Practitioner FAQs

MAT Practitioners work in a variety of settings across the spaces of health, wellness, fitness, and professional sports. Many choose to directly move into the clinical space with backgrounds ranging from Physical Therapy to Chiropractic work. Others move directly into the fitness and professional sports industry as high level trainers and coaches. Those with goals of entrepreneurship tend to start and alunch their own facilities and practices after obtaining MAT Certification.

Actually yes! MAT is a precise and focused exercise process that can be used as an adjunct to any number of other exercise processes. MAT can help an individual prepare for exercise, help someone sustain an exercise program and support rehabilitation for certain conditions when deemed appropriate by medical providers.

Yes! MAT is an exercise-based process and research on exercise and its ability to improve health is well established. It is acknowledged that muscles are designed to stabilize the joints, so any improvement in muscle function may prevent the loss of physical performance often associated with arthritis and aging.

Many times a loss in muscle mass, or sarcopenia, is seen with aging. Because MAT ensures that each muscle is receiving a signal to contract, when you exercise with load, your body will now have the ability to maintain or gain muscle mass, thus reducing or eliminating sarcopenia. This can also reduce joint stresses that lead to, or exacerbate, arthritic conditions.

In order to become a MAT Practitioner you must first obtain certification. Certification can be obtained by completing the required course work and attending an in-house certification event. Once the necessary requirements have been met and you have passed your test, you are officially MAT certified.

Please note: The Jumpstart Training Program does not offer certification. Taking Jumpstart does not make you certified MAT Practitioner.

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Prior experience is not necessary to get started however it is highly recommended that those without prior experience begin with our Jumpstart Training Program before taking our advanced MAT courses. We recommend this Jumpstart first so that you may gain a solid understanding of the principles and building blocks of MAT before moving onto our advanced courses and certifications within the MAT Program.

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MAT does not force change on the body but instead works with it to make improvements, causing changes in motion via improvements in muscle contraction. An MAT specialist listens to your body’s responses and changes their treatment decisions based on these responses. Each client is treated as an individual with their own muscular weaknesses and compensation patterns. Therefore, no treatment session is ever the same.

MAT does not diagnose or treat pathology, but works to improve a muscle’s contractile capabilities and the resulting range of motion and strength of that muscle/limb. By improving these aspects, a person will see an increased ability for exercise and physical performance.

MAT differentiates itself from other techniques because it never attempts to directly lengthen or change the muscle by stretching, heating, kneading, or foam rolling. MAT is not trying to “relax” muscle, but instead tries to “activate” the muscle, so that your body is better prepared to handle the forces that come from exercise and every day movements.

The first and major indication is that something may not feel right. This can be seen as joint pain, muscle tension or instability of a joint, or in other words tight hamstrings, tight lower back, shin splints, aching knees, or a hyper-extended joint. Any feelings of pain or tightness can be signs of possible muscle weakness.

No, these methods alone do not fully address the underlying causes of weakened muscles. Traditional approaches like strength training, stretching, or yoga may focus on how far a muscle can move, how long it can hold a certain position, or how much weight it can move over a set time and repetitions. They measure strength in terms of endurance and load capacity but don’t address the key issue: neuromuscular function.

In MAT, weakened muscles are defined by muscle inhibition—a loss of proper timing in muscle contraction. When muscles can’t fire at the right time, other muscles compensate, leading to imbalances where some muscles become overworked and others stay weak. This imbalance can cause joint deterioration, tendonitis, or arthritis due to uneven forces on the joints.

MAT is unique because it targets the neuromuscular function—the timing mechanism that allows muscles to contract properly and work together effectively. By identifying which muscles are inhibited and restoring their correct timing, MAT addresses the root cause of weakness, helping you regain balance and strength to enjoy your activities safely and confidently.