Transforming Kernwerk Fitness App — Creating an Adaptive and Engaging User Experience

As a UI/UX Designer with over 5 years of experience, I believe that a well-designed product should not only look good but also solve real user problems and create meaningful experiences. In my role at Kernwerk GmbH, I was trusted to improve the user experience of their fitness app by addressing two major challenges.

Through strategic thinking, creative solutions, and a user-centered approach, I managed to design features that not only streamlined usability but also increased engagement and delivered real impact for both users and business goals.

Let’s dive into the story.

The Challenge: The exercise feature in Kernwerk’s app had two major issues that made it difficult for users to enjoy a smooth workout experience:

Unorganized Exercise List: The list of exercises was too long and poorly structured, making it difficult for users to find specific exercises.

Inefficient Level Management: Each exercise had adjustable difficulty levels, but the app did not manage these levels well. As a result, users struggled to set the right level according to their abilities.

These problems made the feature hard to navigate and less enjoyable, which reduced user motivation and engagement.

My Solution: To solve this, I designed an adaptive and game-like journey progression system to organize exercises and simplify level management:

Categorize Exercise, add filtering & Search: I added multiple filtering and search options to make it easier for users to find exercises:

Journey Progression System: I introduced a game-like level system where exercises were grouped into progressive levels:

The solution I created is based on several principles of UX theory and user psychology:

✅ Simplified Navigation: Users can quickly find exercises using filters and search

‍✅ Increased Motivation: The Journey system creates clear progression, making workouts more rewarding

✅ Personalized Workouts: Daily plans are tailored to user progress, keeping training structured and effective

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The Challenge: The Knowledge Base feature offered valuable fitness and health insights, but user engagement was very low. Despite providing high-quality content, the feature was rarely accessed because it:

Was hard to discover

Lacked interactive and engaging elements

As a result, the Knowledge Base became an underutilized feature, limiting the app’s potential to educate and support users.

My Solution: To boost engagement, I redesigned and gamified the feature, turning passive reading into an interactive and rewarding experience:

Rebranding to "Essential": I renamed the feature to "Essential" to give it a fresh and meaningful identity, emphasizing its importance in the user’s fitness journey.

Daily Quiz Gamification: I introduced a daily multiple-choice quiz that keeps users engaged:

Encouraging Content Discovery: By linking quiz questions to relevant articles, I made the Essential feature easier to explore, increasing the visibility of valuable content.

The solution I created is based on several principles of UX theory and user psychology:

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‍ ✅ Higher Engagement: Daily quizzes keep users coming back every day ✅ Increased Content Visibility: Articles become more accessible through interactive elements ✅ Fun & Effective Learning: Gamification makes knowledge retention more enjoyable

These projects taught me the importance of combining creativity, strategy, and empathy to solve real user problems. By aligning user needs with business goals, I designed solutions that:

As a UI/UX Designer with a product mindset, I strive to create intuitive, engaging, and impactful experiences. Whether through gamification, personalization, or smart information architecture, my goal is always to deliver value through design.