Private gym builds real muscle with artificial intelligence

Issues around self-confidence, fear of injury, social anxiety and more can tend to keep older adults away from the gym, depriving them of exercise that helps with maintaining muscle, balance and mental acuity as they age.

One gym is looking to provide its clients with ways to overcome those hurdles in a more intimate setting, without spending hours working out, and all with the added benefit of artificial intelligence.

The Exercise Coach, headquartered in Lake Zurich, Illinois, is a franchise boutique gym that offers training sessions by appointment only, and recently opened a second Idaho location on July 10 in Boise. The new gym at 671 E. Riverpark Lane, Ste. 105, is owned by Mark and Amy Besoushko.

Instead of entering a gym with rows of treadmills, dumbbells, weight benches and other machines that can sometimes be confusing to the new user, the Besoushkos’ gym has about eight machines that clients will do one circuit on for a total of 20 minutes, twice a week.

“The machine knows, ‘Oh, Mark was here two days ago, this was his workout,’” Mark said while demonstrating a machine. “The AI will remember that and challenge you 2 to 3% the next session to hold that right intensity in a 90-second slot.”

Though one of the owners or a staff member will monitor clients, the machines are controlled by AI and hydraulic machinery to provide the needed resistance to make the most out of every workout. According to the company, “the machines actually adjust a person’s workout to his or her strengths and weaknesses in real-time, thereby helping the person get the most out of their workout and avoid injury. Additionally, the machines automatically make the exercises harder as the person gets stronger, so there is never a plateau, and the person is competing against him or herself.”

Each machine targets a different muscle group to provide clients with a total-body workout.

The Besoushkos came to own the location after both decided they needed a mid-life change of career.

“Both of us were in a phase of career transition, and not really sure what our next chapter would be,” Amy said. “I was in corporate marketing for a long time and Mark was in the restaurant business.”

“Thirty-five long years,” Mark added. “Then COVID came and I was done, with good reason, multiple reasons.”

The couple spent 27 years in Denver and moved to Idaho around six years ago, immediately falling in love with the state. With two grown children, they decided it was time to make a change, so they both delved into their own research with a career coach to see what would best suit them.



“She did her own path and I did mine and we collided,” Mark said. Both found they had an interest in helping the elderly population take care of themselves and remain independent for as long as possible. The desire came from watching their own parents deal with health struggles as they aged.

“Strength is key,” Amy said. “If you’ve got some good strong muscles, your skeleton is going to be strong and you’re going to be in balance and the risk of falling lessens. I saw that with my mom. She fell and broke her hip twice and then broke her shoulder. You kind of go downhill quickly from there.”

The Exercise Coach was founded about 20 years ago and has since expanded to global operations, with about 215 franchises in 36 states and several locations in Japan. The first Idaho location is in Eagle.

With a traditional weight machine, a person or trainer will adjust the weight to a predetermined amount, and depending on the training plan, a person will do so many repetitions at that weight or until failure, meaning the weight can’t be lifted or pushed any longer. With the machines at The Exercise Coach, clients establish a baseline of their fitness level with their first few sessions. From there, the AI in the machines will increase the resistance based on the previous exercise session. Clients can view their performance in real-time as they workout, giving them instant feedback.



Opening less than a month ago, the gym is already establishing its client base. Staff, including the Besoushkos, must go through a certification process that includes 40 hours of online training and 60 tests and modules to complete before being able to work with clients. The duo has already hired Zach Reichenberger and Bennet Jackson, with a few more in the works.As of this writing, the gym had 10 clients with 200 leads in the works, most of which are found through Facebook.

“We’re not a walk-up place. We find them. We target 40 and older demographics with an income level over $100,000,” Mark said. “It’s worked for the last couple of years and why change it if it’s not broken.”

Though Amy has a long career history in the marketing world, she wanted nothing to do with those efforts, stating that the main company has a “pretty robust corporate marketing layer” for all its franchisees.

“Then I can focus on the coaching aspect and also being an also being an owner, just being in the business and working on the business,” Amy said. “Not worrying about a lot of the extra stuff.”

Clients can work one-on-one with coaches but the gym also offers group sessions, which adds to the social aspect that people also need for balanced health and to help battle cognitive decline.

Even though the gym targets clients in the 40- to 65-year-old range, they don’t limit service to that 20-year span. They will take on younger or older clientele, such as one they currently serve an octogenarian.

“We can do younger, we can do older,” Amy said. “We certainly welcome different ages, but really, that sweet spot [is 40-plus years] because that aging process, unfortunately, kicks in once you’re over 40.”

For more information on The Exercise Coach, visit the Facebook page or exercisecoach.com .

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