FAQ

What is Springbok Analytics?

Springbok Analytics is a leading muscle analytics company focused on advancing the measurement and understanding of muscle health. The company develops MRI-based technology that delivers detailed, individual-muscle analysis across the full body with speed and consistency.

Springbok’s technology transforms standard MRI images into three-dimensional, person-specific measurements of muscle size, symmetry, and composition. Supported by advanced specialty databases and benchmarking capabilities, Springbok enables reliable comparison of muscle characteristics across populations and over time.

Springbok’s technology is used by researchers, clinical trial sponsors, and elite performance organizations that require precise, repeatable muscle analysis at scale.

Why do we focus on muscle health?

Muscle mass is a strong predictor of health and longevity, and poor muscle health is associated with $600 billion in economic burden annually in the US alone.

MRI is the only modality to measure muscle volume, symmetry, and distribution accurately, precisely, and cost-effectively, and we have built the only commercialized technology capable of unlocking the full value of MRI for comprehensive muscle analysis.

How does a Springbok scan work?

Step 1: The Scan

Individuals get a rapid MRI leveraging readily available sequences. A Springbok lower extremity scan can be completed in less than 15 minutes, and a full body scan takes under 45 minutes.

Step 2: Processing the Scan

Once your scan is complete, de-identified images are uploaded to our secure server, processed by our AI-based software, and reviewed for quality.

Step 3: Your Personalized Springbok Report

Your personalized Springbok report (with full 3D muscle visualizations and comprehensive data) is uploaded to our interactive viewer. You also receive a static PDF report of your Springbok scan.

How long until I get my results back?

Reports are typically delivered within 2-3 business days.

How can I review my results?

There are two primary ways to review your Springbok results:

1) Through our interactive, online viewer – this provides a dynamic, 3D analysis of muscles and scan results.

2) A static PDF report – this is an easy-to-share document that can be downloaded and stored offline.

Why should I get a Springbok scan?

Deficient muscle size, muscle imbalances and/or injuries represent a substantial risk to health and high performance. Springbok’s technology identifies and measures every individual muscle to deliver objective data and digestible visualizations that help you know your muscles better than ever before.

Springbok’s technology was designed to precisely analyze muscle. It translates objective, detailed muscle measurements into actionable information.

What does a Springbok scan measure?

For each muscle in the coverage area, Springbok provides analysis related to:

Muscle Size: Identifies which muscles are most and least developed according to your height, mass, and biological sex.

Muscle Asymmetries: Identifies muscle imbalances between limbs. Reported as percentage difference of raw volume between limbs.

Fat Infiltration: Identifies amount of fat that has replaced muscle fibers. Reported as percentage of intramuscular fat replacement, this is often reported in research studies as fat fraction.

Has Springbok’s technology been validated?

Yes. Springbok’s technology is grounded in more than 13 years of research focused on quantitative muscle imaging. The underlying methods have been described and evaluated in peer-reviewed scientific publications and have supported numerous academic studies, interventional research programs, and longitudinal analyses of muscle structure and composition.

Springbok’s analysis has been used across a range of applications, including clinical research, clinical trials, and high-performance sport, where consistent, repeatable measurement of muscle characteristics over time is critical. This body of work has informed the development of Springbok’s commercial platform and continues to guide ongoing validation and refinement efforts.

A selection of Springbok-related peer-reviewed publications is available here.

Do I need a physician’s order to get a Springbok scan?

A Springbok scan does not require a physician’s order, although individual imaging locations may have their own policies.

Where can I get a Springbok scan?

Springbok primarily works with sports, life sciences and research organizations, but we have hundreds of imaging partners across the US and globally offering individual Springbok analysis services.

Check out some locations here (and if you don’t see your location on there, reach out directly).

Why does Springbok use AI?

Springbok uses machine learning algorithms to automate the analysis of a person’s musculature. AI reduces variability, overcomes long processing times, and generates advanced details about the musculoskeletal structure.

All Springbok scans are also reviewed by trained experts.

Is it safe to get a Springbok scan?

Springbok’s muscle analysis uses images from MRI scans. MRI is non-invasive and does not use ionizing radiation. As with any MRI, individuals should follow standard MRI safety screening and protocols established by the imaging facility.

Does Springbok use a special type of MRI machine?

No – Springbok’s analysis is compatible with standard MRI sequences available on most major MRI systems.

Why MRI?

MRI enables direct, three-dimensional measurement of muscle tissue with high soft-tissue contrast, allowing individual muscles to be quantified by volume, distribution, and composition.

Because MRI does not use ionizing radiation, it is well suited for longitudinal tracking. This makes it particularly valuable for research, performance monitoring, and general muscle health tracking, where detailed changes in muscle characteristics are of interest.

Springbok’s technology leverages standard MRI sequences to translate this imaging data into quantitative muscle visualizations that can be reliably compared across timepoints.

How long does a Springbok scan take?

Lower Extremity (LE)
A lower extremity scan takes 15 minutes (which includes the full appointment time – the actual imaging time is less than 10 minutes).

Full Body (FB)
A full body scan takes ~45 minutes (which includes the full appointment time – the actual imaging time is less than 35 minutes).

How often should I get scanned?

The appropriate scan frequency depends on the goals of measurement and the expected rate of muscle change.

For general wellness tracking, an annual scan is often sufficient to establish a baseline and observe longer-term changes in muscle size and composition.

In settings where muscle change is expected to occur more rapidly—such as structured training programs, performance optimization, or research studies designed to measure longitudinal muscle adaptations—scans may be performed more frequently.

Depending on the study design or program objectives, this may range from approximately 3 to 5 scans per year.

Springbok’s technology is designed to support consistent, repeatable measurement over time, enabling reliable comparison of muscle characteristics across multiple time points.

Is Springbok similar to DEXA?

DEXA provides estimates of overall body composition, including lean mass and fat mass, but it relies on population-based models and two-dimensional projections. As a result, DEXA has limited ability to localize measurements to individual muscles, distinguish between different types of adipose tissue within muscle, or consistently detect small, muscle-specific changes over time. Measurements can also be influenced by factors such as hydration status, positioning, and scan-to-scan variability.

Springbok’s analysis is MRI-based and directly measures muscle tissue in three dimensions. By quantifying individual muscles and their composition, Springbok delivers more precise, muscle-specific measurements with lower variability between scans. This enables more consistent tracking of muscle size, symmetry, and composition over time, making Springbok particularly well suited for longitudinal monitoring of muscle health and performance-related changes.