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Fitness training platform

A 12 week fitness app for Men's Health — skill-based onboarding, 130 shot exercises, gamification, and a daily engagement loop. Designed and shipped in 6 months.

Problem

Men’s Health wanted to turn its trusted training expertise into a digital experience. The challenge was to guide users through structured programs that adapted to their fitness level, while staying true to the brand’s confident, motivating tone.

Solution

Partnered with Men’s Health editors and trainers to bring expert fitness content to life in a motivating digital experience. Simplified discovery and program flow to help users stay consistent, and delivered a bold, structured app that launched as a 20-day guided plan.

Problem

Men's Health had built successful training programs in print. The challenge was testing whether that same model could work as a digital product — adapting structured, level-based fitness content into an app experience that retained the authority of the brand while meeting users where they actually were: on their phone, with varying fitness levels, and limited time.

Solution

A skill-based fitness app that personalised the experience from the start, guided users through a structured 12 week program, and kept them engaged daily through gamification, progress tracking, and motivating content. Built to prove the print model could work in digital.

Process & Approach

Alignment

Leading content lead toward non-linear user journeys

Translating chapter-based thinking into pathway logic

Simplified pathways, introduced logging and progressive structure

Alignment

Leading content lead toward non-linear user journeys

Translating chapter-based thinking into pathway logic

Simplified pathways, introduced logging and progressive structure

Alignment

Leading content lead toward non-linear user journeys

Translating chapter-based thinking into pathway logic

Simplified pathways, introduced logging and progressive structure

Research

Lean testing revealed too much content upfront and too many decisions before users had done anything

A 30 second skill test replaced manual level selection and removed the decision entirely

One insight reshaped the entire onboarding architecture

Research

Lean testing revealed too much content upfront and too many decisions before users had done anything

A 30 second skill test replaced manual level selection and removed the decision entirely

One insight reshaped the entire onboarding architecture

Production

130 exercises shot with a fitness expert for correct form, not stock

Animated illustrations for every exercise to communicate movement on a small screen

Gamification, logging, timers and progress tracking designed as a system to sustain engagement

Production

130 exercises shot with a fitness expert for correct form, not stock

Animated illustrations for every exercise to communicate movement on a small screen

Gamification, logging, timers and progress tracking designed as a system to sustain engagement

Wireframe testing with fitness editors and the content lead surfaced friction around instruction complexity and step length. We simplified the language, shortened timers, and moved fitness level setup into onboarding to keep the workout flow clean. The wireframes validated pacing and journey logic before we committed to visual design.

Early feedback showed transitions between workouts felt static. I worked with trainers to align motion with real rest pacing and breathing cadence. Each transition became a cue — the screen gently shifted between exercises, rest timers appeared with form previews, and the workout ended with a motivational quote that reinforced progress. It transformed the experience from functional to emotional.

industry

Fitness, iOS

timeframe

6 months

team

Product design · interaction design · visual design · design systems · accessibility · prototyping · lean testing

skills & tools

Design lead · content lead · Jr. designer · PM

Login, daily dashboard and workout entry — designed to get users from open to moving in as few steps as possible.

Active workout, rest moment and progress tracking — the full engagement loop designed to keep users consistent across 12 weeks.

Motion and timing designed to match real rest periods, keeping workouts on pace and users in flow.

Illustrated form tips and lighter options built into every exercise, reducing injury risk and keeping all levels engaged.

What Shipped

Skill-based onboarding replacing manual level selection across all user flows

130 custom exercises shot with a fitness expert with animated illustrations for every one

Full gamification, logging, timers and progress tracking system built and delivered

Launched on schedule for the January resolution campaign

What I'd do differently

Build completion rate and drop-off tracking in from day one, not as an afterthought

More rounds of usability testing on the core daily loop before launch

Design for platform scalability earlier — upgradeable content tiers letting users grow with the product over time

Invest more in the content lead alignment process upfront to reduce late-stage pathway changes

see also

Luxury Hospitality

End to end hospitality

Enterprise

Four Design systems

Luxury Hospitality

E-Commerce meets editorial

Enterprise

Scaling Corporate Platform

Fitness, iOS

Active branding

i'm open for work and freelance projects, feel free to email me to see how we can collaborate

contact me

i'm open for work and freelance projects, feel free to email me to see how we can collaborate

contact me