FIT+FLEX

Inspiration

Since Covid-19 started, I've been on a mission to improve my physical health. As a result, I've had to learn about the different types of exercises I can do to strengthen different parts of my body. But, this process was very strenuous and time-consuming, and with all the misinformation on the internet, it was difficult for me to figure out which information was worth listening to. So, I started FIT+FLEX, an online curation of exercises, calculators and articles that can be helpful to anyone looking to begin (or evolve) their fitness journey.

What it does

FIT+FLEX provides a selection of fitness calculators, an "Exercise Bank", and a curation of fitness articles. From the fitness calculators, there's a body fat percentage calculator, a BMI calculator, a daily caloric intake calculator, and a ideal weight calculator. These calculators are designed to help guide users on realistic goals they should strive to achieve, in order to optimize their health. The "Exercise Bank" provides 1300 exercises that users can go through. These exercises are arranged from body part, target muscle and equipment available, to help make an easier experience for users. Then, within the "articles", section, there's a curation of hundreds of articles, selected from the top news sources from across the globe, such as the Harvard Health Publishing, Men's Health and the New York Times.

How we built it

The front-end of the website was built through HTML5 and CSS3. The back-end of the site was built through JavaScript. I also used certain APIs from RapidApi to provide data for the calculators, "Exercise Bank" and the articles.

Challenges we ran into

I never worked with APIs before, so creating and implementing APIs were challenging for me. I took me sometime to learn how to use them on a basic scale, using YouTube tutorials to help me along the way. I also had difficultly in making my website responsive. I wanted mobile users to have a good experience on my website, and I had some difficulties implementing this responsiveness.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

Once I finishing implementing the APIs, I was incredibly proud of this, as I've learnt a new way to elevate my applications. I also really enjoyed how the design of the website looks. I think it looks decent for the skillset I possessed of CSS and UI design.

What we learned

I've learnt more about how to use JavaScript to create better static websites, from the use of tools such as APIs. I've also learnt how to create responsive websites through basic CSS styling.

What's next for FIT+FLEX

I want to add more usability for FIT+FLEX. I want to add a "workout planner", where users can plan out their future or current workouts on the site. I also want to add a section which focuses on the nutrition aspect of health. I would achieve this by having a food diary, where users can input what exactly they ate that day. Having a planner, where users can receive feedback on nutritional goals (drink a certain amount of water, get a certain amount of macro/micronutrients in per day), based on what they input would be incredibly helpful. Overall, I want to create a space where people can encourage each other to become their best, physically.