Spot Me

Helping weightlifters safely lift solo by using human pose technology to analyze their form and provide real-time feedback.

Helping weightlifters safely lift solo by using human pose technology to analyze their form and provide real-time feedback.

At a glance

Many lifters start casually without guidance, often risking injury as they increase weight with poor form. Spot Me helps with solo workouts by using AI-driven pose estimation to "spot" your form. It gives real-time feedback, so you can focus on lifting your best without the worry of getting hurt.

Role
Role

Principle Designer

Timeline
Timeline

4 months

Area
Area

Mobile App

The Context
The Context

As people increasingly shift to digital fitness, how can we improve their experience?

Since the pandemic disrupted many people's exercise routines, there's been a growing trend towards online experiences and health-tracking devices that have only continued to grow. I was curious to explore these emerging technologies to see if they could lead to a new kind of solution.

~ 1/2

Of Americans use virtual workouts and other digital solutions.

$6.86 bn

Predicted size of the global fitness app market for 2024 to grow to $10 bn in 2028.

24%

Expected annual expansion of the global virtual fitness market between 2024 - 2031.

Statista (2024)

Who am I designing for?
Who am I designing for?

How do people at different fitness levels use technology in their workouts?

To create a solution that would really help people, I first wanted to understand how they currently use technology in their fitness routines. I conducted preliminary interviews with a wide range of users, from beginners (< 1 year) to veterans (10+ years) and those who don't use any tech to power users.

I asked them why they started working out, what their current routines are, and what motivates them. This approach allowed me to identify 3 key problem spaces, which informed my ideation process.

Problem Space #1
Physical changes take a long time to see, so changes in data are very motivating.

Market.US, 2023

53% of respondents reported using a wearable device to monitor their fitness activity.

Dennis

weight lifting, biking

"It can take so long to see results, that's why it’s good to see you’re improving through the data. That’s how you know you're getting fitter, getting better, and getting faster."

ANGELIKA

weight lifting, CARDIO

“It was the best investment. I hate to workout without my watch. I have the tick if without it- where is it?”

Problem Space #2
Prefers coaching but find trainers too expensive. Instead, they follow online programs and routines.

National Library of Medicine, 2003

1-on-1 training is effectively changes attitudes and increases physical activity.

SOPHIA

CARDIO

"I would so love to have a personal trainer but who can afford that?"

NICOLE

RUNNING

"Instead of trying to come up with my own routine, I decided to try and see if the fitness watch program can actually get someone who doesn't work out at all to become active."

Problem Space #3
Hesitant to try new exercises because of fear of getting injured.

National Library of Medicine, 2017

Exercise-related injury was common in non-elite exercise participants.

HANA

CARDIO

"That's why I don't like to experiment too much as well because if I do it wrong, then I could injure myself."

VERA

running, yoga, weights

"One of the things I don’t like is when they only show the exercise video from one angle so you don’t know how to position yourself correctly."

How might we…
How might we…

1

How might we use biometrics

to provide personalized feedback?

2

How might we digitally guide users in real-time through workouts tailored to their goals?

3

How might we leverage tech to teach users about correct form and prevent injury?

Divergent Solutions
Divergent Solutions

How will I address the pain points and problem spaces in my design?

I developed 4 divergent concepts to test with users and elicit strong reactions from them. I created low-fidelity prototypes to focus their reactions on the ideas rather than the design so that I could identify which solutions resonated with them and which to leave behind.

Concept 1: Quiz Generates Workout Routine

Concept 2: Alerts Prevent Overexertion

Concept 3: 360° Viewable Poses

Concept 4: Responsive Form Correction

Turning Main Insights into Key Features
Turning Main Insights into Key Features

Users were most drawn to real-time coaching and injury prevention-focused solutions, as they struggled with this when working out alone.

Progress Tracking Over Time

Highlight even minor improvements in statistics and leverage streaks to keep users motivated.

Visual and Audio Guided Workouts

Step-by-step guidance on which muscles to activate for each set. Planned weights, reps, and exercises.

Correctional Feedback

Use smartwatches and trackers to analyze biometrics, abnormalities should prompt personalized feedback to prevent injury.

Prototyping & Testing
Prototyping & Testing

How might we teach gym-goers the correct form and prevent injury during solo workouts?

Based on user feedback, I combined injury prevention (Concept 2) and form guidance (Concept 4) into a mid-fidelity prototype for testing. I narrowed my testing group to gym-goers who loved using apps and tech in their fitness routines. This led to 2 key insights that gave me my "A-ha!" moment.

Can it provide form correction instead of just showing it?

Users loved the idea of real-time feedback for their form correction and muscle targeting.

How can biometrics tell if I’m going too far when weightlifting?

It's difficult to tell if the muscle ache you feel is progressing or injuring when weightlifting.

And then I began to see a pattern —

Hao

weight lifting

"I hurt my shoulders really badly before because I wanted to make the weight heavier. I tried to train my chest, but I didn't know the right degree to do it in."

DENNIS

Weight lifting

"I kept pushing myself on the bench press until I ended up getting a really serious shoulder injury. Turns out, my form was wrong the whole time."

shaurya

weight lifting

"I was doing deadlifts and the posture wasn't right and I was alone at the gym without a trainer and I really hurt my back."

priyana

weightlifting

"I was doing bench presses wrong the whole time till last year. Just by memory, you can always still do something that’s incorrect form."

Dhruvil

weight lifting

"Since I don't have a lifting trainer, there's no one who's gonna correct me. This is very helpful because you can see how to do it correctly."

Casual weightlifters struggle to tell if their form is correct when lifting alone, which could lead to a severe injury.

Every weightlifter I spoke with had experienced serious injuries from lifting alone and pushing too hard, often without realizing their form was off. Unlike cardio workouts, where signs like shortness of breath or lightheadedness signal overexertion, weightlifting makes it hard to tell if the muscle strain you're feeling is from progress or injury.

Narrowing the Scope
Narrowing the Scope

How might we teach weight lifters proper form by providing real-time corrections during solo workouts to optimize results and prevent injury?

How might we teach weight lifters proper form by providing real-time corrections during solo workouts to optimize results and prevent injury?

Problem Reframing
Problem Reframing

How are weightlifters currently solving this?

How are weightlifters currently solving this?

'Spotting' in weight training is supporting the person lifting.

'Spotting' in weight training is supporting the person lifting.

Spotters help the athlete complete the lift, ensure proper technique, and prevent injury. They also boost an athlete’s confidence level and morale, leading to better performance during their workout.

61%

Of injuries in weight lifting are due to technical errors.

National Institute of Health, 2023

1 in 4

People reported doing weight-lifting activities weekly.

0

Association between injury occurrence and gender, age, or BMI.

National Institute of Health, 2023

Could we 'spot' weightlifters digitally?

Could we 'spot' weightlifters digitally?

Human pose estimation for corrective feedback.

Human pose estimation for corrective feedback.

HPE gets the most attention in AI fitness applications, as it can analyze the movement of athletes in different scenarios using just a smartphone camera.

Journey Map
Journey Map

Based on the interviewed weightlifter's personal stories of how they injured themselves, I created a journey map to narrow down the feature goals into achievable design solutions.

System map
System map

I prioritized outlining the correction feedback and post-workout analysis flow in order to gain perspective on what's missing, what's important, and what isn't necessary.

Design Development
Design Development

Tailoring the experience to weightlifting needs.

After synthesizing all my focused research and narrowing down my potential features, I moved on to refining the prototype with my concentrated target user in mind- casual weightlifters. I started by sketching out different screens with elements my users resonated with, including coach-led routines, video for form analysis and tracking, correction alerts, and post-workout analysis.

I turned these sketches into mid-fidelity prototypes to enhance my UI elements. I tested them with casual weightlifters who had just started lifting and those who had been doing it for years to ensure the UX could easily be introduced into their routine.

Actionable insights
Actionable insights

Key Finding #1

Lifters focus on the quality of each rep rather than how quickly they can finish a set.

Place less emphasis on time tracking

  • Remove the timer and progress bar from 'Spot Me' mode

  • Emphasize exercise name, number of reps, and weights

Key Finding #2

Prefers to read detailed information on form correction after the workout.

Correction alerts should be bite-sized

  • Large text and fullscreen modal to capture the user's attention

  • In-depth form analysis information should be given post-workout

Key Finding #3

Curious to see how this workout’s accuracy compared to past ones.

Easily compare statistics over time

  • Allow users to switch between different period lengths to analyze progress

  • Leverage statistics to highlight improvements

Spot Me

Spot Me

An AI-driven fitness app that corrects your form in-real time so that you can keep the focus on lifting at your personal best.

Step-by-step Guide to Your Workout

Easily track this week's progress, motivating you to keep up the hustle. Workout cards and coach-led video tutorials make it easy to follow along each set and alleviate the stress of routine planning.

Pose Tracking for Real-Time Form Feedback

Easily toggle between coach-led video tutorials and 'Spot Me' pose tracking mode. When incorrect form is detected, it triggers bite-size audio and visual alerts on how to correct yourself- as a coach would! Modal disappears once your form has been safely corrected.

Diving Into Analysis Post-Workout

End the workout with a brief recap on how you did and gives an option for detailed information on each set's form accuracy. Lets you see all alerts to understand your mistakes and tips on how to improve.

Tracking Progress Over Time

Beyond today's workout, you can track your progress with that set over time including accuracy, alerts, and weight carried. Highlights even the smallest statistical improvements since it often takes longer to see changes physically.

What Did I learn?

Design Isn't a Linear Process

At the start of this project, I was uncertain about which fitness problem to tackle. It wasn’t until my mid-fidelity interviews that I focused on weightlifting. The process involved revisiting my research, but that’s the thrill of design— drawing, researching, testing, and repeating. Keeping the user’s needs as my north star guided me to a genuine area of opportunity.

Don't Forget About The Tech!

I love getting into UI and UX design, but that’s just one piece of the puzzle. Researching AI has shown me how crucial it is to stay updated with the latest tech to keep innovating. I think it’s all about balancing the tech we have with imagining what it could be to keep pushing the boundaries.

© Kirsten Geiger 2024