Runners high
Project time: 2days
Role: Product Designer
Objective
Design a premium community app tailored for athletes preparing for triathlons, Ironman, Ultraman, and similar endurance events.
Value Proposition
support athletes in their journey from amateur to semi-pro and pro levels
Requirements
The product must address the unique challenges faced by athletes at different skill levels (amateur, semi-pro, and pro) and provide personalized solutions that cater to their needs. The app should help users:
- Track and improve performance with tailored training plans.
- Stay engaged and motivated through community features and gamification.
- Monitor key metrics such as training load, recovery, and race readiness.
- Access expert content and resources relevant to their experience level.
Problem
Endurance athletes, first-time marathoners to seasoned Ironman competitors often struggle with information overload and social isolation. Existing platforms provide raw data but lack the nuanced, level-specific guidance and community support required to transition from amateur to professional ranks.
The Challenge
How might we design a unified premium digital ecosystem that balances high-level performance analytics with meaningful community engagement to support the unique physical and psychological demands of an athlete's journey?
Approach
Discovery -> Ideation -> Design
Survey
I initiated the discovery phase with an anonymous user survey distributed across active endurance communities on Reddit, Facebook, Discord, and Instagram.
By gathering 12 targeted responses within 24 hours, I was able to rapidly identify critical user pain points and aspirations. This quantitative and qualitative data served as the foundation for user persona, empathy mapping, ensuring the final solution directly addresses the specific challenges of the endurance athlete’s journey.
Survey response visualization using claude
Competitor analysis
I conducted a comprehensive analysis of direct and indirect competitors, including Strava, TrainingPeaks, and Garmin Connect. While these platforms excel at data logging, my research revealed a significant "guidance gap": most apps provide raw metrics without the personalized, level-specific roadmaps needed to transition from amateur to pro. This analysis helped me identify key opportunities for our premium community features and recovery-focused UI, ensuring our solution offers more than just a leaderboard.
User persona using Chat GPT
Synthesizing the data from my user research and competitive audit, I developed three distinct user personas. These archetypes represent the full spectrum of the endurance journey from the motivated amateur to the elite professional. By mapping their specific pain points and aspirations, I was able to shift from designing "features" to designing targeted solutions that evolve with the athlete’s career.
User flow
With my personas clearly defined, I started to design the User Flow Map the digital journey for each athlete type. I focused on streamlining the "path to value" ensuring that an amateur can easily find educational resources while a pro can dive straight into high-level recovery metrics with minimal friction.
By visualizing these touchpoints, I identified critical decision nodes, such as the onboarding experience, daily workout logging, and community interaction, ensuring the navigation feels intuitive rather than overwhelming during high-fatigue training phases.
Visual Identity & Design System
To reflect the "Premium" value proposition, I developed a cohesive Visual Identity and Design System in Figma. The goal was to create an aesthetic that felt authoritative, high-tech, and elite, moving away from the "playful" look of entry-level fitness apps toward a more "data-pro" atmosphere.
I established a rigorous Style Guide including a high-contrast color palette for outdoor readability and a typography scale optimized for quick scanning during intense training sessions. Following this, I built a library of Reusable Atomic Components (buttons, cards, progress rings, and navigation bars). This system ensures UI consistency across the entire platform and allows for rapid scaling of features for different athlete tiers.
Final Designs
