LiftLink

Logo for "LiftLink"
Home Page for "LiftLink"
Gym Sessions Tab for "LiftLink"
Profiles Tab for "LiftLink"

Inspiration

Going off to a university can always feel like a fresh start, but many people can feel isolated and intimidated, especially when it comes to fitness. Many students, they feel that the gym can be an intimidating environment rather than a welcoming one. RunRepeat did a survey, finding that 56.37% of women reported being harassed while working out.

We created LiftLink to help encourage women to feel more supported and secure by making it easier to find a trusted local gym buddy. The main goal was to build a community where students feel included and safe while doing something they love. Many people work out on campus, especially women, so we wanted to reduce those barriers for everyone who wants to improve themselves.

What it does

LiftLink is a college-focused platform that helps students to find local compatible gym partners and workout sessions.

Feature

Create a verified profile using your college email
Discover other students based on gym experience, workout style, and time availability
Post upcoming gym sessions (time, location, workout type)
People can request to join a session or connect with another user
Organizes your request for gym sessions and requests sent to you
People are able to exchange contact information when they mutually approve

How We Built It

LiftLink was developed as a fast, functional MVP with a strong emphasis on safety, scalability, and future extensibility.

Architecture Overview

The product follows a clean frontend–backend separation, with core user flows implemented end-to-end and backend-ready support for future expansion.

Frontend

React + TypeScript power a scalable, component-based frontend
CSS (with responsive design principles) ensures a clean, mobile-first UI
Tab-based feed system enables intuitive navigation between:
- Profile Discovery
- Gym Session Posts
Designed for fast scrolling, clear CTAs, and minimal cognitive load

Backend (MVP Architecture)

Python-based backend architecture supporting core data models and workflows
Structured to support:
- User authentication & verification
- Profile creation and management
- Gym session post creation and editing
- Interest and matching workflows
Backend-ready for database integration, notifications, and access control

Core Systems Implemented

Profile Discovery System
Browse verified student profiles
Filter by gender, experience level, and fitness interests
Gym Session Posting System
Create, edit, and delete gym session posts
Request to join sessions
Matching & Interest Flow
Express interest in profiles or posts
Accept/decline requests
Designed for email-based notifications in MVP

Extensibility by Design

The MVP is intentionally structured to support future features without refactoring core logic, including:
- Authentication enforcement
- Email verification
- Match workflows
- Notification services
- AI-powered recommendations and social features

Challenges we ran into

Implementing the CSS in the front end proved difficult, as, alongside having to consider for a variety of screen sizes, we had a lot of dynamic moving parts and animations to consider for, which would throw elements into unwanted positions. In the back end, successfully implementing email verification also proved difficult in terms of debugging— we had to test with real emails, which required constantly going in and out of the database to wipe its memory in order to continue testing.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

As a team with a majority of new hackers, we were able to ship a fully working website with complete front-end and back-end integration, which in itself is already a tremendous feat. In addition, we were able to polish the website and make all aspects of it look professional, something we considered a reach when we started.

What we learned

We learned how to not only build a fully functional website, but also how to do more complex things like user authentication and email verification. We also learned how to work as a team and overcome obstacles together. This project reinforced the idea of resilience: that even new hackers can create solid products as long as they put their minds to it.

What's next for LiftLink

We hope to expand the matching part of the website, specifically when a user finds someone to go to the gym with. Instead of exchanging contact information via an automatic email, we want to create a service where both users can directly message each other through the website, providing easier accessibility and strengthening privacy.