studyfit.

Prototyping Personalized Fitness for Students with a User-Centered Approach | HCI Capstone Project

Role

UI/UX Designer

Industry

Health & Wellness

Duration

16 Weeks

Project description

studyfit. was created for students who have busy schedules and need reminders to prioritize their physical health. Exercise reduces stress, boosts energy levels, and increases academic achievement. Studyfit offers a variety of exercises, including weightlifting, yoga, and cardio, to enhance the overall well-being of college and high school students.

My involvements in this project include semi-structured interviews, designing low and high-fidelity interfaces in Figma, prototyping interactions, and UX writing.

Key Features

Onboarding Made Personal

Answer a few quick questions to shape a tailored fitness journey, from workout types and frequency to connection with your Apple watch.

Stay Accountable and Connected

Engage with your accountability partner through an activity broadcast feed—keeping both you and your partner motivated and on track.

Explore and Start Workouts Effortlessly

Quickly discover workouts tailored to your preferences, schedule, and equipment needs—seamlessly fitting fitness into your busy school routine.

Track and Celebrate Achievements

Earn milestones and celebrate your progress through badges collected through consistent exercising.

Promo Site

The promo site, built with Framer, uses brand voice, tone, vibrant colors and impactful writing to motivate students to sign up for studyfit. Its dynamic design and messaging embody studyfit’s mission to seamlessly blend academics with wellness.

view site

Apple Watch Design

Students can engage with studyfit beyond the mobile screen, integrating fitness into their daily routines without added friction.

Furthermore, they can easily track their progress and monitor health data (like heart rate) in real-time.

Inspiration

During my time as a computer science student, I witnessed a common challenge among my peers: the daily tug-of-war between academic demands and physical well-being. Students would spend countless hours coding and studying, while their health gradually took a backseat. The mental and physical toll was evident – exhaustion, stress, and a growing reluctance to exercise. I became determined to find a way to excel academically without sacrificing wellness, believing that success in computer science shouldn't come at the cost of our health.

Overcoming my biases: A Journey Towards Empathy

I had a deeply ingrained perspective rooted in my own consistent gym routine. For me, working out was second nature. However, as I sat down to brainstorm, I realized that my experience was not universal. I had to confront three major biases. With these new understandings, my approach to design transformed. It was no longer just about helping students fit workouts into their schedules, but about making fitness accessible, approachable, and adaptable for everyone, regardless of their starting point.

White Paper Research

- Higher exercise intensity is correlated with higher academic achievement.

- Sacrificing study time to exercise may have a positive impact on academic performance.

- Having an accountability partner increases your chances of success by 95%.

Validating the Problem: User Interviews

I interviewed 4 college students and 2 high school students to validate my initial hypothesis and investigate their pain points. The semi-structured interviews revealed students' challenges with balancing physical health and academic responsibilities.

Themes from User Interviews

After analyzing user interviews and detailed note-taking, I created an affinity map. With that I was able to spot four main themes in students' pain points with exercise.

Persona & User Journey

Once I uncovered the key pain points, I brought these insights to life by creating a persona that truly represents our target users. This helped me craft a user journey that captures their experiences, motivations, and challenges every step of the way.

Analyzing our competitors

With a clear picture of our users, I turned my attention to the competition. I found no direct competitors on the market and our indirect competitors did not address all four pain points.

How might we....

help students balance their academic responsibilities with maintaining their physical health by integrating effective workouts into their study schedules?

North Star

To tackle these challenges I set clear project goals based on the students' pain points that I could refer to throughout the design phase.

Structuring the Experience

To generate some ideas on what the Information Architecture could look like I mind mapped. With that I was able to collect a clear picture on how the app would be structured for the user and for me to design.

Bringing the Structure to Life

After nailing down the foundation of the IA, I moved on to wireframing and low-fi prototyping. This is where the ideas started taking shape, turning concepts into something tangible. Here's a glimpse of how it all began!

Testing + Improvements Based on Feedback

With feedback in hand, I went back to refine the design. Each round of testing revealed what worked and what didn’t. Here’s how the app evolved...

Voice and Tone

I intentionally used all lowercase letters to establish a casual, approachable tone that resonates with a younger audience. The vocabulary was kept simple and conversational, creating a relaxed, non-intimidating environment for students to engage with fitness.

Final Concept (for Now)

With feedback in hand, I went back to refine the design. Each round of testing revealed what worked and what didn’t. Here’s the proposed solution. Design is an iterative process so this is the final iteration for now.

Design System

Reflections

Overall, I really enjoyed designing this project because it taught me the importance of being highly detailed and intentional every step of the process.

I learned that I am not the user, and any bias will affect my design. In that I was highly aware, and I revisted my persona many times to double check I wasn't being biased.