Episode #416: Aaron De Jong-Empowering Employees And Companies With Movr-The Future Of Movement Health

Aaron De Jong has always been passionate about fitness. He pursued a degree in Physical Education and Exercise Physiology and worked at his school's athletic training center and therapy clinic. It was during this time that he noticed athletes struggling with basic core exercises and experiencing injuries as a result of improper training. Aaron has since made it his mission to educate athletes (and the general public!) on proper exercise techniques and the importance of incorporating foundational exercises into their routine.

Host Pete Moore and Aaron discuss his new venture Movr, an evidence-based movement health solution for health and wellness platforms that adds value to your technology and improves the lives of your people.

De Jong suggests that club operators or insurance companies consider offering small monetary rewards for individuals taking quick tests to gather rudimentary information that can guide individuals towards proper healthcare and potentially life-changing results. He emphasizes the importance of addressing fixes and finding out what motivates people.

He states, "With clients it's like, 'AHA! I feel better. AHA! I'm moving better.' That's true magic, man. That's movement health, that's movement improvement . . . if you move better and feel better as fast as possible, that's when stickiness happens. Pair that with incentivization, and we've got a winning formula."

De Jong describes a fully automated program that categorizes people into six different types based on their movement capabilities. He believes that automation allows for greater scaling and improving population health, but also suggests that people with acute pain still need to see a physical therapist. 

Some key moments: 

[00:04:36] Assessing body movement for possible issues.

[00:07:12] Automated program identifies six types of individuals.

[00:18:49] Customized workout builder with MSK (musculoskeletal) recommendations.

[00:24:51] Surround yourself with mentors. Learn to say no.

A few key takeaways: 

1. Assessments are crucial for identifying and improving movement health. De Jong emphasizes the importance of breaking down assessments into simpler components to identify any core problems and improve overall movement health.

2. Technology can help tailor workouts to individual needs. De Jong's company uses de-identified user data sets to create a balanced body capable of functional tasks, constantly evolving and adapting to the user's needs.

3. Addressing basic problems can make a significant difference. De Jong recommends finding out what motivates people, but also addressing the basics that need fixing, comparing it to simple back pain rather than complex neurosurgery.

4. Automation can enable greater scaling and improve population health. De Jong and his team have conducted 80,000 assessments over four years and 50,000 users, and with the app launch, doubled the amount of assessments and workout sessions completed in the first week.

If you're a club owner (or a SaaS company interested in integrating with Movr) be sure to reach out to Aaron today! 

Click here to download transcript.