The Functional Movement Screening Playbook

Athletic performance is built on movement. Every sprint, jump, throw, cut, and lift is an expression of how well the body can coordinate its joints, muscles, and nervous system to produce force efficiently and safely. When that coordination is clean and the underlying movement patterns are sound, athletes can train hard, recover well, and perform consistently. When movement quality is poor, the body compensates. It finds ways to get the job done using workarounds that place excessive stress on structures that were not designed to carry that load.

Consider a simple example. An athlete with restricted ankle dorsiflexion cannot achieve a proper squat depth without compensating somewhere else in the chain. The most common compensation is an excessive forward lean of the torso, which shifts load onto the lower back. Over hundreds of squats and thousands of athletic movements, that compensatory pattern accumulates stress on the lumbar spine. The athlete may never feel anything acutely wrong, but the cumulative loading is building toward a problem. This is what movement dysfunction looks like in practice: not dramatic, not obvious, but consistently present and consistently costly.

Research supports the connection between movement quality and injury outcomes. A landmark study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research found that athletes who scored below 14 on the FMS composite score were significantly more likely to sustain a time-loss injury during the competitive season compared to those who scored 14 or above.^[1] That kind of predictive data is powerful. It means that a screening conducted before the season begins can identify athletes who need intervention before they get hurt, not after.

Movement quality also has a direct relationship with performance efficiency. When joints move through their full intended range of motion and muscles fire in the correct sequence, force production is maximized and energy expenditure is minimized. An athlete who moves well is not just safer. They are also faster, more powerful, and more durable over the course of a long season. The performance benefits of addressing movement dysfunction are not secondary to injury prevention. They are part of the same equation.

One of the most important concepts in movement quality assessment is the idea of asymmetry. The human body is not perfectly symmetrical, and small differences between left and right sides are normal. But significant asymmetries in movement patterns are a red flag. When one side of the body moves substantially differently from the other, it usually means one side is compensating for a limitation on the other. That compensation creates uneven loading, which over time leads to overuse injuries on the compensating side and underuse problems on the restricted side. Identifying and correcting asymmetries is one of the most impactful things a screening program can do.

The practical implication of all this is straightforward. Movement quality assessment should be a standard part of any serious sports training program, not an optional add-on. Just as you would not design a strength program without knowing an athlete's current strength levels, you should not design a training program without knowing the quality of the movement patterns that program will be loading. FMS provides the data you need to make those decisions intelligently. The chapters ahead will show you exactly how to collect and use that data.

Key insight: Movement dysfunction is not always painful, and pain is not always a sign of dysfunction. Many athletes with significant movement limitations feel fine right up until an injury occurs. Screening catches what symptoms cannot.

Functional Movement Screening is a standardized assessment system developed by physical therapist Gray Cook and strength coach Lee Burton in the 1990s. Their goal was to create a simple, reliable, and practical tool that could identify movement limitations and asymmetries in active individuals before those problems led to injury. The system they developed has since become one of the most widely used movement assessment tools in professional sports, military fitness programs, and clinical rehabilitation settings around the world.

The FMS consists of seven movement tests, each designed to challenge a fundamental human movement pattern. Together, these tests assess mobility, stability, and the ability to coordinate movement across multiple joints and planes of motion. The seven tests are:

• Deep Squat – assesses bilateral, symmetrical mobility of the hips, knees, and ankles, along with thoracic spine extension and shoulder flexion
• Hurdle Step – evaluates stride mechanics, hip mobility, and single-leg stability
• Inline Lunge – tests hip mobility, knee stability, and the ability to decelerate in a split stance
• Shoulder Mobility – measures bilateral shoulder range of motion and scapular mobility
• Active Straight Leg Raise – assesses active hamstring and calf flexibility while maintaining a stable pelvis
• Trunk Stability Push-Up – evaluates the ability to stabilize the spine during an upper-body pushing movement
• Rotational Stability – tests multi-planar trunk stability during combined upper and lower extremity movement

Each test is scored on a scale of 0 to 3, with 3 representing a movement performed correctly without compensation, 2 representing a movement completed with some compensation, 1 representing an inability to complete the movement pattern, and 0 indicating pain during the test. The maximum composite score across all seven tests is 21. Several tests are also assessed bilaterally, meaning both left and right sides are scored separately to detect asymmetries. The scoring system is intentionally simple, which makes it practical for field use while still generating meaningful data.

One of the most important features of the FMS is what it is not designed to do. It is not a diagnostic tool for specific injuries or pathologies. It does not measure strength, power, speed, or sport-specific skill. It does not replace a clinical examination by a medical professional. What it does is identify movement patterns that fall outside of acceptable functional standards, flagging athletes who need further attention before those patterns cause harm. Think of it as a filter: it separates athletes who move well enough to train without restriction from those who need corrective work before adding more load.

The FMS was built on a foundational principle that Gray Cook has articulated clearly in his work: First move well, then move often.^[2] This principle challenges the common assumption that more training always leads to better outcomes. If the movement quality is poor, adding more volume or intensity does not improve the situation. It makes it worse. The FMS operationalizes this principle by giving practitioners a concrete way to determine whether an athlete is ready to train hard or needs to address movement quality first.

Since its development, the FMS has been adopted by organizations including the NFL, NBA, MLB, and numerous Olympic sports programs. The US military has used it as part of physical readiness assessments. Physical therapists use it in clinical settings to guide rehabilitation progressions. The breadth of its adoption reflects both its practical simplicity and its clinical validity. It is a tool that works across a wide range of populations and settings, which is one of the reasons it has become the standard for movement assessment in high-performance environments.

It is worth noting that the FMS has also been the subject of ongoing research and debate within the sports science community. Some studies have questioned the predictive validity of specific score thresholds, and researchers continue to refine our understanding of how FMS data should be interpreted and applied.^[3] This book engages with that research honestly, presenting the FMS as a valuable and evidence-informed tool while also acknowledging its limitations. Understanding both the strengths and the boundaries of any assessment tool is essential for using it responsibly.

Example in practice: A college soccer program screens all players at the start of preseason using the FMS. Three players score below 14 on the composite, and two others show significant asymmetries in the hurdle step. The coaching staff uses this data to assign targeted corrective work to those five players during the first three weeks of camp, while the rest of the team progresses normally. By mid-season, all five players have improved their scores and none have sustained significant injuries. The rest of the team has a 15% injury rate. This is FMS working as intended.

This book is organized to take you from foundational understanding through practical application in a logical sequence. Each chapter builds on the one before it, so reading straight through from beginning to end will give you the most complete picture. That said, the book is also designed to serve as a reference you can return to repeatedly. Once you have read it through, you will find it useful to flip back to specific chapters when you are preparing to administer a particular test, interpret a set of results, or design a corrective program for a specific dysfunction pattern.

Here is a brief map of what each section covers and how to get the most from it:

• Chapter 1 (The Science Behind Movement Assessment) – Start here if you want to understand the research foundation before diving into protocols. This chapter explains why movement dysfunction develops, how it connects to injury risk, and what the evidence says about FMS validity. Even if you are eager to get to the practical content, this chapter will make everything that follows more meaningful.
• Chapter 2 (Preparing for Assessment) – This is your setup guide. It covers the physical environment, equipment, and pre-screening protocols you need to run a valid assessment. Do not skip this chapter. Poor setup is one of the most common reasons FMS results are unreliable.
• Chapters 3 through 7 (The Seven Tests) – Each chapter covers one or two of the FMS tests in detail, including setup, positioning, scoring criteria, common faults, and interpretation. These chapters are the technical core of the book. Read them carefully before administering any test, and return to them whenever you need a refresher on specific scoring standards.
• Chapter 8 (Scoring, Interpretation, and Risk Assessment) – This chapter ties the individual test scores together into a composite picture. It explains how to calculate and interpret total scores, how to identify the most critical dysfunctions to address first, and how to use FMS data to make training decisions.
• Chapters 9 through 11 (Corrective Programming) – These chapters move from assessment into action. They cover the principles of corrective exercise selection, how to balance mobility and stability work, how to progress corrective programs over time, and how to recognize and address the most common movement dysfunction patterns.
• Appendix (Quick Reference Guides) – The appendix contains scoring checklists and a corrective exercise library organized by dysfunction type. These are designed for field use. Print them out, laminate them, and keep them with your assessment kit.

A few practical notes on how to engage with the material. Throughout the book, you will find scoring criteria presented in structured formats that are easy to reference during an actual assessment. You will also find common fault descriptions that help you recognize what you are seeing when an athlete's movement does not meet the standard. Pay close attention to these sections. The difference between a score of 2 and a score of 1 is not always obvious, and consistent scoring requires knowing exactly what to look for.

The book also includes corrective exercise recommendations tied to specific dysfunction patterns. These are not meant to be exhaustive libraries of every possible exercise. They are curated selections of the most effective interventions for the most common problems, chosen based on both research evidence and practical experience. The goal is to give you a clear starting point, not to overwhelm you with options. As you gain experience with FMS, you will develop your own sense of which corrective strategies work best for different athletes and contexts.

If you are working with a team or group of athletes, Chapter 10 on team management will be particularly valuable. Managing FMS data across a roster requires systems and processes that go beyond individual assessment. That chapter covers how to organize and track data, how to prioritize interventions when resources are limited, and how to communicate FMS findings to athletes and other staff members in ways that are clear and actionable.

One important expectation to set before you begin: becoming proficient with FMS takes practice. Reading this book will give you the knowledge you need, but knowledge alone does not make you a skilled screener. You will need to practice administering each test, practice applying the scoring criteria, and practice making the judgment calls that come up in real assessments. The more athletes you screen, the faster your eye will develop. Plan to screen at least 20 to 30 athletes before you feel truly confident in your scoring consistency. That is a normal part of the learning curve, and it is worth moving through deliberately rather than rushing.

Finally, approach FMS as one tool within a larger system, not as a complete solution on its own. It is a powerful assessment tool, but it works best when it is integrated with good coaching observation, athlete communication, and ongoing performance monitoring. The athletes you work with are more than their FMS scores. Use the data to inform your decisions, not to replace your judgment. The best practitioners combine objective screening data with their own experience and their knowledge of each individual athlete to make training decisions that are both evidence-based and contextually appropriate.

Getting started quickly: If you need to run your first FMS session within the next week, prioritize reading Chapters 1, 2, and 3 first, then skim the scoring criteria sections of Chapters 4 through 7. Read Chapter 8 before you interpret any results. You can fill in the deeper corrective programming knowledge from Chapters 9 through 11 as you go. The appendix scoring checklists will support you in the field from day one.

The knowledge in this book has been assembled from research literature, clinical practice, and the accumulated experience of practitioners who have used FMS across a wide range of sports and populations. It is presented in a way that is direct, practical, and immediately applicable. The goal is not to make movement assessment seem more complicated than it needs to be. The goal is to give you a clear, reliable system that you can use confidently to make better decisions for the athletes you work with. That starts now, with the next chapter.