Core
Break Reminder/ Tracker Application
Overview
The Core is a mobile app I designed to help users maintain a healthy balance between work and life. It reminds users to take regular breaks, like stretching, walking, and resting their eyes, to reduce stress and improve focus. The app also helps track daily water intake, encouraging better hydration habits. The Core promotes overall well-being by making it easy to include healthy routines in everyday life.
My Role
Product Designer
Duration
3 Weeks
Problem
The Need for Healthy Habits in the Modern Workday
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Long hours at desks lead to back pain, eye strain, and dehydration.
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Prolonged screen time and lack of movement affect physical health and productivity.
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People often forget to take breaks, stretch, or drink enough water.
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Without reminders, maintaining a healthy work-life balance becomes challenging.
Design Process
Research Overview
While designing The Core, I learned about the common issues people face from long hours of desk work. Here are some key findings:
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Back pain and eye strain from prolonged sitting and screen exposure.
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Dehydration due to forgetting to drink enough water.
Research also shows that simple habits can help improve both
health and productivity:
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Regular breaks and stretching reduce stress and discomfort.
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Staying hydrated boosts focus and energy.
This inspired me to design an app that reminds
users to take breaks, stretch, and stay hydrated,
helping them feel better and work more
efficiently throughout the day.
Survey
I conducted a survey with 24 participants to understand their work-life balance habits, including break times, stress management, and hydration. The feedback helped me improve The Core app, ensuring it supports users in building healthier routines.
Insight
"While I focus on my work, time flies, and I forget to take a break unless my phone rings or I have to use a restroom."
"I feel my skin gets super dry, and my body is so dehydrated while drinking less water during the day., I noticed that happens while I am too busy at work and forget to drink enough liquid."
“I get more headaches than I used to since I changed my job and spent more time staring at the computer screen.”
"I spend more than 9 hours in front of the screen. Most of the time, I am too busy to take a break. I even sometimes eat my lunch at my desk while working."
Persona
"Work-related pain frustrates me and hampers quality time with my son."
Maria, 40
Hometown:
New York
Family:
Occupation:
Live with son
Drafter
Maria, a 40-year-old mother and drafter, works about 50 hours a week, often staring at a computer screen. This has caused neck pain and headaches, affecting both her work and time with her four-year-old son. Though she knows she needs regular breaks to stretch and rest her eyes, her heavy workload often causes her to forget.
Goals
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Reduce neck pain and headaches by taking regular breaks to stretch and rest.
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Remind herself to take breaks during long work hours.
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Include short breaks throughout the day to rest her eyes and avoid strain.
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Improve work-life balance by making more time for her son.
Frustrations
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Forgetting to take breaks because of her heavy workload.
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Neck pain and headaches from staring at the screen for long hours.
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Low energy to spend time with her son after work.
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Struggling to balance work and self-care, making it hard to stay healthy.
"During work, I focus so much on my job that I often forget to drink water."
Joe, 56
Hometown:
San Francisco
Family:
Live with wife
Occupation:
Software engineer
Goals
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Stay hydrated by drinking water regularly throughout the day.
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Take breaks to prevent burnout and improve focus.
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Set reminders to drink water and take breaks as suggested by his doctor.
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Reduce headaches caused by dehydration.
Joe, a 56-year-old software engineer at Facebook, often works late into the night and forgets to take breaks or drink enough water. This leads to dehydration and frequent headaches. His doctor recommended setting alarms to remind him to drink water regularly.
Frustrations
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Forgetting to drink water due to long, focused work sessions.
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Frequent headaches caused by dehydration.
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Struggling to take regular breaks while coding.
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Working late into the night, affecting his health and energy.
Use Case 1
The user wants to have some constant reminder, to get notified to rest their eye while staring at the screen for long work hours.
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What type of reminder does the user use to take a break during work?
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What kind of practice does the user do to help them to rest their eye?
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How often does a user need to give rest to the eye?
Solution 1
A new mobile app helps users decide the best number and type of breaks to take based on their work time, screen use, and personal preferences. It gives tailored suggestions, like walking, stretching, or relaxing, to improve health and productivity.
Use Case 2
The user with a busy schedule wants to get reminded to drink enough liquid during the day to avoid dehydration.
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What do the users usually do to remind themself to drink enough liquid?
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How much water does the user's body needs during the day?
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How often does a user need to drink water to achieve their goal?
Solution 2
A mobile app that helps users track and manage their liquid intake. It offers an easy-to-use interface for recording daily consumption and allows users to set personalized hydration goals. With this app, users can stay hydrated and reach their hydration targets for better health.
Final Solution
A mobile app designed to help users maintain a healthy work routine. It reminds users to take regular breaks, exercise, walk, rest their eyes, and stay hydrated. The app also lets users track their progress, encouraging healthier habits for better overall well-being.
User flow
Low-Fi Wireframe
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App Design
Prototype
