Virtual classes might make it#nbsp;easier to#nbsp;work out anywhere, anytime, but not for anyone. Mainstream fitness tech often targets the young and fit, in#nbsp;advertisements and cardio-heavy exercises. It#nbsp;effectively excludes aging adults from participating.
This gap between mainstream fitness and elders is#nbsp;where Mighty Health, a#nbsp;Y#nbsp;Combinator graduate, comes in.
Mighty Health has created a#nbsp;nutrition and fitness wellness app that is#nbsp;tailored to#nbsp;older adults who might have achy hips or#nbsp;joint problems. Today, the San Francisco-based startup has announced it#nbsp;raised $#nbsp;2.8 million in#nbsp;funding by#nbsp;Y#nbsp;Combinator, NextView Ventures, RRE Ventures, Liquid2 Ventures, Soma Capital and more.
Founder and CEO James Li#nbsp;is#nbsp;the child of#nbsp;immigrants, a#nbsp;detail he#nbsp;says helped him lean into entrepreneurship. He#nbsp;had the idea for Mighty Health after his father was rushed to#nbsp;the hospital for emergency open-heart surgery.
"Growing up, we#nbsp;can often think of#nbsp;our parents as#nbsp;invincible#nbsp;— they look after you and take care of#nbsp;you, and you usually don’t worry too much about them," Li#nbsp;said. His dad survived the surgery, and Li#nbsp;thought about the evolving health needs and limitations of#nbsp;folks over 50 years old. He#nbsp;teamed up#nbsp;with co-founder Dr. Bernard Chang, the youngest-ever#nbsp;ED doctor to#nbsp;receive a#nbsp;top-tier NIH grant and the vice chair of#nbsp;research at#nbsp;Columbia University Medical Center, to#nbsp;create Mighty Health. The company’s other co-founder and CTO is#nbsp;Felipe Lopes.
Mighty Health’s product is#nbsp;focused on#nbsp;three things: live coaching; content focused on#nbsp;nutrition, preventative checkups and workouts; and celebrations that let family members tune into their loved ones' achievements.
The app has inclusivity built into its functionality. Everyday, a#nbsp;user logs in#nbsp;and gets a#nbsp;set of#nbsp;three to#nbsp;five tasks to#nbsp;complete, distributed among nutrition, exercise and workouts. The workouts are pre-recorded videos with trainers that have focused on#nbsp;the over-50 population. Think indoor cardio sets focused on#nbsp;being kinder to#nbsp;joints or#nbsp;lower her impacts.
One customer, Elizabeth, is#nbsp;a#nbsp;56-year-old mother who joined Mighty Health after suffering a#nbsp;cardiac incident. The app got her to#nbsp;start walking 9,000 steps a#nbsp;day, lose weigh, lower cholesterol and, best of#nbsp;all, discover a#nbsp;love for a#nbsp;vegetable she had recently written off: brussels sprouts.
Mighty Health’s other core focus, beyond fitness, is#nbsp;nutrition. The app pairs users with a#nbsp;coach to#nbsp;help them create healthy habits around nutrition and lifestyle. The coaching is#nbsp;done through text message. Li#nbsp;says this was intentional because in#nbsp;the early days of#nbsp;Mighty Health, he#nbsp;saw that coaching in-app was difficult for users to#nbsp;navigate.
"You have to#nbsp;meet them in#nbsp;the middle where they are," Li#nbsp;said. The live coaching is#nbsp;also met with phone calls, although 90% of#nbsp;coach interactions are text-message based.
The nutrition program also accounts for a#nbsp;diverse user base. Mighty Health chose not to#nbsp;offer or#nbsp;push recipes upon members, unlike a#nbsp;lot of#nbsp;other applications, because all countries and cultures might not find generic recipes accessible.
"Instead, we#nbsp;focus on#nbsp;the ingredient level," he#nbsp;said. "We send them ingredients that they can piece together however they like at#nbsp;home in#nbsp;the way that they cook their cultural meals."
The company offers a#nbsp;free seven-day trail, followed by#nbsp;a#nbsp;membership fee of $#nbsp;20 per month. It’s also having discussions with a#nbsp;number of#nbsp;health insurers to#nbsp;offer Mighty Health as#nbsp;a#nbsp;benefit.
With the new capital, the startup hired a#nbsp;few engineers and a#nbsp;designer to#nbsp;build out product integrations with fitness trackers, plus add new content. For now, Li#nbsp;sees his father’s progress with pride.
"Though I’m sure he#nbsp;sometimes thinks I#nbsp;just went from nagging him directly to#nbsp;nagging him through my#nbsp;product, he’s been eating healthier and exercising nearly every day," Li#nbsp;said. So#nbsp;far, his father has lost 25 pounds.
Published by TechCrunch#nbsp;— on#nbsp;July 14, 2020