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I like it, I used to do CrossFit but now all gyms are too far for me (and too expensive).
Do I _need_ apple watch though? I have just an iPhone.
edit: although most people that are into CrossFit will just go to a CrossFit gym...
edit2: and thinking about it more, I am not sure what will other "normal" gym people think when I do the AMRAP thing and jump around gym. Hm.
This seems like app for CrossFit that cannot legally use the name "CrossFit". I like it, I used to do CrossFit but now all gyms are too far for me (and too expensive). Do I _need_ apple watch though? I have just an iPhone. edit: although most people that are into CrossFit will just go to a CrossFit gym... edit2: and thinking about it more, I am not sure what will other "normal" gym people think when I do the AMRAP th…
The original inspiration for the app was when I was looking around the gym during one of the The Opens and listening to people 'strategize' about the workout. "Don't come out of the gate too hot", "Pace yourself", "Hit this many rounds/reps by this point on the clock", etc.
In other words, everyone was building a personalized "pacing plan", and it occurred to me that optimizing a plan to achieve a goal and delivering it through a digital experience was an idea I wanted to explore.
I've been a life long fitness junkie, and I really think that Greg Glassman's original blueprint for "quantifying fitness" as outlined in the CF-L1 Training Manual pretty much nails a winning formula for a lot of people. (e.g. the ones who are inclined to work out.)
The vast majority of the app experience itself (as well as a lot of the internal data architecture + software design that you'd never see or necessarily think about) is very much built around the idea of "workout prescriptions", "workout plans", "workout performances" and the "algebra" on those data structures that starts to quantify all of the splits.
You only need an iPhone to use the app, but the overall UX is a lot better (especially during a metcon) if you have a watch because you can just advance through the workout and track your splits with a tap on the wrist. IOW: start the workout on the phone, set the phone down, train, pick the phone back up later to get all of the analysis
This post and a lot of this dialogue has been TREMENDOUSLY helpful to me (both directionally and energetically) as I seek out a way to create a more focused experience in the app with a much more focused value prop (both in the app itself and in the marketing messages.)
Would very much welcome your (unvarnished) feedback if you decide to check it out and have any thoughts!
This seems like app for CrossFit that cannot legally use the name "CrossFit". I like it, I used to do CrossFit but now all gyms are too far for me (and too expensive). Do I _need_ apple watch though? I have just an iPhone. edit: although most people that are into CrossFit will just go to a CrossFit gym... edit2: and thinking about it more, I am not sure what will other "normal" gym people think when I do the AMRAP th…
Yes, this is seems to be the case for the most part, though I'm still exploring the "garage gym athlete" community. Turns out there are lots of garage gyms and a decent number of garage gyms have been outfitted by people who prefer/need to train at home, "ex-CrossFitters", etc. I think there's something here, but I don't have it fully quantified yet.
> edit2: and thinking about it more, I am not sure what will other "normal" gym people think when I do the AMRAP thing and jump around gym. Hm.
Haha. Been there myself. I find that it's important to build a small station with everything at arms reach in a "normal gym" setting so that it doesn't get taken by others.
In either scenario, though, you will be an outlier...but that's not a bad thing :)
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I appreciate the depthful reply. My quote was based on a cursory glance, I'm sure there is much more involved with a detailed spec sheet, as you pointed out. Seems like you have the product figured out and just need to focus iterating on marketing. I'm actually in a similar position to you but having spent $400K instead of $1M. I'd like to ask you, what were some factors that propelled you to self rationalize your me…
It's all good, and I'm genuinely enjoying these interactions here on HN. Literally nothing to lose and everything to gain from the dialogue, and I do help it's of some benefit to others :) Part of how I have rationalized my journey so far is that I have been building an app that I myself use almost every day, I genuinely enjoy the building products and working with my team, progress has been steady along the way, and…
It's too early to jump to conclusions without proper marketing for the app and any revenue-related metrics gathered.
The issue with delayed marketing can be that the product is too large to make changes fast and run experiments. Removing features considering committed resources would also be a challenge.
Regarding the Proxy Users, I think the idea is that customers should pay for a solution that solves a problem, not vice versa. You can install a session recording feature, watch app interactions occasionally, and do interviews with paying users (or invite active users to your podcast).
I've just checked your app and it's not even ranked for "workout tracker", " gym logger" etc. You're losing a lot of organic visibility from the App Store. If I were you I'd look into an experienced ASO specialist to level up your app store game, for example, @nickjsheriff (Twitter). Also, $80-120/h for the iOS dev hour is a lot, I assume you hire in the US?
This is a REALLY GOOD point of feedback. I have done literally nothing for ASO, and what you are saying reflects the reality that I don't see many organic downloads in the App Store. Definitely going to look into this! On the iOS dev hours: yes, the $120 has been more aligned to seasoned talent with U.S. rates and the $80 has been more aligned to talent outside the U.S.
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It's all good, and I'm genuinely enjoying these interactions here on HN. Literally nothing to lose and everything to gain from the dialogue, and I do help it's of some benefit to others :) Part of how I have rationalized my journey so far is that I have been building an app that I myself use almost every day, I genuinely enjoy the building products and working with my team, progress has been steady along the way, and…
Thank you for the insight on the development process. Tbh, it seems a very reasonable path for the app without any economic and time pressure to succeed, considering you now have the perfect app for yourself. It's too early to jump to conclusions without proper marketing for the app and any revenue-related metrics gathered. The issue with delayed marketing can be that the product is too large to make changes fast and…
I am very much still an optimist on the future of the app and my ability to monetize it.
As I synthesize much of this post and these comments, it's increasingly clear to me that I've just been operating too much in isolation, leaning more into what I know well (development) -vs- what I don't know as well (marketing in all its forms)
Now it's time to do some overcorrection and then step back and find the balance.
I very much intend to have a success story to post here one day as a new comment on this post about "how my startup barely dodged death but now I'm writing this update from the beach watching the monies flow" :)
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Great thoughts here! I think you're right. You wouldn't know it from the website (working on that!), but the app experience is more for "fit people who want to optimize their fitness and like to analyze their training data". It's just been a tough nut to crack to find the right way to express that so far, but to the point of this thread and all of this dialogue, that's also key to the unlock. I'm a former military gu…
I'm just a coder who lifts and _not_ a marketing or ideation genius, but at first read that sounds like a really good idea. Reasoning: It _seems_ like if you make the programs legitimately useful and look reputable, not only would you get the people looking to pass a test in the actual military (which may be relatively few? I have no idea), but I bet you'd _also_ attract a ton of CrossFit or other fitness buffs who j…
I also think you're right that a lot of amateur fitness enthusiasts like to train with/to "mil specs" because of the connotations of badassery it portrays. Can't blame them... :)
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This is a REALLY GOOD point of feedback. I have done literally nothing for ASO, and what you are saying reflects the reality that I don't see many organic downloads in the App Store. Definitely going to look into this! On the iOS dev hours: yes, the $120 has been more aligned to seasoned talent with U.S. rates and the $80 has been more aligned to talent outside the U.S.
I'm a mobile dev and I do ASO, I'm open to chat and show you on what metrics you need to look at in the app store connect. Let me know if you're up for it. I tried to DM on Twitter but your DMs are off
The comments on the product being a vitamin and not differentiating enough are all correct. The messaging is vague as well.
Here’s the thing about the fitness industry: it’s incredibly saturated and fickle. There might not even be a way to differentiate yourself in this space. After all, it’s one of the most popular niches that entrepreneurs try to tackle. In addition, even if you find a good niche, it’s hard to keep those users, because people are just lazy by nature. So you’re always going to be facing the challenge of getting new users every single day to replace the ones that left.
There has not been many successful fitness startups recently. The one that got their marketing incredibly right years ago was Fitocracy, which built a community of millions of users. Yet even they inevitably failed and sold for peanuts to a PE firm.
As for my startup, I literally spent 1/2 of my time marketing before I even had a product. I built a list of 5000 users and emailed them when I launched. I actually had lots of buzz and signups in the first few weeks but it all died up because the churn is so bad in fitness. And it was hard to get writers/media to write about my startup because the concept wasn’t as new as it was in the beginning.
So there you have it. If a startup like Fitocracy got their product ANd marketing down pat and still “failed” (Dick, Wang, Cockem, correct me if I’m wrong and yes those are the actual last names of the team lol) what does that mean for you?
Just some inconvenient truths. I wish I could be more optimistic. If you want to learn more about my startup and what I did to market it, email me at ritagrohowski at geeeeeeeemail :)
Any recommendation for diet or eating patterns? Meal prep, AI snapshots of a plate of food with general analysis of calories? Body type specific workouts, mirror selfie analysis? Fat % measurement ability?
Can the Apple Watch determine when the individual is eating from motions? Predict digestion or time glucose levels with accuracy?
Anyways hope to hear more abt product