Session launches for the 300 million Americans who won’t go to the gym this year

This week, our portfolio company, Sessions launched their online health coaching for fitness and weight loss. Their beautiful platform connects people with their very own health coach who guides them through a structured, lifestyle modification program to change behavior and launch active lifestyles.

We sat down with their CEO, Nick Crocker to talk about how Sessions got where it is today. “I started Sessions thinking I knew a lot about behavior change,” he says. “I knew all the theories, and the biases that influence behavior and I thought Sessions was going to be about telling people those things. 10 days in and 25 customer interviews later, I quickly realized how little I knew!”

The fitness world needs a makeover. 10% of medical costs are due to sedentary lifestyles. In addition, $114B is spent on diet plans, commercial weight-loss programs, drugs, medical programs, surgery, gyms, fitness equipment, classes, trainers, nutritionists and connected devices every year, yet the number of Americans who get the recommended 2.5 hours of physical exercise per week is a lowly 3.5%. Starting to exercise is challenging — making it a habit is a different story.

“What use is the trans-theoretical model of change to a young mother whose husband travels often for work, who runs a business from home and who also has to care for her sick mother-in-law? She doesn’t care about the theory of loss aversion, she cares about her family, her business, and her clients,” Nick points out. “When I first realized that’s the context in which healthy behavior change has to happen, the challenge in front of me became very real.” Sessions takes those theories and applies them to the real world.

For behavior change to stick, people go through 5 phases: pre-contemplation, contemplation, preparation, action and maintenance. Sessions dives in at the last 3 steps, starting with an in-depth diagnostic about your lifestyle and a meeting with your coach to create an individual plan, as “goals are most easily reached when they’re specific.”

90% of Sessions members stick to their plan after 12 weeks. He says, “people often know what they need to do, but they struggle mightily to do it alone. Sessions exists to support people to be the better versions of themselves.”

Nick buys a new hat whenever they reach a company milestone. We can’t wait to see what he adds to his collection this time. While we wait, get moving and head over to Sessions.