain and may be the underlying neo-pathology of so-called "non-specific" back pain. Fortunately, it is highly amenable to spinal mobilisation, particularly using the Sarah Key heel techniques.
As the disc dehydrates and loses height, greater load is transferred to the facet joints at the back of the spine. Unlike discs, facet joints have a rich nerve supply and can produce a distinctive one-sided back pain that may spread into the buttock. This is the second most common cause of low back pain. Once again, it is highly amenable to quick, light and effective direct mobilising pressures with the heel.
As disc pressure falls, the facet joints become more vulnerable to sudden locking. This can cause a 'crisis episode' of severe pain and set-in-stone rigidity, often triggered by a simple movement. It is commonly accompanied by reflex inhibition of the deep spinal muscles responsible for segmental control. Relaxation techniques for the overactive paraspinal muscles and re-education of the deep spinal muscles are an important part of treatment in this syndrome.
With progressive disc degeneration, the nucleus at the centre of the disc loses cohesion and may be 'rendered expressible'. Increased stress on the outer disc wall can lead to cracks through which nuclear material may protrude or extrude. Although widely feared, disc prolapse is a relatively uncommon cause of back pain.
The least common of all spinal conditions, segmental instability is the opposite of segmental stiffness. Through the combined breakdown of the disc and facet joints, the spinal segment loses its integrity and becomes excessively mobile, slipping abnormally during movement and causing recurrent pain and dysfunction.
Learn how to safely and effectively use your feet to mobilise vertebrae, ribs and pelvis — a hallmark of the Sarah Key Method that protects your hands and amplifies your therapeutic leverage.
Rediscover your confidence treating backs. Stop groaning when another bad back walks through the door — learn techniques and reasoning that make complex presentations feel manageable again.
Find different, better, more effective treatment techniques and exercises. Refine your hands-on manual skills and exercise prescription so patients feel a difference within sessions.
Become more confident diagnosing and treating back problems. Understand the 5 stages of breakdown of a spinal segment as a framework for explaining conditions to your patients.
Become part of the SK treatment community. Benefit from social-media connections, peer case-review and an active network of like-minded physios refining the method together.
Take time with patients and set your fees accordingly. Stop letting health funds, insurers and corporatised medicine dictate how you practise — own your clinical decisions.
What we teach
Learning Outcomes
Ten concrete clinical capabilities from the Problem Back Masterclasses — the skills, palpation literacy and reasoning frameworks that change how you practise from day one.
Refined manual palpation skills, including surface anatomy of lumbar, thoracic and cervical spines.
A new appreciation of degrees of freedom of each spinal segment, including cephalad (decompression).
Understanding the roles of the IVD, facet joints, global/local spinal muscles, the three abdominal layers and the posterior ligamentous lock.
The significance of sustained spinal compression (catabolic) versus on-off spinal loading (anabolic) for intervertebral disc health.
A new understanding of the 5 stages of breakdown of a spinal segment.
A new appreciation of central segment mobilisation (spinous process) and facet mobilisation.
The difference in 'feel' between leathery, rubbery, thickened, brittle, tense, corroded, bloated and soupy segments.
Simple and effective self-treatment regimes for patients to do themselves.
How to run a compelling and effective spinal decompression class.
Confidently and safely using the feet to mobilise vertebrae, ribs and pelvis.
We run small-group cohorts to preserve mentor-led teaching, so the best way to secure a place is to register online. To discuss cost, dates or institutional bookings, call our office on +44 28 9187 0701.
Register NowOur Key Features
Founded in 1992, Spinal Masterclass is a clinician-led training body focused on raising the standard of spinal physiotherapy worldwide. Our faculty are registered, insured and actively practising.
We deliver a complete training cycle — from foundation courses through advanced clinical reasoning labs, 1:1 case review and clinic-wide programs. Spanning paediatrics through to chronic adult presentations.
Our curriculum aligns with NICE clinical guidance and is regulated through the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC), Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP) and APA equivalents internationally.
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