Traditional posture correctors often work by pulling your body into a particular position. Stro takes a different approach.

Rather than pulling your shoulders back or restricting movement, Stro changes how different postures feel. By resting just below the collarbones, the weight subtly changes the balance of the upper body, making slouched positions feel heavier and upright positions feel comparatively lighter and more balanced.

The fulcrum effect

Imagine holding a hammer close to the metal head. It feels light and easy to control. Now imagine holding the same hammer by the very end of the handle. The weight hasn’t changed, but because it is positioned farther from your hand, it suddenly feels much heavier and harder to balance.

Stro applies a similar principle to the upper body. You can think of the centre of your torso as acting like a fulcrum. As you slouch, the weight shifts farther forward relative to your body, changing how the load feels. As a result, the device feels heavier.

When you lengthen through the centre of your torso and move into a more upright position, the weight moves back towards balance and therefore feels lighter.

The feedback is immediate: as your posture collapses, you can feel an increased pull from the device. When your body finds a more balanced position, that sensation decreases.

Training, not support

Unlike a brace, Stro does not hold your body in place. Instead, your body remains responsible for maintaining its own position while you wear it.

At first, you may find that maintaining an upright posture feels easy for only a short period before fatigue sets in. With regular practice, you may find that you are able to maintain the position for longer periods.

After years of sitting at desks or looking down at screens, it can be easy to fall into postural habits that place more effort around areas such as the neck and shoulders. By encouraging you to explore a more balanced position, Stro provides feedback that can help you become more aware of how effort is distributed throughout your upper body.

Learning balance

Learning to use Stro is similar to learning to ride a bike. At first, balancing may require conscious effort. With practice, many of the small adjustments involved in maintaining balance begin to feel more natural.

Stro is designed around the same idea. Rather than reminding yourself to sit up straight every few minutes, you practise recognising the difference between more and less balanced positions through the physical feedback of the device.

When you wear Stro, you can adjust your posture in response to the feedback you receive. With repeated practice, maintaining better posture may begin to require less conscious attention.

A training tool for seated use

Stro is intended to be used while seated and looking straight ahead, such as when working at a computer.

Its purpose is not to support your body passively, but to help you actively engage with your posture by making changes in position something you can physically feel and respond to, rather than something you constantly have to remember.