Gym App Development

May 2022 I've finally finished University and came up with a few projects to do over the summer. One of the projects being a GYM app. The initial idea of this app is to allow users to view different workouts, whether they're at home or the gym, they can perform to train different muscle groups. Fitness is something I'm personally interested in and therefore this app is a great fit. I have zero app development skills, this is the first app I've ever created.

After researching different ways of developing apps, I chose to use Flutter within Andriod studio. I found many resources and tutorials on using Flutter and thought it would be the best fit. Through further research I needed to understand the programming language used, as mentioned before, this is all new to me and applications rarely use Python which is the programming language I'm most comfortable in using.

When developing this application, it is important for research purposes to document my key steps and progress. This allows me to then have an overlook at the end to identify where I went wrong and what can be changed for the next project. This also allows me to potentially teach someone else how to develop an application in the future if needs be.

*This post will be updated throughout to display further progress *

Define the app's purpose.

Before any key research goes into the application, it was important to consider and review some of the key information such as the purpose of this app. A very easy method is using the Moscow method. This method allows for prioritising what needs to be done and analysing the key aspects of the application. For this specific application, this is how the method was used:

M - Must be able to display workouts. Must be able to interact on Android devices as well as Apple devices.

S- Should allow the ability to create your own workout routine.

C- Could be able to record progress.

W- Won't have a complicated menu design and won't be hard for the user to operate.

This is one of several methods which could be used to allow your project to be kept on track and to have some sort of goal to manage progress and keep you motivated.

Basic design.

The next step was to have a rough idea of what I wanted the application to look at. What colours will I use? What sort of icons? Where will I get them from? Where will I get my images from? Will I have videos? This led to some research on how other fitness applications look. What is their layout like? What is colour theory and how can that be used? And what the theme is among other applications.

All these questions are very important. But another key part is having a basic idea of how the code design itself will look. How will everything interact with each other? What are some features to look into which could be used? All of this was considered throughout the design phase of the development process.

After careful consideration and opinions from colleagues, the following are the colours which have been chosen for the app.

Green - represents growth and health. This will allow for a pop of colour while maintaining a clean and professional look.

Black - Gives a clean and sophisticated look.

Grey - This will allow a contrast as well as a clean look. Will allow the eyes to rest and not cause eye strain.

White/Ivory - This will be a calm colour to not strain the user's eyes, it will match with all the other colours.

The audience.

It is important to identify the audience the application is intended for. This application is intended to support beginners in their fitness journey. Individuals which may not be aware of which workouts to perform for certain goals. However, this can be used by intermediate individuals too. This application will help beginners by performing the workouts correctly to prevent injury, allow for progress, progress tracking and build their confidence within the gym.

Age: 20-39

Gender: All

Devices: Currently Android

Language: English

Interests: Working out, personal development, weight loss, weight gain, body building.

The Icons for the first draft of the application will be designed by myself using either Adobe Illustrator or Procreate which is available on the iPad. They will be basic designs of icons such as the Home page, calender to track progress and more. After further development, the application will get a remodel ensuring all the icons are on theme and match the sleek and professional look. Furthermore, to ensure the user gets a better idea of gym equipment and exercises, pictures and videos can be taken and then displayed on the application to show examples. These can either be animated or created by myself.