From feature bloat to focused accountability.
Lockedin launched in October 2025, and inside a week more than 70% of users had walked away, worn down by feature bloat and manual logging. I was brought in to strip it back to one idea: automatic tracking plus real accountability partnerships. The simplified prototype tested well, and the redesign launches October 2026.
- Role
- Product Designer
- Timeline
- 2025 – Current
- Tools
- Figma · Claude · Notion
- first-week abandonment before the redesign
- 70%+
- prototype task completion, from 35%
- 87.5%
- to understand the app, from 4+ min
- 22 sec
- testers would use it, from 2/8
- 7/8
The crisis
In October 2025, Lockedin launched as an “operating system for human performance”: one app to help high-achievers manage deep work, track fitness, block distractions and build accountability, all at once. The team had spent months building every piece of it.
Within two weeks, the numbers were hard to look at. The database was even handing out “negative scores”, a counter that ticked up for every day the app sat unused.
- of users abandoned the app within the first week
- 70%+
- average session duration
- 2.3 min
- of features saw any adoption
- <30%
The founder’s realisation
Blessing Adesiji, Lockedin’s founder, sat staring at the analytics. One user stood out: Pelumi, a paying annual subscriber who hadn’t opened the app in three weeks. Blessing messaged to ask why.
“There’s too much for me to figure out in a day. I just forget that an app like Lockedin exists.”
That’s when I was brought in. My job was to take features out, not pile more on.
Discovery
Before touching a single pixel, we needed to know why people were quietly walking away. We interviewed three groups.
“I use Strava for my runs and Strong for lifting. Why would I add another app? What does Lockedin do that they don’t?”
“I downloaded it thinking it would help me finally stick to a routine. Then I opened it and saw all these modes and timers and I just… closed it. I’ll figure it out later.”
“I felt like the app was judging me. I’d miss logging a session, feel guilty opening it, so I just stopped.”
Watching users struggle
We ran six in-person usability sessions and watched people try the app without stepping in. Two of them stuck with me.
Session 3 · Michael, 34 — startup founder
Michael opens the app to a home screen of four cards. He taps “Deep Work Session.” A modal asks how long; he sets sixty minutes. Another modal: “Which apps should we block?” He scrolls the list, visibly frustrated, and at 2:40 he closes the app.
“I just wanted to start working. Why is this so complicated?”
Session 5 · Sarah, 29 — content creator
Sarah opens the app at 7pm. She worked out at 6am but forgot to start “Gym Mode.” She tries to log it manually, can’t figure out how to backdate it, and gives up.
“If it didn’t track automatically, what’s the point? I’m not going to remember to press buttons every time I exercise.”
Competitive analysis
We analysed twelve competitors across three categories. Each one had something worth stealing, and something worth avoiding.
Fitness trackers — Strava, Nike Run Club, Apple Fitness+
What they do wellAutomatic activity detection; clean, single-purpose interfaces
What they lackNo real accountability; vanity metrics; no skin in the game
Productivity apps — Forest, Freedom, Opal
What they do wellSimple core mechanic; gamification done right; one problem, solved
What they lackManual activation; no cross-domain tracking; isolated to a single context
Accountability apps — Beeminder, Habitica, Streak
What they do wellCommitment devices; public accountability; real consequences
What they lackFeel punitive, not supportive; manual tracking; cold and transactional
The gap we found
The ruthless simplification
We built a kill list and held the line on it. Every feature had to earn its place in the MVP.
Removed
- Deep work sessions & timers
- Manual activity logging
- User-controlled app blocking
- Custom workout plans
- Detailed analytics dashboards
- Multiple daily check-ins
- Complex onboarding questionnaires
Kept & enhanced
- Automatic HealthKit sync
- Lock Mate accountability (1–3 partnerships)
- Tiered movement recognition
- Challenges with earned rewards
- Simple streak tracking
- Lock Points (LP) gamification
Added
- Circle — a social accountability layer
- Squads — 3–6 person groups
- Public profiles for discovery
- Real-time Lock Mate status
Design decisions
Principle 1 — the app does the heavy lifting
The old experience asked users to run the app. Six steps, six points of friction, six reasons to quit before anything happened. The redesign inverts that: the app does the work, the person just lives their life.
Old flow — 6 steps
- Open the app
- Decide which mode to use
- Configure the settings
- Start the session manually
- Remember to end it
- Review the results
New flow — 1 step
- Work out naturally, no app needed
- HealthKit detects it automatically
- The app syncs in the background
- Open later: “Workout complete ✓ +8 LP”
The rule: remove every manual start and stop. The app should feel like magic, not work.
Principle 2 — someone’s watching changes everything
Lock Mate was always the core idea, but the old app buried it. Research said it should be the hero.
- habit success rate, solo vs. partner accountability (research cited in the product’s PRD)
- 10% → 95%
Prototype testing
We built a Figma prototype of the stripped-back version and tested it with eight people: some we’d interviewed before, some new. No instructions, just: “Here’s an app. Use it however you’d like.”
“Oh, this is simple. I like that I don’t have to do anything. I’d actually use this.”
“Wait, so it tracks my workouts automatically? And my friend sees if I skip? That’s… actually kind of genius. I’d invite my gym partner.”
The results
The tests backed the reframe. These are prototype-phase numbers, measured against the original build. The redesign launches October 2026.
- to understand the app’s purpose, from 4+ minutes
- 22 sec
- completed the test scenarios, from 35%
- 87.5%
- said they’d use it, from 2/8
- 7/8
- average exploration time, from 1.8 min
- 6.2 min
What we learned
Less really is more
Every feature we cut made the app clearer. It went from “what does this do?” to “I get it” in seconds.
Passive beats active, every time
Users won’t keep up manual logging. Automatic tracking is what actually keeps them coming back.
Real accountability needs real people
Social feeds with likes aren’t accountability. Someone you respect seeing your actual behaviour is.
Design for the struggle, not the ideal
People don’t need an app for the days they’re motivated. They need it for the days they’re struggling, where showing up earns credit instead of a red X.
Start narrow, expand thoughtfully
Fitness first builds the engine. Deep work, nutrition and sleep can follow once that first domain actually works.
