Reform
Elevating Fitness Experiences
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My Role
Visual Designer | Service Design
Skills Utilized
UI Design, UX Research
Systems Thinking
Prototyping
Duration (Academic)
4 months | May 2024 - Aug 2024
Team
Muskan Malik, Priyanka Verma, Rishma Bora
Mentor: Sara Strictler
Experience fitness with an app that's integrated with your gym environment.
CONTEXT
Every 2nd person feels intimidated about going to the gym; that's a large number of people facing unnecessary discomfort when accessing fitness, and this discomfort is even more evident for introverts. To bridge the gap between fitness and enjoyment, we decided it was time to design a fun experience for gym-goers: eliminating the apprehension, and bringing in the fun motivation to stay fit.
The focus here is to create an environment that feels personalized, intuitive to the needs of people, and overall makes staying fit a fun activity that people look forward to, everyday.
Have you ever felt self-conscious at the gym before?
1 out of every 2 people
felt intimidated about going to the gym
INITIAL SCENARIO
It all started with 3 introverts sitting together and discussing their ways to stay fit, when we all noticed our mutual avoidance of gym spaces.
IDENTIFYING PROBLEM
Introverts’ experience with fitness is hindered by their social awkwardness and dislike for interaction with people in these spaces.
INITIAL HYPOTHESIS
Focus on people who feel self conscious in the fitness space (More introverts feel this than socially outgoing people) + beginning going to gyms.
Problem Space
The start of the fitness journey is often the most overwhelming phase for individuals who feel self-conscious in fitness environments.
Diving deep into the User Research
Online Forums
We went on reddit and asked anonymously, because after all, we are dealing with introverts here.
Our first goal was to find out if other people (introverts) were feeling the same thing as us, and it turns out it's a universal experience.
Multiple perspectives, numerous insights.
Screener Surveys
These helped us to validate our problem space and get a more zoomed in view of our participants feel.
Our goal was to recruit suitable participants for an in-depth 1:1 interview, in the meanwhile deciding on which question areas to focus on during the interview.
Current State Map
After gathering sufficient information about the problem, we decided to map out the current journey of a gym-goer to identify the specific pain points they face.
In order to do this, we started from the very first stage, before even stepping into a gym- the planning stage. From recognizing the reasons why people decide to go to the gym in the first place, through their experience of a trial class, to finally signing up for a membership.
In this particular scenario, we have decided to focus on the case of a person who has a health issue and thus needs to take up some form of exercise in order to improve their health- and ends up choosing to go to a gym.
Pain Points & Key Moments Identified
PLANNING
Looks at different gyms at their proximity
Most often, we are spoilt for choices, so it can be unnecessarily complicated to make a decision.
Having to fill out your personal details can be taxing, especially if you have an underlying health condition.
Fills in their details and schedules a free trial class
PREPPING
Having to figure out what all you might need for the gym session, all while trying to overcome your anxiety.
Makes sure they have everything for the gym before leaving for work
Since this is your first time in a new gym, it takes a moment to orient yourself- already starting out on a bad note.
Looks around/surveys the space
IN GYM
First session, first interaction with a trainer, and having to convey all the details by yourself (for the third time); and then waiting while your trainer decides how best to help you.
.... (2-3 minute wait)
Usually a physical routine “card” that you now have to take care of throughout the session.
Receives session based routine by trainer
Trainer goes to help the other gym-goers, leaving you awkwardly standing after finishing one workout.
Looks around for trainer, looks at their routine card
The main problem- you are anxious about people approaching you.
Looks around between exercise, think people are going to talk to them
CONTINUATION
The gym doesn’t have their own fitness tracking app, so you have to resort to your own tracking system.
Logs in their progress in their personal app
The gym doesn’t have their own fitness tracking app, so you have to resort to your own tracking system.
Books another session on the gym app
Main Themes Identified
Narrowed down to three themes from the interviews that would help take this project forward, based on how important they are and how many other themes indirectly connect to these.
THEME 1
Motivation for gym
-
To stay mentally and physically fit, and feel good about themselves.
-
Another type of motivation is accountability to maintain their routine.
-
THEME 2
Social interactions
-
People find it difficult to reach out for guidance.
-
Interactions :
👍 Brief interactions with familiar faces
👍 Working out with friends
👎 Avoiding strangers
-
Dissatisfaction with gyms
THEME 2
-
Difficult to maneuver through crowded gyms, feel awkward during the waiting times.
-
People find beginning their fitness journey to be overwhelming.
-
Feeling conscious about their body.
-
While working on the computer, I can feel my shoulder and neck are hurting... it reminds me I need to exercise a little bit.
I don't feel comfortable when someone is around and I'm sort of jogging or doing such exercises.
I feel people that people are continuously staring at me, even though they maybe aren’t...
Main Themes Identified
Narrowed down to three themes from the interviews that would help take this project forward, based on how important they are and how many other themes indirectly connect to these.
THEME 1
Motivation for gym
-
To stay mentally and physically fit, and feel good about themselves.
-
People need accountability to maintain the routine.
THEME 2
Social interactions
-
People find it difficult to reach out for guidance.
-
Interactions :
👍 Brief interactions with familiar faces 👍 Working out with friends
👎 Avoiding strangers
THEME 3
Dissatisfaction with gyms
-
Difficult to maneuver through crowded gyms, feel awkward during the waiting times.
-
People find beginning their fitness journey to be overwhelming.
-
Feeling conscious about their body.
an entire experience centered around fitness for people who are new to gyms,
Keeping the pain points, user journey and important themes in mind, we decided to create
integrating everything within an app designed to keep you motivated, in control and accountable for your fitness.
User Flows
Narrowing down on what we want our users to be able to do, helped a lot in finalizing the functionalities that we want from our experience. This enabled us to map out user journeys from start to finish and see how these can be connected to each other and serve all our users.
OUR GOAL:
When a new member signs up for my membership, I want them to set up their profile and provide necessary information, so I can curate a personalized workout plan and deliver a better experience.
WHAT IS THE DATA WE WANT:
-
Goal (eg. get toned, lose weight, maintain)
-
Health (choice of adding so trainer can make decision accordingly)
-
Frequency (How many days a week do you plan to go to the gym + estimated time duration + time of the day)
-
Prior Experience (physical activity)
-
Prior Experience (strength training)
reform
Introducing
an entire experience centered around fitness for people who are new to gyms,
Keeping the pain points, user journey and important themes in mind, we decided to create
integrating everything within an app designed to keep you motivated, in control and accountable for your fitness.
Solution Ecosystem
Members
Health Professionals
Trainer and staff at the gym
Data Driven
Machine
Mobile App
Reform plugin
Smart Watch
Desktop App
The vibe: Elevated Fun
Reform’s focus
Our gym is committed to your fitness goals through an engaging experience.
We differentiate ourselves by creating a seamless system where medical professionals and data driven machines come together.
Meet Kelly
About
Kelly is a 28 year old working professional. She is inconsistent with her workouts.
Incident
She’s diagnosed with a medical condition which requires her to be more active.
Needs
Workouts tailored to her medical condition. Tools to monitor her progress and stay motivated.
Onboarding to Mobile App
Patients can choose to register and onboard to the reform app
People can share their, goals, needs and concerns before they come into the gym
Reform Plugin
Health professionals can recommend reform to their patients
-
Doctor to gym relationship
-
Health concerns can be shared
Mobile App
Members get a brief overview of their schedule
The dashboard showcases:
-
Scheduled classes
-
Weekly progress
Mobile App
Members will be able to book a session
To avoid crowding and ensure accountability, members can book a session.
Trainer-member interaction
Progress Mapping Machine
Affirmation Wall
Data-driven machine
reform
in space
Mobile App
Registered users are prompted to answer affirmation prompts
30 mins before the scheduled session, members receive notification pop up to answer the prompt.
Wondering what is the affirmation wall?
Watch
The connection between members and the gym equipment
Reform app is available on Smart Watches. It indicates certain metrics but the primary use is for it to identify the member.
Affirmation Wall
iPad/ Tablet App
Trainers at the gym have access to member’s scheduled routine
Trainers can modify the workout based on member details in case that is required.
Data Driven Workout Machines
All machines are data- driven based on members’ progress
Members can tap the watch on the screen which would initiate the workout.
Mobile App/ Email
Members will receive notifications and pop ups for their milestones
Reform celebrates milestones and checks in when there is a dip in the member’s progress.
Mobile App Push Notification
Members will receive notifications to check-in on their break
Reform understands that sometimes breaks are necessary. So instead of pushing them to their limits, it slowly builds up our members to keep trying.
Impact Metrics
Consistency
Tracking the regularity and frequency of workouts.
Visual progress
Observable changes in physical appearance or strength.
Engagement
Level of participation and enthusiasm in the fitness program.
1:1 Interviews
We talked to 6 people who tried to include fitness into their daily lives.
After all the interviews, we did some affinity mapping and identified some common themes and what each person has to say about it.
This helped us to focus on the important aspects and solve for problems that everyone was facing.
(Each color represents 1 person; gray color represents screener survey insights)
