Exercise Physiologists
In short: today's best AI models could do about 33% of this job's working time (projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index) if the work were set up for them, and about 46% by the end of 2028 if progress keeps its long-run pace. The people and hands-on work, about 50% of the time, stays with people.
Assess, plan, or implement fitness programs that include exercise or physical activities such as those designed to improve cardiorespiratory function, body composition, muscular strength, muscular endurance, or flexibility.
8,560 people do this job in the US. $59,460 a year.
A typical 40-hour week
Not yet reviewed task by task- AI could take on13 h
- A person checks AI's work0 h
- Desk work AI can't do yet7 h
- Stays with people20 h
Exercise Physiologists, now: of a 40-hour week, AI could take on 13 hours, 0 hours become checking its work, 7 hours are desk work it can't do yet, and 20 hours stay with people.
The largest pieces: Develop exercise programs to improve participant strength, flexibility, endurance, or circulatory functioning, in accordance with exercise science standards, regulatory requirements, and credentialing requirements (about 4 h); Prescribe individualized exercise programs, specifying equipment, such as treadmill, exercise bicycle, ergometers, or perceptual goggles (about 3 h); Assess physical performance requirements to aid in the development of individualized recovery or rehabilitation exercise programs (about 3 h).
Estimates for a typical week of this job, if progress keeps its long-run pace, counting work the best models finish four times in five. Every task is below.
of the working time. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index.
- 50%
- 15%
- 35%
of the work: Anthropic's measure of what people already bring to Claude at work (2025). It counts help with part of a task, so it can be higher than the share within reach.
On the chosen pace and reliability. Estimate.
Share of the working time within reach, now to 2030
Change assumptionsHide assumptionsLong-run pace, four in five
What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .
At this date and pace, models finish tasks up to 2.4 work days long four times in five.
How far this has come
With GPT-4, measured in March 2023, 0% of this job's working time was within reach at . With Claude 3.7 Sonnet, measured in February 2025, 1%. With Claude Mythos Preview (early), measured in April 2026, 26%. Today's estimate: 33%.
A backcast: today's task data with the best model METR had measured by each date. It shows how fast the models have moved, not what anyone forecast at the time.
Measured use over time
Of the Claude.ai conversations Anthropic sampled and tied to a work task, 0.21% went to this job's tasks in May 2026, the 99th largest of the 447 jobs that showed up at all; 4 of its 25 tasks showed up. Within each of Anthropic's methods, never across a change: 0.1% to 0.12% (released February and March 2025); 0.15% to 0.2% (August 2025 to February 2026); 0.2% to 0.21% (April to May 2026).
Each release
| Conversations | Share | Rank | Tasks seen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Released February 2025 | 0.1% | 168 of 708 | 8 of 25 |
| Released March 2025 | 0.12% | 144 of 703 | 7 of 25 |
| The week of Aug 4, 2025 (released September 2025) | 0.15% | 122 of 655 | 10 of 25 |
| The week of Nov 13, 2025 (released January 2026) | 0.13% | 122 of 672 | 9 of 25 |
| The week of Feb 5, 2026 (released March 2026) | 0.2% | 93 of 677 | 10 of 25 |
| April 2026 (released June 2026) | 0.2% | 99 of 434 | 4 of 25 |
| May 2026 (released June 2026) | 0.21% | 99 of 447 | 4 of 25 |
Measured, not estimated: Anthropic's samples of Claude.ai conversations, each tied by a model to an O*NET task, from the Anthropic Economic Index. It says where Claude's use goes, not how much of this job's working time it covers, so it is not on the same scale as the reach above. The releases differ in their sample, their classifier and the smallest share they report (the June 2026 file rounds each task to a hundredth of a percent, so a smaller task reads as none), which is why a change of method starts a new line. At least 96% of each older release's task-tied use matched this site's tasks, and all of the newest. Claude.ai only, so use through other tools and other companies' models is not in it. Every job ranked.
Robots and the physical work
Anthropic rates 43% of this job's working time as physical work. For 3% of the working time, a robot has been shown doing most of the task somewhere: 1% in a purpose-built cell, 1% in a structured facility. 0.04 of 3, the 593rd highest of the 923 jobs.
- Not physical 57%
- No robot shown 40%
- In a purpose-built cell 1%
- In a structured facility 1%
Anthropic's rating, not this site's estimate: Claude Opus 5, searching the web, rated each physical O*NET task by the kind of setting in which a robot it could cite (deployed, sold or demonstrated) does most of the task, weighted by its own estimate of each task's share of the time (What work can robots do?, September 30, 2026, data CC BY 4.0; every job ranked). A robot shown somewhere is not a robot in your building: cost, setup and safety decide that. The share within reach on this page still counts no body work. The robot behind each rated task is under the task below.
The tasks
Sorted by . 25 tasks from .
| Task | Kind | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plan or conduct exercise physiology research projects.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 18% | 4.2 work days6.7 h to 3.5 work weeks | 5%Half by Apr 2028 | |
| Develop exercise programs to improve participant strength, flexibility, endurance, or circulatory functioning, in accordance with exercise science standards, regulatory requirements, and credentialing requirements.Done several times a day by most who do it. | 11% | 1.7 h38 min to 3.3 h | 100%Half by now | |
| Provide clinical oversight of exercise for participants at all risk levels.Done hourly or more by most who do it. Robots: no robot shown. Anthropic's rating. | 10% | 50 min25 min to 1.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Prescribe individualized exercise programs, specifying equipment, such as treadmill, exercise bicycle, ergometers, or perceptual goggles.Done several times a day by most who do it. | 7% | 1.1 h25 min to 2.1 h | 100%Half by now | |
| Assess physical performance requirements to aid in the development of individualized recovery or rehabilitation exercise programs.Done daily by most who do it. | 7% | 1.3 h38 min to 2.5 h | 100%Half by now | |
| Conduct stress tests, using electrocardiograph (EKG) machines.Done several times a day by most who do it. Robots: no robot shown. Anthropic's rating. | 6% | 1.1 h38 min to 1.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Teach courses or seminars related to exercise or diet for patients, athletes, or community groups.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 5% | 2.1 h50 min to 4.2 h | Stays with people | |
| Teach group exercise for low-, medium-, or high-risk clients to improve participant strength, flexibility, endurance, or circulatory functioning.Done more than weekly by most who do it. Robots: no robot shown. Anthropic's rating. | 5% | 1.1 h38 min to 1.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Teach behavior modification classes related to topics such as stress management or weight control.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 4% | 1.3 h38 min to 2.5 h | Stays with people | |
| Interview participants to obtain medical history or assess participant goals.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 3% | 33 min17 min to 50 min | Stays with people | |
| Mentor or train staff to lead group exercise.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 3% | 1.3 h38 min to 3.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Demonstrate correct use of exercise equipment or performance of exercise routines.Done several times a day by most who do it. Robots: no robot shown. Anthropic's rating. | 3% | 17 min8 min to 38 min | Stays with people |
Within reach, per task: the share of the task's time whose instances are short enough for a model to finish at the chosen date, pace and reliability. Half by: the date half of that time comes within reach.
Jobs that share skills with this one
From O*NET's related occupations. Within reach now and by the end of 2028, long-run pace, four in five.
- Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Physicians40% now, 40% by 2028
- Physical Therapists38% now, 40% by 2028
- Physical Therapist Assistants12% now, 12% by 2028
- Exercise Trainers and Group Fitness Instructors48% now, 48% by 2028
- Athletic Trainers45% now, 46% by 2028
- Cardiovascular Technologists and Technicians31% now, 31% by 2028
Where this job works
The industry groups that employ the most of it (BLS, May 2025).
Where the most of these jobs are
The metro areas with the most people in it (BLS, May 2025).
Questions about this job
- How much of the work of Exercise Physiologists is within reach of AI now?
- An estimated 33% of the working time is within reach of AI models now and 46% by the end of 2028, on METR's long-run pace at four in five (38% to 50% across the three paces the site shows). Within reach means a model could finish work that long at that reliability. It is not a forecast of jobs lost or of savings.
- Which tasks of Exercise Physiologists come within reach first?
- Weighted by the time each takes, the tasks with the most within reach now (projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index) are: Develop exercise programs to improve participant strength, flexibility, endurance, or circulatory functioning, in accordance with exercise science standards, regulatory requirements, and credentialing requirements (100% of the task's time now); Prescribe individualized exercise programs, specifying equipment, such as treadmill, exercise bicycle, ergometers, or perceptual goggles (100% of the task's time now); and Assess physical performance requirements to aid in the development of individualized recovery or rehabilitation exercise programs (100% of the task's time now).
- Which tasks of Exercise Physiologists stay with people?
- Tasks that are people work or body work are not counted as within reach at any date. The largest: Provide clinical oversight of exercise for participants at all risk levels; Conduct stress tests, using electrocardiograph (EKG) machines; and Teach courses or seminars related to exercise or diet for patients, athletes, or community groups. Together such tasks are about 50% of the working time.
- Do people already use AI for the work of Exercise Physiologists?
- In the Claude.ai conversations Anthropic sampled for May 2026 and tied to a work task, 0.21% went to this job's tasks, the 99th largest share of the 447 jobs that showed up; 4 of its 25 tasks appeared. Anthropic's labor market measure puts the share of the job's tasks seen in real Claude use at work at 0%. These are measures of use, not of how much of the work AI could finish, and they cover Claude only.
- Can robots do the physical work of Exercise Physiologists?
- Anthropic's robot exposure rating (September 2026) finds 43% of the working time is physical work, and that a robot has been shown doing most of the task, somewhere, for 3% of the working time, 1% in a structured facility. Its index is 0.04 of 3. One example: Aletta Autonomous Robotic Phlebotomy Device (Vitestro) for "perform routine laboratory tests of blood samples for cholesterol level or glucose tolerance". A robot shown somewhere is not one in every workplace; this site's own estimates still count no physical work as within reach.
- How is this estimated?
- From the 25 tasks O*NET lists for the occupation, each with an estimated length checked against GDPval and a share of the working time, each classed as desk, people or body work, and METR's measurements of how long a task the best AI models can finish, carried forward to the date from the latest, Claude Mythos Preview (early) in April 2026. Data checked November 10, 2026.
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