Y-MVP extends the YMCA of New York City's Strong Kids Card program with a game that gets teenagers moving every day.
Y-MVP: the teen fitness brief
The Y wanted teens to build lasting exercise habits, using the mechanics that make games compelling. Y-MVP is a digital game designed to get teens to increase their daily levels of Moderate to Vigorous Physical activity, which gives the program its name. Its badge system motivates, recognizes and rewards that activity while helping teens create lifelong healthy habits.
WordPress, BuddyPress and BadgeOS kiosks
- A social fitness app, powered by WordPress and BuddyPress, running on iPad kiosks placed at each branch entrance.
- Teens check in by scanning their Strong Kids card or Y membership card.
- Logged workouts earn points and badges that unlock perks like fitness classes, shirts and water bottles.
- A live leaderboard and activity timeline on the welcome screen of each kiosk, plus sharing to social media.
- Built on BadgeOS 1.0, co created with Credly and Studiofluid.
Pilot, PLAYlist and growth
Y-MVP began as a pilot at the Bedford-Stuyvesant Y in Brooklyn, with plans to expand to other branches and run citywide by 2014. A planned PLAYlist feature, developed with the Institute of Play under the sponsorship of the Hive Digital Media Learning Fund in The New York Community Trust, would let teens share favorite workout routines and challenge other teens to try them.
In a 2015 evaluation of the Y-MVP program by Wayne State University, nearly 90% of participating youth said Y-MVP helped them become more physically active, and the program increased vigorous physical activity by 91%. Ninety five percent of participants said the badges encouraged them to compete against themselves. In February 2016 the YMCA of Greater New York carried the program into its own Y-MVP mobile app.
Screenshots
Video
Why gamified fitness mattered
Badges give teens clear goals and real rewards, turning daily activity into friendly competition.
Y-MVP technology stack
- WordPress
- BuddyPress
- BadgeOS
- iPad kiosks
Project leadership by Brian Messenlehner, AlphaWeb founder.
Related: Starbucks: A Barista Learning Platform on WordPress, Diversify STEM and Building BuddyPress Communities Members Actually Use.
