About the project
Context
Gym, fitness, and exercise are all things we should incorporate into our lifestyles for ourselves, however, what happens when you are unsure about where to start or are too stubborn to admit you don't know what to do? You risk being injured and that's what happened to me, I use to work out in high school with my friends and went quite a lot however after high school I lost interest in the gym until the start of 2021 when I wanted to jump back into fitness for myself. Unfortunately, I pushed myself too hard too fast and ended up lifting too much weight with improper form and causing me to have a severe herniated disk in my spine. This was a difficult time for me as I was in immense pain and was unable to work or move for around 6 months, this is where the passion for my project was formed as I don't want anyone else to have to go through what I did and want to make sure people are safe while working out.
Research insight
My original goal for the project was to help people in recovery from a sports-related injury, that was until I found that over 66% of people from my survey were injured at the gym. This number was crazy to me as I never expected it to be that high so I pivoted to ensure my project was targeted more towards newcomers to the gym and help prevent injuries. The main reason for injuries at the gym is caused by improper form so this was the main issue I would like to solve.
Approach
To help resolve the issue around improper form I had to think of a way to show people how they should be conducting the exercise correctly to their bodies as everyone is different. I came up with the idea to use skeletal tracking to track the points that are used if a specific exercise and how they should move to reduce the risk of injury. I started with creating a mockup video of what the software could look like and then went off to find a developer that would have the skills to bring it into the real world.
Summary
This project is supposed to help people gain confidence at the gym and help them create a love for fitness. Also having a brand and community that helps destigmatise the gym and makes it feel more like an inclusive place for everyone to workout and better themselves as that is what we go to the gym for doesn't matter who is there or how long they've been going for we all go to the gym to improve ourselves in some way. I want to make sure everyone is safe while doing so.
