Testing the Hypothesis, Part 1

Hypothesis

People interested in improving/maintaining their health are unable to maintain motivation in living a healthy lifestyle and/or have difficulty with keeping track of their progress, as no one is holding them accountable for their own health and pre-existing calorie counting apps do not motivate users to utilize their service.

The who: People interested in improving/maintaining their health and helping others
The what: They are unable to stay motivated in living a healthy lifestyle and/or have difficulty with keeping track of their progress (or lack thereof)
The why: There's no one holding people accountable for their own health and pre-existing calorie counting apps have no underlying purpose that motivates users

Testing the Hypothesis

The primary 'who' regarding this opportunity are people who are interested in living a health lifestyle, meaning eating well and exercising to improve or maintain their health. People uninterested in being or becoming healthy are not a target audience, just as people entirely content with their current physical states are also not contained within the 'who.' Philanthropic people, or others who are motivated by the ability to provide meals to those who need them by improving their own health, could also be potential customers. There are clearly some limits, however, to the customer base regarding this opportunity.

The boundaries of this need are limited. They are limited to people's desire to either better themselves or to provide betterment to others. While some people are dedicated to counting calories, others, myself included, avoid counting calories for their own purposes or are too lazy to do so. Some people are more concerned with the food they eat, while others concern themselves more with how many calories they burn or how much they work out. Different needs are more or less important to be fulfilled due to the variability in needs between individuals. 

They 'why' regarding this opportunity originates from people's desire to take care of themselves (physically). It has become increasingly popular to be aware of one's health, eating properly and exercising. Especially in an environment in which others around you are physically fit and look great, people tend to feel pressured to follow suit and get healthy. Alternatively to following social trends and succumbing to social pressures, others may explain the existence of this opportunity by thinking philanthropically. The motivational methods intended to be implemented in the solution to this opportunity rely heavily on people's desire to help others, a factor that is assumed to exist in at least a semi-significant number of people.

Interviews

I conducted five interviews with people of various backgrounds to determine the viability of the aforementioned opportunity. In doing so, I narrowed down on the specific needs of each person who was interviewed and their suggestions for solutions to problems they face. Listed below are the main takeaways from these interviews.

1) I first conducted an interview with a woman who is very much into fitness. She does CrossFit and has been into healthy living since the beginning of high school. She had not always been healthy, but a series of experiences in her life drove her to exercise and eating well. She now advocates for other to work out, as, according to her, improves one's mental health in addition to one's physical health. She does, however, see obstacles that she, herself, and other may encounter in trying to live a healthy lifestyle. She voiced concerns regarding not only the cost of healthy eating and exercise programs/places, but also being informed about what to eat. It is difficult to find accurate information when there are so many conflicting claims with different diets with regards to what one should eat that is considered healthy. She also expressed that maintaining a steady routine that involves workouts can be difficult if no one is there to hold her accountable. Workout buddies are a solution, however, not everyone has one to keep them motivated. So, while working out and eating healthily is extremely important to her, she recognizes that it can be a difficult thing to do for many people.

2) The second person I interviewed was a young man who exercises at least twice a week, but typically more days if possible. He is pledging for a fraternity that requires him to work out twice a week and send proof, which he quite likes, as it holds him accountable for working out and promotes being healthy. He also previously did the Ketogenic diet to lose excess fat. He highly recommends the diet to see results more quickly, but also mentioned that it is not realistic to do long-term. He says exercise is an important part of people's lives, especially as it allows him to feel a greater sense of freedom when it comes to eating large quantities. He does not typically look at counting calories as a viable source of determining how healthy one is being, but rather advocates taking pictures of one's self to keep track of one's own progress. This point is what he stressed the most and says that that is a major motivational factor for himself.

3) The third interviewee was a man who is extremely fit, as he is into competitive wrestling and the working out that goes along with that. He told me how, a few years back, he was visiting India with his family when he fell off of a cliff. He was severely injured and took about a month to recover. He was told he would not have recovered so easily or quickly if he had not been in such good shape prior to the incident. He has now fully recovered and continues to workout routinely. He eats extremely large quantities, so, calories are less of an issue to him than how much he works out. He says he prefers to eat a lot and simply exercise more to maintain his athletic build than to limit his eating. He believes everyone should follow a healthy lifestyle, as it may one day save their lives like his was just by being in peak physical condition at the time of his cliff incident.

4) I then interviewed a fourth person, a young woman who is less into physical exercises and more into limiting her eating. She doesn't eat meat; so, she is constantly struggling with trying to incorporate protein into her diet. She says she consumes quite a few protein bars to try and combat her protein deficiency. She definitely struggles with eating and values counting calories, as she wishes to stay under a certain weight. With regards to exercising, she doesn't like going to the gym because the guys in the weight room are intimidating. While she focuses more on her weight as a tell of how healthy she is, she still believes it is important for people to eat healthy and try and incorporate some form of exercise into their lives, as it makes her feel better about herself when she works out.

5) The last interviewee was another young woman who is extremely interested in getting fit and feeling good about her body, but isn't sure how to approach doing it. She says she tends toward eating what is convenient, but still worries amount the quantities of food she eats. She struggles with not knowing what workouts to do and finds herself intimidated and unmotivated when it comes to going to the gym. She also has a history of body image issues; so, she highly values living a healthy lifestyle in feeling good about herself. She wants to exercise more, but cannot find the proper motivation to do so without anyone holding her accountable or anyone accompanying her to work out.

In summary...

I discovered that, despite differences in how people go about living a healthy lifestyle, many people wish to pursue it. Whether a person focuses more on working out, more on eating well, or a combination of the two, people value their health, as it is central to the continuation of their lives. The way in which people view themselves as healthy also differs, as some determine their physical condition by looking at their weight and some evaluate themselves by looking at their muscles. With these differences in mind, I realized that solving the problem of unmotivated people who wish to live healthily must encompass more than a tracking of people's food intake. The solution must address personal goals as well.