HP India MD Sumeer Chandra overcame bad health choices with ‘The Corporate Athlete’

The weight of occupying the corner office can lead to weighty issues, a reality that HP India MD Sumeer Chandra faced. Think no exercise, long working hours and bad eating habits.

“When I started my first job as a management consultant in Mumbai, I suddenly found myself without an avenue for exercise. Combine that with eating less-than-healthy food, I gained weight in the early stage of my career,” Chandra said.

After a spate of bad health choices, Chandra changed things five years ago, taking a cue from a book 'The Corporate Athlete' by Dr Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz.


According to the book, Chandra says, a corporate athlete, much like a sports athlete, needs to pay attention to the quality of their nutrition, fitness routine, sleep, and mental well-being.

“Leadership requires tremendous amount of energy, which needs to be sustained over long periods of time. To generate and maintain such energy, I have found a lot of value in the concept,” Chandra says.

Since then, it’s been a regular routine of running, playing tennis and healthy eating for the top boss.