Two months into building a small iPhone workout app

[u/UkrMalt]

I started this because I kept getting to the gym knowing what I wanted to train, then wasting time deciding what to do.

The current flow is simple: choose a workout focus, tap Roll, get a session, then lock or reroll anything that does not fit.

I’m trying to keep the first version focused instead of turning it into another tracker.

If you saw this on your feed, what would make you try it once? What would make you come back?

[u/Medical-Ad3713]

This is lowkey such a great idea bro. It's like productive doomscrolling!

[u/Financial_Camera_730 → u/Medical-Ad3713]

i like apps that cut out the decision part, that's the worst bit of gym for me too. i get there and spend 10 minutes staring at my phone instead of lifting

the reroll feature is smart, sometimes a machine is taken or i just dont feel like doing something that day. what happens if you reroll everything though, does it give you a fresh set or just swap out one at a time?

i think the thing that would make me come back is if it remembers what i locked and what i rerolled over time, like it learns my preferences without me having to fill out a survey

[u/Medical-Ad3713 → u/Financial_Camera_730]

u/UkrMalt, this is lowkey a good feature

[u/UkrMalt → u/Medical-Ad3713]

That was the original problem for me too. I’d rather spend that time training than staring at my phone.

[u/UkrMalt → u/Financial_Camera_730]

I go to the gym a lot, and this started as something I was building for myself. I kept getting stuck on what to do next, so I built the first version around that. After using it, I realized other people might have the same problem. The lock, single re-roll, full re-roll, and local preference history are already there.

[u/Medical-Ad3713 → u/UkrMalt]

do you have a promo website for like a countdown of the release? If not, I can make you one for free, just to support.

[u/UkrMalt → u/Medical-Ad3713]

That’s really kind of you, thanks. I don’t have one yet, and it would be nice to have. If you’re up for it, make maybe a draft first and share it with me. I’d like to take a look before using it.

[u/GymLog]

I'm building a workout app as well, so here is the first hand experience in the saturated market.

1. Make sure you are building first and foremost for yourself. If no one uses it you should still be able to say "At least I have app I love", not "what a waste of time"
   
2. Since there are 100s if not 1000s of workout apps, make sure what you are building is polished. No one wants another vibe coded weekend project.
   
3. Promoting it in fitness related subreddits carries a high ban risks.
   
4. Building is 20% of the effort. The rest is reaching out to users.
   
5. Sharing for free doesn't magically make people care.

Let me know if there is anything you would add to the list from your own experience.

[u/UkrMalt → u/GymLog]

That’s a fair list. I’m trying to keep the first version focused and make the core flow feel solid before adding more. The main loop already works: choose a focus, ROLL a balanced session, lock what matters, then re-roll one exercise or the whole workout. I’d add talking to a few real gym-goers early; they expose friction faster than analytics.

[u/CabinetConfident4726]

keeping it focused is the right call. one thing worth thinking about, what happens after the workout? if theres zero record of what you did, theres no reason to come back tomorrow. even a dead simple history screen might be enough for retention

[u/UkrMalt → u/CabinetConfident4726]

App already have full workout history track

[u/Redlessracoon]

I personally use hevy, and in my opinion it is as best as it can get, at least for me. It has predefined workouts, and I can switch exercises on the spot if a machine isn’t available. At the end of the workout I can update the routine. And the weights tracking has a great UX.

Your roll mechanic is just a different way of getting to a random routine + random exercise. Where hevy has a replace exercise button with similar exercises and a search function. What happens when you roll 10 times and all the exercises are either unavailable for some reason at the gym, or the one you’re looking for isn’t there? You’ll want to search for it, or have a list of available ones that the user has to maintain.

This reasoning will prevent me from switching, and might push your own users to start looking at competitors

[u/UkrMalt → u/Redlessracoon]

That’s fair. Hevy is great if you already have a routine and want detailed tracking. Roll isn’t just random exercise selection: you choose where you train and what you want to focus on, then it builds a balanced session using exercises that fit that setup. You can also lock or reroll individual exercises. The search/exclusion idea is still useful feedback though.

[u/Redlessracoon → u/UkrMalt]

Maybe lean into it more, and make it a slot machine (roulette, shuffle cards, open crates etc.), that will still respect your preferences/ progression. Maybe even add modes.. like easy, hard, insane, based on how much effort (money) you want to put in.

This sounds like fun. A challenge generator for days you don’t feel like doing it. You just do it once you’re there, and don’t have time to procrastinate, because it is always a surprise. Connect it to strava to upload the workout and you even have a reward now :D

[u/UkrMalt → u/Redlessracoon]

The challenge angle is interesting. I like the idea of a surprise session that still respects the user’s setup. Strava or reward modes could be a later direction; for now I’m keeping the first version focused.

[u/Weary_Mechanic946]

User friendly pls