How Gentler Streak brings kindness to fitness

Gentler Streak is reshaping the way we approach fitness tracking with a focus on self-compassion and personalization. With their iOS and Apple Watch apps they encourage people to listen to their bodies while still achieving their goals.

We chatted to Gentler Streak’s Apple Design Awards winners Katarina Lotrič and Andrej Mihelič about their mission, unique design philosophy, and use of empathy to drive the app’s design.

Could you tell us a little bit about Gentler Streak, the motivation and team behind it?

Katarina: Gentler Streak is an inclusive health and fitness tracker designed to promote a sustainable approach to an active lifestyle. Our mission is to make the benefits of regular exercise accessible to everyone. By providing personalized guidance tailored to support individual capabilities and wellbeing, Gentler Streak ensures that users of all fitness levels and backgrounds feel welcomed and supported in their fitness journey.

The app emerged from our own struggles with burnout due to improper activity levels: one of us was overtraining while preparing for a triathlon, and the other faced a lack of exercise due to an injury, which led to psychological burnout. This made us realize the importance of being active while understanding the right amount of activity for each person.

We started looking for an app that guided individuals in creating a sustainable habit while appealing to us in terms of user experience. We couldn’t find anything. Most apps focus on constant improvement, setting records, and unrealistic challenges. We felt unrepresented by existing health and fitness apps and couldn’t find anything to help us stay active in a way that supported our long-term health — so we decided to create one ourselves.

The four co-founders: Andrej Mihelič (Product Owner, UI/UX Designer), Jasna Krmelj (CTO), Luka Orešnik (Senior Developer), and I, Katarina Lotrič (CEO), are all diverse in our skill set and complement each other well. We’re also no newbies, we all have over a decade of experience in the iOS ecosystem, which made it a bit easier to start this story off.

Could you tell us more about Gentler Streak’s approach to design? Do you have any specific principles you’ve defined and stick to?

Katarina: We want the app to be as accessible as possible, and user experience plays a key role in that. We try to stick with practices that are common and validated. We hope that users naturally know what to do when they open the app, and what a certain action does. For us, the design also plays an essential role in making you feel good and welcomed — that’s why there are illustrations, transitions, and animations. It’s all about creating a “soft” environment, something that feels pleasant and is frictionless to use. Whenever we’re developing a new feature, our goal is to always make it as intuitive as possible. Every now and then, we throw in some cute surprises to also add that little spark to the app.

On your website, you mention Gentler Streak is a ‘Workout and Fitness Tracker for Humans’ Could you tell us a little bit more what elements in the design bring that ‘human’ element?

Katarina: Similar to what I was saying above, we felt the majority of the apps target fitness geeks, hardcore gym lovers, people who take their exercise seriously. We made the app for everyday people, like ourselves. With everything we do, we hope the end result is that you feel included.

We made the app for everyday people, like ourselves. With everything we do, we hope the end result is that you feel included.

Usually, fitness apps look quite “cold”, their design focused on presenting stats, not so much on creating a certain atmosphere. With us, you can look at the stats, but we also translate those stats into words: digesting your data and presenting it as your daily fitness status and the state of your current wellbeing. It’s something anyone can understand, even with zero knowledge of health and fitness. It’s everyday language: no one is excluded, anyone can participate. We use illustration in various parts of the app, to help support that messaging and the feel-good vibe. Also, as the guidance is highly personalized, those individual activity goals are achievable, which gives extra motivation.

How did the first designs for Gentler Streak come together? What were some of the initial challenges you had to navigate?

Katarina: The main challenge we found was how to present tons of numbers in a simple way that everyone could understand without deep health and fitness knowledge. It’s easy to put various numbers like training load, training strain balance, and all sorts of activity stats on the screen, but this was something everyone else was doing and we felt it had to be done better, differently, if we want to address a new crowd. The whole app is made with this in mind: presenting things in a way everyday people can understand and take action from.

The main challenge we found was how to present tons of numbers in a simple way that everyone could understand without deep health and fitness knowledge.

How do you maintain consistency throughout the overall experience and design across the iPhone and Apple Watch?

Andrej: Our philosophy is to design an app where you feel at home from the first time you open it. To achieve that, you have to understand the graphical human user interface of the operating system you’re developing for. Some designers feel they have to leave an obvious mark on their designs, and often, those iOS apps might look cool and funky but have poor UX, leading to a long learning curve for users. The result often being deleting the app.

To create Yorhart, we worked with Sören Selleslagh, a brilliant guy who is always such a joy to work with! We wanted something that resonated with everyone, regardless of age, gender, race, or body shape. In the app, everything revolves around your heart data, so Sören started exploring in that direction, and there you go. Yorhart’s name (try saying it out loud) came spontaneously: it made sense as the whole upper part of the Streak tab (illustration and daily status) is essentially a love letter from your heart. :)

Could you share with us what’s the the role of data in Gentler’s app and your stand around privacy??

Katarina: Your health and workout data are an essential part of Gentler Streak, as everything stands upon it. We strive to personalize the experience as much as possible within the capabilities of the Apple Watch. So, wearing your Apple Watch at night and tracking workouts feeds us information that then allows us to guide you as best as possible. Without your health and fitness data, the app is useless. And without readings of your vitals (like sleep duration or oxygen saturation), the app’s guidance is less precise. Night data is especially valuable, as there is less outside noise to interfere with us. For women, we also take the menstrual cycle into consideration, as it plays a big role in our day-to-day readiness. I am super excited to deepen this feature towards the end of this year!

Our own privacy is important to us, and we uphold that principle in the way we operate — we respect our users’ privacy just like we respect our own. The app deals with sensitive data, and we don’t want to have it on our hands—it would be an unnecessary liability. Everything in Gentler Streak happens on your device: the app reads from HealthKit and also writes the logged data there, without sending it anywhere.

Is there a particular feature that surprised you for being an unexpected hit with users? Or one you feel more people should know about?

Katarina: People seem most pleased with how the app adapts to their fitness level and motivates them in a way that feels attainable. Users really appreciate the smaller features, such as the post-workout notifications. I’m always surprised by how much people love custom icons, complications, and widgets — I think we need to create even more of them, haha.

On the stuff I feel people should know more about, on the Apple Watch tracker, the readiness bar (the green stripe with an orange heart) shows you in real-time how much buffer you have left to stay within healthy activity levels while you work out. I think that’s pretty slick. Another useful feature, which I’m surprised a lot of people still don’t know about, is the option to set your status to sick, injured, or on a break when life happens. If I could say something to each user it would be something in the lines of: ‘tap the hell out of this app’ — you never know what’s hidden behind those buttons 😄.

Was the Apple Design Award something you were set on from the early days, or did it just come as part of Gentler Streak’s development?

Katarina: Our main goal was to create an app that similar-minded people would recognize as an answer to their needs, and make it part of their self-care routine. Being bootstrapped meant we had no choice but to make it happen: none of us wanted to go job hunting. Since we were all seniors with complementary backgrounds and had an experience with creating an ADA product before (Luka and I co-founded Lake Coloring, which won an ADA in 2017), we believed we had what it took to create an app that would be worthy of getting featured on the App Store. With no marketing budget, getting on there is essential. It’s also a nod towards your product being relevant.

In the same year we launched Gentler Streak (2022), we were shocked to learn we had won an App Store Award (Apple Watch App of the Year), and that changed everything for us. Winning an Apple Design Award this June, especially for social impact, is an incredible honor. It’s even more meaningful because you can’t apply for these awards; the process is entirely internal on Apple’s side. Seeing Gentler Streak validated by both our users and the industry’s top authority is kind of hard to put into words. Knowing how it all started and how much work, love, and thought we put into it, it feels amazing to see it being recognized in this way. Amazing is a word that is so overused, but here…it’s the right choice of words.

Could you tell us a little bit more about the role of copy in Gentler Streak and how it fits into the overall design?

Katarina: The copy in the app is just as crucial as the design as they work hand in hand. With the design, we aim to create a soft, cozy, warm, homey atmosphere. Same applies to the copy. We wanted it to be supportive but not cheesy, motivating but not fake-hyped, for it to be sort of light-hearted, to not take itself too seriously, if that makes sense? All of that, while staying professional and bringing correct information across. We aimed for it to have character, but not as much that it would own the app. So, you’re always walking that fine line, trying to make it just right. Sometimes we miss though!

Can you describe the process and challenges of localizing the app?

Katarina: Currently, our app is available in ten languages but the first two languages we introduced were Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese, thanks to a couple of dedicated superfans. As the project grew, doing translations that way became overwhelming, and at that point we could afford to work with an agency. We wanted to ensure that the translations were more than just literal — how the copy sounds and makes people feel is crucial. So for each language, we always put together local beta groups ranging from 15 to 20 users. We test it with these groups for about a month, gathering feedback and making adjustments until we feel confident it’s ready for release.

Initially, the challenge was primarily our team size and managing translations on our own. However, working with the agency and having dedicated beta groups for testing significantly eased the process. Localizing for the Asian markets presented unique challenges, particularly with unfamiliar typefaces and character sets. We relied heavily on our translators and beta testers to ensure that our goals were met and that the translations resonated with users. I think the biggest challenge may still be ahead of us if we decide to do Arabic language translation.

How has Sketch helped you in the process of designing Gentler Streak? Are there any specific Sketch features that have been particularly useful?

Andrej: I’ve been a Sketch user since version 1.0. I love the simplicity of Sketch’s UI and its robustness. The complete Gentler’s GUI is made in Sketch and using components and making our own is what makes designing a pleasure and also saves tons of time. Also, features like the Color Variables, pre-made libraries or simple things like showing distance between components and other mini yet effective perks make designing UI in Sketch a pleasant experience. You guys are introducing new features with such a fast pace I don’t even know them all.

Sketch’s iPhone and iPad apps are a must for us. I often put an iPhone in front of me with the Sketch app open so I can design on my Mac and see how things look directly on a smaller screen. Syncing between Mac and iPhone works great so I can see changes immediately which also speeds up the process.

And there are also two apps that are a must for us: Sketch’s iPhone and iPad apps. I often put an iPhone in front of me with the Sketch app open so I can design on my Mac and see how things look directly on a smaller screen. Designing things on a big screen is one thing, but seeing this on an iPhone or iPad is something else. Syncing between Mac and iPhone works great so I can see changes immediately which also speeds up the process. In the past I had to export screens, save them to Photos and open them on the iPhone.

What’s next for Gentler Streak? Are there any upcoming features or news that you’re excited about?

Katarina: Oh, great things are coming! Our ultimate goal is for Gentler Streak to become a complete, one-stop health and fitness hub. We’ve just turned our workout summaries into a complete workout journal (custom titles, notes, adding photos…), added the iOS 18 perks, and we also have a new heavy feature in testing - sleep. This will be a huge update, which is part of our broader focus on well-being. It will provide you with much more detailed information about your sleep quality, and its effect on your daily well-being and help you improve your sleep hygiene.

By saying all that, our northern star is simplicity. If you’re not interested in detailed data, you won’t be overwhelmed — everything will remain straightforward and easily accessible as it is now. This simplicity is a core, unchangeable value of the app. However, for those who do want to dive deeper into the data, they will be able to.

Ready to give Gentler Streak a try? You can download the app from the App Store. And if you’ve created something in Sketch that you love, share it with us in our community forum — we’d love to see it.