Hit The Gym, Gently

Exos, a firm known for training elite athletes, is using sophisticated tech (and lower-impact exercise) to help desk jockeys stay healthy. 

- Phil Wahba

IMAGINE YOU’RE AT WORK , reaching to grab a stack of papers, when your shoulder suddenly seizes up in pain. Do you (a) pop an Advil while debating whether to visit your doctor? Or (b) go see your office’s on-site “wellness provider”, where you stand in a sensor-equipped machine that evaluates your movements, assesses the asymmetries and instabilities that could be causing the discomfort, and generates a regimen of quick, simple exercises to alleviate the pain?

Exos is betting you’ll prefer (b) and that your boss will too. The self-described “human performance” firm got its start nearly two decades ago coaching elite athletes. Now, as a tight labour market prods companies to invest in health-related employee perks, Exos is expanding its footprint among white-collar types—and relying on sophisticated technology to broaden its reach in the $7 billion (Rs 44,000 crore) corporate wellness market, where the firm says it serves some 1.2 million workers.