

Show HN: Running, an extremely simple exercise tracking app. - shail

Running is extremely minimal and hence supports very limited options. I am trying to understand the market from the perspective that &quot;Should such minimal apps exists?&quot;<p>Kindly check it out and let me know what you think about it? Would you use it? Or I am going completely in the wrong direction.<p>Feedbacks are welcome on usability, look and feel as well.<p>Website: http:&#x2F;&#x2F;hmpgr.com&#x2F;apps&#x2F;running
Invite Code: HN<p>Thanks a lot for reading.
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Jemaclus
FIrst of all, the app looks fine. It's not super polished or anything, but
it's functional and does exactly what it says it does.

My problem with this is that most fitness apps are on mobile -- designed for
mobile first -- and since I take my iPhone with me when I run, it not only
tracks the fact that I'm running, but how far, how fast, and my exact route. I
don't have to think "Hmm, I ran 12.6 miles" and then type it in somewhere
else. It already knows that and tracks that for me over time.

A real groundbreaker would be if I had an app that knew I was doing pushups
and counted them for me, knew I was doing crunches and counted them for me,
knew I was riding my bike and tracked my velocity and route for me.

There are a million apps out there for tracking what exercises I've done
today. Other than running and cycling, everything else is done manually. THAT
is the real pain point. My phone should be smart enough to KNOW that I'm
exercising -- and how. Fix that, and you've got a multi-million dollar app.

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shail
Hey Jemaclus

I agree with what you said. Its what anyone would expect from an app like
this.

Warning: what comes next is very opinionated :) Let me put my perspective and
I am aware its a bit different. And its a bit difficult to explain, so hear me
out totally.

The point about exercising is all about staying healthy. Its about consistency
with which you exercise. Now let me give you an example where an automatic
tracking was not helping me. An expense tracking app. Now I am talking about
actually improving my expensing habits and start saving for rainy day. There
are lots of app which connect to your credit card and automatically know when
you spent what and gives you pretty graphs. The problem with that most of the
time it happens so automatically that it does not change your behavior.
Changing spending habits requires those restrains which you put on yourself
everytime you put your hands in the pocket for fetching your card. Thats when
I found that really tracking it myself (and not automatically by some third
party) is the only way be aware of your expenses.

Same goes with exercising. Thats why this app only supports "yesterday" and
"today" button. So its forces to record as soon as you ran. This forces a
habit. And I believe in habits.

I know its counter-intuitive and may be its just me. But thats what I am
trying to verify :) Thanks for the reply though. Loved it.

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Jemaclus
So I think my use of the word "automatically" was a bad one. I think I meant
"super easy". For instance, when I step out the door, I open my Strava app,
and I hit "Start Running", and then I start running. When I'm done, I hit
"Finished" and it saves every stat it tracked about my run, and later after
some processing, it tells me even more things, like whether this run was
better than other runs or whether I ran a new route or whatever. The point
being that I don't have to remember anything other than hitting "Start" and
"Finish". For an app like yours, I have to go back to my computer or actually
type a button in.

I read an article this morning -- I can't remember which one, sorry -- but the
author basically suggested that any time you can eliminate typing on a mobile
device, you should. If you can make everything tappable in a few seconds on a
mobile device, you're golden.

That said, I think this particular activity is in need of new solutions -- not
Yet Another Tracker.

Anyway, good luck. Hope this works out for you! Like you said, exercise is all
about being healthy, so if this works for you, great! I'm purely offering
advice from a business standpoint (as in, I would pay for this product if
_____)

~~~
shail
Thanks a lot for the thoughts and insights.

> About going back to computer...

This app is mobile ready and can be "Added to Homescreen" for easy access.

My quest currently is to understand that do we really need all that details
about the running (like paths, comparison with other runs etc.) because more
data brings more complexity. I feel, in many cases, being simple is a feature
in itself. Just my thought.

I am actually targeting that section of the users who want really simple apps.

For full-fledged requirement, I agree, MapMyRun, Runkeeper apps do the
justice.

Thanks again for all the inputs. I really appreciate.

~~~
Jemaclus
Good luck.

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shail
Clickable: [http://hmpgr.com/apps/running](http://hmpgr.com/apps/running)
Invite Code: HN

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lcasela
What exactly are you doing with the data that I am giving you while using this
app?

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shail
Just plot it for you to see the how regularly you are running.

The apps on hmpgr are all personal apps just like notes app lets you record
your notes.

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AznHisoka
This already exists in the form of MapMyRun, RunKeeper, MyFitnessPal, etc,
etc... I don't see what makes yours so unique.

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shail
Hi,

The uniqueness is in terms of its simplicity and minimalistic nature. The apps
which you mentioned are all great.

Running app is just an execution for the same requirements in the minimalistic
sense. I agree it will not appeal to everyone, but I am trying to find out if
there are any of us who likes such minimalistic apps.

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ulisesrmzroche
When are you going to put in squats? I'd start using it then.

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shail
Soon enough.

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ulisesrmzroche
Sweet, but what's the deal with going slowly adding basic exercises?

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shail
hi,

I am following the approach of putting minimal yet useful version out and then
tailor according to early adopters. That way I will not end up cluttering it
with things not needed. Like for instance 3 exercises are ok, but if its goes
more than that, I will have to develop a feature where you could hide an
exercise you are not interested it (and may be add it later if needed).

But I will do it very soon. Best would be if you sign up and you would some to
know immediately. Or follow us on twitter for updates @hmpgr.

BTW thanks for showing the interest. Would love to get more feedback if you
find anything interesting to share about the app experience.

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Anonymous412
Why not allow users to add/remove their own exercises? They choose a name, and
data they'd like to track for that exercise, such as distance, time, weight,
reps. For example, they click _Add Exercise_ , enter _Squats_ as the name, and
check the boxes for weight, and reps. Now, after their workout, they just
click the _Squats_ button under _My Exercises_ , and enter the reps and weight
they did for that day.

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lcasela
Nice! I was looking for an app like this.

Thanks. :3

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shail
Thanks a lot Icasela. Let me know how you like it. I am still developing it
and would love to listen about your requirements. Send me mail at:
shailesh.narain@hmpgr.com

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lcasela
Is there any way of contributing to this?

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shail
Hi Icasela

I will be releasing a developers kit very soon which will allow you to make
such small apps for the Hmpgr platform. I will definitely let you know once I
release that.

If you wish to contribute specifically to Running app, then let me know and I
will send you required details as soon as I am done with developers kit.

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lcasela
Cool!

>I will be releasing a developers kit very soon which will allow you to make
such small apps for the Hmpgr platform.

Will you be sending out an email to everyone who has registered to your site?

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shail
hey Icasela,

I try to avoid emails but since you asked I will send it out to you.

