GanBARo
GanBARo is a social support platform that is designed to allow individuals to share their daily workout routines to their friends and family where they can follow each other’s fitness progress and will also give beginners the resources and different workout routines they can do to start their fitness journey. It is designed to engage users to be more active and keep each other accountable and motivated to continue their fitness journey.
Problem Statement
How do we build a community for gym goers to motivate each other and share their own fitness journeys regardless of skill/experience level?
Problem Background
The fitness community is growing bigger and more people want to start their fitness journey but a lot of these beginners find it difficult to stay consistent in their fitness routine. Research has shown that a lot of gym goers lose their motivation due to lack of time and confidence (42% and 27%). Losing motivation due to lack of time is understandable due to people with different schedules with work, school or other responsibilities, however, lack of confidence is something that can be worked on and can be improved over time.
This problem matters because it is difficult to stay consistent when starting a fitness journey especially when there are not enough resources on how to stay consistent, not enough workout resources that would actually work, and especially when starting a fitness journey alone. People often need a reason to start their fitness journey or to even stay consistent but it’s difficult to stay motivated and that is why it would be helpful to have a community who feels/felt the same way to make them feel less alone in going through their fitness journey.
The ideal customers are individuals who are active gym goers who want to share their fitness journey with a community of other gym goers so they can motivate each other and keep each other accountable in their fitness journey.
Research Insights
According to a New York campaign research, there are many reasons as to why people skip working out:
- 25% due to terrible weather
- 56% due to being too tired
- 35% due to having no motivation
However, the majority of respondents (69%) want to start their fitness journey to help quit their bad habits. People responded that some solutions that would help would be working out with friends (28%), someone who would keep them accountable such as a personal trainer (27%) and home workouts (45%).
By conducting my own research through a survey and user interviews, there are a few different reasons as to why individuals struggle to stay consistent in their fitness journey:
- Lack of time
- Lack of fitness knowledge
- Lack of motivation
- Lack of confidence
- Other responsibilities/reasons
Survey and Interview Data Insights:
- 46.2% of the respondents answered that they have little fitness knowledge.
- Users struggled with staying consistent and having motivation.
- 40% of respondents answered that they lacked confidence.
- Users want to start a healthier lifestyle.
- 23.1% strongly agree that they need a partner to workout with.
Proposed Solution
Based on our target users’ pain points, we want to work on a solution where we provide a social support platform for gym goers where they can share their daily fitness routines and journey which will bring the fitness community together and promote a safe and encouraging environment through motivating each other throughout their fitness journey. The platform we want to work on would have the following features:
- Creating their own customized profiles according to their fitness journey.
- Following/connecting with other individuals.
- Posting their personalized workout that they’ve done for the day which will include: different types of exercises, workout routine (with detailed repetitions).
- Optional but definitely encouraged: Posting healthy diet and meal plans.
- Enable users to look back at their fitness journey and reflect on their progress.
Explanation of Solution
This platform will allow users to share their daily workout routines through a media platform where their friends can view, learn and follow. This social support platform will enable users to engage by following each other’s profiles where they can post their day-to-day exercise/workout routine with an added picture which will also give the user an option to react with a simple click that shows they’ve done the same workout for that day.
Mock User Flows
Beginner Gym Goer User Flow
Experienced Gym Goer User Flow
Future Steps
In the future, we will collect feedback from users and how to address issues to better the product. Possible additional problems to address in the future:
- How do we make sure that users will remain active and post their fitness journey?
- How do users keep each other accountable on this social support platform?
Learnings
Product Manager Learnings:
Brigette Adlawan
Co.Lab was a really interesting experience and I learned a lot in just a short amount of time. It was helpful to have supportive peers and mentors and I value the feedback that I’ve received from them. I learned that when ideating and building a product, it takes a lot of time and effort so that product can deliver what a user exactly needs. It is important to open your mind to others’ suggestions and important to remind oneself that a product is never perfect but it is a continuously evolving project.
Designer Learnings:
Designer Learnings:
Jo Sturdivant
- Adapting to an Established Team: Joining the team in week 6 of 8 was challenging, as I had to quickly adapt to existing workflows, dynamics, and goals. This mirrors real-world situations where you often integrate into teams mid-project, and flexibility is essential.
- Work-Blocking for Efficiency: With only two weeks to complete the project, I learned the importance of a structured work-blocking system. This approach allowed me to manage my time effectively and meet deadlines under pressure.
- Making Data-Driven Design Decisions: Unlike my past projects, I had to rely on research conducted by others. This was a valuable experience in using pre-existing data to guide design decisions, helping me focus on the core insights without starting from scratch.
Developer Learnings:
Developer Learnings:
Vanady Beard
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As the back-end developer, I learned how important it is to create efficient and reliable systems that support the entire application. This experience also taught me the importance of optimising the database and ensuring the backend is scalable and easy to maintain.
Developer Learnings:
Stephen Asiedu
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As a back-end developer, I've come to understand the importance of being familiar with various database systems and modules. This knowledge enables me to build diverse applications and maintain versatility in my work. I've also learned that the responsibility for making the right choices rests on my shoulders, guided by my best judgement.
Developer Learnings:
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Developer Learnings:
Maurquise Williams
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- Process of Creating an MVP: Developing a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) taught me how to focus on delivering core functionalities balancing between essential features and avoiding scope creep.
- Collaboration in a Real-World Tech Setting: This experience taught me how to collaborate efficiently in a fast-paced tech environment, keeping the team aligned and productive, even while working remotely across time zones.
- Sharpening Critical Thinking and Problem-Solving Skills: This experience honed my ability to think critically and solve problems efficiently. By tackling challenges and finding quick solutions, I sharpened my decision-making and troubleshooting skills in a dynamic, real-world setting.
Developer Learnings:
Jeremiah Williams
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All in all this experience was very awesome I learned that in coding with others being transparent is key
Developers Learnings:
Justin Farley
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I learned how important communication is when working with a team. Communication provides understanding, advice, ideas, and much more. While working with the product team, I’ve found that communication keeps everything flowing smoothly. Working with a team also showed me that every member brings something different to the table and we all have to work together in order to align and meet our end goal.