Within the industry, people have a lot of different viewpoints on what kind of coach or trainer I am.

To some, I’m a mobility guy.

To others, I’m a corrective exercise guy.

To others, I’m a strength guy.

And believe it or not, there are some people that frankly don’t care – they just don’t like me!

Their issue is that they feel I’m trying to be a physical therapist, or do a physical therapists job.  And that’s something I have to take issue with.

As I have mentioned numerous times, my job isn’t to perform physical therapy.  One of my primary jobs, however, is to determine if someone needs care or treatment beyond what I’m capable of giving them.

It boils down to this:  Which clients can I train?  And which ones should I refer out?

Quite simply, is this client ready to train?  Are they ready for takeoff?

Just because I know a provocoative test for the lower back, or a test for shoulder impingement, doesn’t mean I treat those people. I know the test, and I use it to determine if this is someone I should be training or not.

(And if they fail, I send them to a physical therapist – his name is Bill Hartman, and you might have heard of him before.  He’s pretty good.)

Sarcasm aside, it’s not outside of a trainers scope of practice to determine if someone has underlying issues or pain.  In fact, that is your job!   You should know enough to determine whom you can or can’t train.

The issue herein becomes if you either knowingly train someone who is beyond your scope, or if you fail to screen them in the first place.

If you’re looking for assessment tools, be sure to check out either Assess and Correct or Building the Efficient Athlete.  Both are great tools that can get you in the game, and start growing your assessment toolbox.

Stay strong

MR