Empowering young professionals to live healthier through a comprehensive wellness app
Role:
Team: Independent project (startup)
Timeline: 1/2/24—2/12/24
The Problem
New graduates frequently struggle to prioritize their health due to challenges like transitioning to new environments, employment uncertainty, and financial stress. These factors often lead to neglecting self-care, negatively impacting both physical and mental wellness.
How might we help new graduates prioritize and maintain their health during this critical transition?
Job To Be Done
Research
Understanding the user
Interviews with recent graduates revealed significant barriers to maintaining health, including financial constraints for gyms and therapy, busy and unpredictable schedules, overwhelming wellness information, and fragmented health apps requiring multiple subscriptions.
Key Insights
Competitive Analysis
Analyzing industry leaders clarified gaps in existing solutions.
Headspace
As a pioneer in the wellness industry, Headspace is renowned for its highly successful and simple mental health solutions. Its user-friendly interface and cute branding have attracted 2.8m users to its platform as of 2023.
Pros
User-Friendly: Easy to navigate, making it great for beginners.
Variety of Content: Offers guided meditations for different needs like stress, sleep, and focus.
Scientifically Backed: Practices based on research to support mental well-being.
Cons
Subscription Cost: Requires a paid subscription for full access, which may be pricey for some.
Limited Free Content: The free version is restricted, offering only a small selection of meditations., sleep, and focus.
Repetitive: Content can become repetitive over time, especially for free users.
While Headspace's success can be attributed to its wellness features, users typically need to pay to experience that first 'aha' moment that convinces them.
Peloton
As a leader in the fitness industry, Peloton has transformed home workouts with its live and on-demand classes. Its engaging community and high-quality content have attracted millions of users worldwide, making it a top choice for fitness enthusiasts.
Pros
Variety of Workouts: Offers a broad range of exercises, including cycling, running, and strength training.
Motivating Instructors & Community: Expert instructors and a supportive social community help keep users engaged and motivated.
Quality Experience: Provides a premium, immersive fitness experience with Peloton’s equipment and app features.
Cons
High Cost: The subscription and equipment can be expensive.
Requires Equipment: The best experience comes with Peloton's bike or treadmill, which may not be accessible to all users
Challenging for Beginners: Some workouts may be too intense for those new to fitness.
Peloton's popularity stems from its engaging workouts and strong community, however, similar to Headspace, they require hard financial commitment from users.
The Solution
Simple, Personalized, and Holistic
Proposed Solution
One Stop for All Your Needs: Fitness, nutrition, mental health, and more—all in one place.
Personalized Routines: Tailored to your goals, schedule, and budget.
Affordable & Accessible: Free and low-cost tools to make wellness achievable for everyone.
Ideation
While it was clear we needed a low-cost, low-barrier solution, one question remained: Why weren’t there apps that support both mental and physical health? This seemed surprising, especially given the strong scientific evidence linking physical and psychological well-being. For instance, physical activity has been shown to reduce the likelihood of developing depression by 26%, and those with chronic physical health conditions are twice as likely to experience anxiety and depression. Given these connections, why does this gap exist? With this in mind, I began thinking of a concept that could bridge this divide, starting with...
How might we create an integrated, accessible, and affordable solution supporting both physical and mental wellness?
But how do we motivate users to stay accountable?
According to this research article…
Publicly committing your goals to someone gives you at least a 65% chance of completing them. However, having a specific accountability partner increases your chance of success to 95%.
To help users stay on track, I designed a Partnership Feature that encourages social accountability. During sign-up, users are prompted to select an accountability buddy—a friend, family member, or even another app user.
Challenge
Through user feedback, I learned that while accountability partners can greatly improve success rates, many users had concerns: some worried about privacy, others felt uneasy sharing their goals, and a few feared they wouldn't be able to find a compatible partner.
The challenge became clear: How might we design a partnership system that feels safe, motivating, and inclusive for everyone?
I brainstormed solutions with these principles in mind:
Flexibility: Let users opt in or out of the feature.
Compatibility: A matching system pairs users with similar goals and schedules.
Engagement: Provide guided prompts and gamification to keep interactions fun and consistent.
Privacy: Give users control over what they share.
Prototype: I designed a prototype that included:
An opt-in onboarding flow for the partnership feature.
A matching questionnaire to pair users based on shared goals and preferences.
A dedicated partnership hub with daily check-in prompts, progress tracking, and shared achievements.
The final partnership system strikes a balance between accountability and user comfort. By addressing privacy concerns, ensuring compatibility, and adding gamified elements, the feature not only keeps users motivated but also makes the process enjoyable.
How might we create solutions that align more closely with our users’ specific needs?
Personalized content
By tailoring the app experience to individual users, we can offer a personalized approach that best meets their needs. For example, users focused on physical fitness can customize their workouts by intensity and frequency. Those unsure of their preferences can let the app decide for them, with the option to adjust later.
Wireframes and early prototypes
Feature Ideation
Personalized Experience
Rejuvenate provides customizable workout and meditation routines that adapt to each user's lifestyle and preferences, whether they're seeking quick activities or rigorous plans.
Sleep Monitoring
Given the importance of sleep for overall health, Rejuvenate includes sleep-tracking tools and resources like guided meditations and therapeutic content to help users develop mindful sleep habits.
Nutritional Guidance
Recognizing nutrition’s crucial role in mood and health, Rejuvenate offers personalized dietary advice and monitoring tools informed by current scientific research linking gut health to mental wellness.
Iterations and Finalization
Branding & Style
Harmonious & Playful
Reflecting Rejuvenate’s holistic mission, I selected:
Colors: Orange (energy, vitality) and green (mindfulness, meditation).
Illustrations: Friendly, approachable vector graphics inspired by brands like Duolingo and Headspace, creating warmth and accessibility.
Reflection
What I've learned…
Balancing ambition with practicality was my greatest challenge. Not every envisioned feature made the MVP, but exploring these ideas deepened my understanding of user needs. Developing branding and visual assets independently extended timelines, highlighting the value of collaborative teamwork for future projects.
If you've made it this far…
Thank you for taking the time to explore this early project in my UX/Product Design journey! Like many designers, I’m continually learning and improving every day. If you’re curious about what I’m currently up to, please feel free to reach out, I'd be happy to give an update!