What Does a Career in Corrective Exercise Look Like?

Are you a personal trainer looking to expand your expertise and boost your career? Becoming a Certified Corrective Exercise Specialist could be the key to helping your clients overcome injuries, alleviate pain, and improve their overall movement patterns.

Corrective exercise is a fast-growing field, and having the right training can make you a highly sought-after professional. In this guide, we’ll walk you through what you'll do as a corrective exercise specialist, how to choose the best certification program, and how this certification can elevate your career in the fitness industry.

What is Corrective Exercise?

Corrective exercise is a method of training to improve a client's performance, mobility, muscular endurance, and muscular balance, and to help alleviate pain. Specialists in corrective exercise have a keen eye for and pay very close attention to movement patterns. They identify dysfunctions and work with the client to correct them. The exercise program generally includes strength training and functional exercise. Form, balance, and posture are emphasized.

This method of training typically falls into the category of sports medicine. But you're not limited to working in a career in sports medicine. Corrective exercises can be used to help athletes—endurance runners, cyclists, extreme fitness competitors—and everyday athletes or weekend warriors. Take that list of clients we just mentioned. They're the ones who really need a certified personal trainer with the knowledge to help them work through and beyond those aches and pains. They need expert guidance to improve their physical fitness.

Learn more about corrective exercise in these ISSA articles:

• Upper Back and Neck Pain - Corrective Exercise for Kyphosis

• Corrective Exercises for Better Glute Strength & Performance

• Stretch and Strengthen: Corrective Exercises for Hip Flexors

• Keep Kids Moving: Corrective Exercise for Young People

What Kinds of Problems Do Corrective Exercise Specialists Help With?

Oftentimes clients choose just one method of exercise, either strength training or cardiovascular training. Limiting training to one type results in plateaus, overuse injuries, and muscular imbalances. A certified personal trainer knows how to create periodized programs that include all aspects of fitness.

A well-designed fitness program prevents many of the issues commonly seen in weekend warriors and novice exercisers. But if your client tried to jump into a cross-fit class after 15 years of avoiding physical activity, they may have overdone it. With a certificate in corrective exercise, you'll know how to help clients get to a pain-free state.

Corrective exercise specialists help clients:

• Correct muscular imbalance

• Complete post-rehab injury recovery

• Boost sports performance

• Reduce joint pain

• Improve posture

• Enjoy physical fitness

What Does a Corrective Exercise Specialist Do?

The daily tasks of a corrective exercise specialist include many of the same things you already do as a certified personal fitness trainer.

• Analyze the client's current health and past medical history to assess their risk during exercise.

• Perform fitness assessments and analyze the data.

• Identify movement dysfunctions.

• Develop corrective exercise strategies unique to each client to correct movement dysfunctions, reduce pain, and improve performance.

• Monitor performance, cue movement patterns, and encourage and motivate the client.

When you further your education, you're not adding more tasks to your to-do list. You're adding more tools to your tool belt. For example, a hammer may not be the right tool for carving marble. But when you get a specialized tool, like a chisel, then the two tools work together perfectly for carving a masterpiece.

Types of Careers in Corrective Exercise

Many clients show up for their initial consultation with a laundry list of aches, pains, and injuries. You never know what you'll get:

• One client may have nagging pain from an old football injury.

• Another client may have a "bum knee" that they just can't figure out.

• This client has chronic lower back pain.

• And your newest client is fresh out of rehabilitation after a rotator cuff repair surgery.

Training clients with movement issues, injuries, and chronic pain can be intimidating. But if they show up looking for help, it's difficult to turn them away.

You don't have to close the door on these clients. As an ISSA certified Corrective Exercise Specialist (CES), you'll know how to create safe and effective exercise programs for these clients and many others.

How Much Can You Earn as a Corrective Exercise Specialist?

How much you get paid in any profession varies from region to region. Fitness professionals in Santa Barbara, California will most likely earn more than fit pros in Nashville, Indiana.

Salary also depends upon where you work. Working at a big gym may pay less than running your own fitness boot camp, or it may pay more. There are lots of variables to consider. Marketing, insurance, and equipment are all costly. At a big gym, that's covered. If you start your own business, you need to buy everything yourself.

If it all sounds a little overwhelming, fear not. We've written a guide to big gym pay to help you figure out the best option—working for a big gym or striking out on your own—for you.

Regardless of where you choose to work, earning a specialized certification can boost your income. If you're currently charging $15 per session, you could be charging $22 per session. If your clients are paying $25 per session, they'd probably pay $40 per session or more to get rid of their aches and pains for good.

Right now, the average annual income for corrective exercise specialists is $62,778 according to ZipRecruiter, and $67,879 according to Glassdoor. (1,2)

Where Can You Find Work as a Corrective Exercise Specialist?

If you have an entrepreneurial spirit, then this certification might be a good fit. Many corrective exercise specialists are self-employed. As a small business owner, you need only earn your personal trainer certification or a specialized certification to conduct business.

Other fitness professionals work in specialty fitness studies—yoga, Pilates, stretching—large gyms, massage studios, and spas. However, if you're going to work for someone else, they may require a degree in exercise science or another related field.

And there will be no shortage of jobs in the foreseeable future. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the fitness trainer and instructor career field is expected to grow by 19% from 2021 to 2031. (3)

Our aging population is learning about the value of physical activity for longevity. But they need specialized guidance to get moving and improve their health. This is a very unique opportunity. You can get ahead of the curve by starting your own fitness business.

Check out our quick start guide: How to Start a Personal Training Business.

Are There Prerequisites To Earning a Certificate in Corrective Exercise?

If you've decided that adding corrective exercise to your personal trainer certification is the next step towards fulfilling your career goals, we invite you to join the ISSA family of certified personal trainers!

The ISSA CES course is a stand-alone course. You don't need any prerequisite knowledge to dive in and get certified. This course covers anatomy and physiology, client motivation, movement analysis, and more. It's everything you need to be successful.

There are some prerequisites to working in the field, but you can't get these through formal education. Corrective exercise specialists benefit from having the following qualities:

• Compassion: Understand that your clients may be in pain. Be sympathetic. Work carefully and cautiously with them to gradually build their fitness and achieve their fitness goals.

• Decision-making: Confidently prescribe appropriate exercises based on data and science. Strive to improve the client's quality of life.

• Interpersonal skills: Strong interpersonal skills are necessary to make sure everyone is on the same page and important details are shared and understood.

How Long Does It Take to Get a Certificate in Corrective Exercise?

With the ISSA self-paced course, you can take as much or as little time as you want. That means you could be working as a corrective exercise specialist in as few as two or three months!

How to Become a Corrective Exercise Specialist

Becoming a Corrective Exercise Specialist can offer a rewarding future with the potential for career growth, the satisfaction of helping clients live pain-free, and the opportunity to command higher rates for specialized services. Here’s how to get started:

Step 1: Get a Personal Trainer Certification

Before becoming a Corrective Exercise Specialist, earning a foundational certification in personal training is incredibly helpful. Personal trainer certification gives you foundational knowledge in anatomy, fitness principles, and general exercise programming. This ensures you're equipped to build safe, effective fitness programs before adding corrective exercises.

Step 2: Choose a Corrective Exercise Certification Program

According to PT Pioneer, ISSA's Corrective Exercise Specialist Certification is the top option. But you're the only one who will know which program is the best for your needs and learning style. Here are a few things to consider when choosing your corrective exercise program:

• Look for comprehensive content: The program should cover human movement, exercise science, and mobility assessments, teaching you how to apply corrective strategies based on findings.

• Check for a corrective exercise library: Look for courses with an exercise library or lab, offering online videos to review corrective exercises and proper technique.

• Choose a certification-inclusive program: Opt for a course that provides both training and certification, streamlining the process and helping you feel more prepared for the exam.

• Verify continuing education opportunities: Check if the program offers continuing education courses to maintain certification, stay updated with research, specialize in corrective exercise, or grow your business.

Step 3: Gain Experience Working with Clients

Once you’ve completed your program and earned your corrective exercise certification, practical experience is key to mastering the corrective exercise techniques and building credibility.

• Start with Volunteer Work: This helps build experience while also growing their portfolio.

• Create Specialized Programs: Develop customized programs for clients with injuries or imbalances, working on common issues such as lower back pain, shoulder mobility, or knee issues.

• Mentorship/Networking: If possible, find mentors or join fitness professional groups to continue learning and gaining experience.

Step 4: Stay Updated and Continue Learning

Corrective exercise is a growing field with constant developments, so ongoing education is crucial. Continue learning and staying up-to-date with new research, techniques, and tools in corrective exercise.

Consider attending workshops, webinars, or further certifications in related fields like sports nutrition or advanced movement science. Once you've gained experience, consider options for advanced certifications or specializations that can further increase your expertise and earning potential.

Get Certified with ISSA

Ready to advance your personal training career? Get started with ISSA's Corrective Exercise online course. You'll learn how to help clients achieve a better range of motion, fix muscle imbalances, optimize performance, and prevent pain and injuries. As a corrective exercise specialist, you are more than just a trainer. You become the guide to restoring alignment and mobility for clients who have challenges in their bodies.

Resources

1. Corrective Exercise Specialist Salary (USA). (2024 December 16). ZipRecruiter. https://www.ziprecruiter.com/Salaries/Corrective-Exercise-Specialist-Salary#Yearly

2. Salary: Corrective Exercise Specialist in United States 2024. (2024 June 6). Glassdoor. https://www.glassdoor.com/Salaries/corrective-exercise-specialist-salary-SRCH_KO0,30.htm

3. Fitness Trainers and Instructors. (2024, August 29). Bureau of Labor Statistics. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/personal-care-and-service/fitness-trainers-and-instructors.htm