CRUX
Level up and rank your grip, neck & finger strength training
Quick context: I'm building CRUX, a tracker for the exercises mainstream
fitness apps never really cover well — grip/finger strength, neck training,
and other specific movements that don't fit into a standard "bench/squat/
deadlift" app. Not aiming at one single sport — the idea is to serve
climbers, combat athletes (MMA, wrestling), and anyone doing specialized
training that isn't part of a typical program.
I know a ranked strength social app already exists and does well (Liftoff).
Rather than compete head-on on breadth, I'm going deeper on the niche
movements it doesn't calibrate for — with a leveling system based on
bodyweight ratio and the ability to compare your numbers with others,
instead of just logging a number nobody can benchmark against.
Where it's at right now: very early, rough prototype. Only a handful of
exercises implemented so far, and the design is close to non-existent —
I built just enough to test the core mechanic before investing more time.
What I'm trying to figure out:
- Is this a real gap, or are people already solving this fine with a
notebook/spreadsheet and don't need an app for it?
- Does targeting climbers + combat athletes + "niche trainers" broadly make
sense, or should I pick one group and go deep before expanding?
- Would this be worth paying for eventually, or does it only work as a free
tool?
Not selling anything, just trying to validate before I keep building. Happy
to share the link if anyone wants to poke around — would really appreciate
honest feedback, including "this isn't needed."
10 Comments
I think the bigger product question is the positioning rather than whether people need another tracker.
Climbers, combat athletes, and other niche athletes may all have underserved exercises, but their reasons for tracking them could be quite different. I’d probably validate one segment first and understand what they actually want to measure, compare, and improve before expanding the exercise library.
If the benchmark/level system consistently gives users an answer to “how am I doing compared to others like me?”, that feels like a stronger value proposition than tracking alone.
Yeah, good point — probably the sharpest feedback I've gotten on this so far.
You're right that "people need another tracker" isn't really the pitch. I'm leaning towards picking one segment first (thinking [ton segment ici, ex: climbers]) and figuring out what they actually want to compare themselves against, rather than trying to cover every niche exercise out the gate.
"How do I stack up against others like me" is a way better hook than "track more stuff" tbh. Gonna chew on that positioning shift. Appreciate you taking the time to write this out.
Yeah, I think that could make the validation a lot easier too. If you start with climbers, you can probably learn pretty quickly which benchmarks they actually care about instead of guessing across multiple groups.
Curious — are you planning to validate that with actual climbers first, or build out the climbing version and see how people respond?
I think I’ll ask climbers if they’d be interested in an app dedicated to tracking their performance, and how they currently handle it. I’ll do the same with MMA fighters, and I’ll pursue whichever group has the greatest need for it.
Sounds like a solid validation approach. I’d be interested to hear what you find after talking to climbers and MMA athletes. If you're open to it, happy to connect over email and keep the conversation going.
The benchmark angle is more interesting than the logging itself. The harder question may be whether climbers and combat athletes actually want standardized comparisons across these movements, or just better tracking for their own progression.
That's a really good distinction to draw — social comparison and personal progression are two pretty different products, even if they look similar on the surface.
I don't want to guess my way into an answer here, so I'm going to go talk to actual climbers and combat athletes directly and see what they actually want — whether it's standardized comparison or just better tracking for themselves. That should also help me figure out which segment to focus on first.
Thanks for the thoughtful reply, really helpful to think through.
Glad it was useful. I’d be interested in continuing the conversation as you talk to those users — if you’re open to it, what’s the best email to reach you at?
Yeah of course !
You can reach me at : nephraxroutenote@gmail. com
Thanks! I’ve just sent it over.
Looking forward to hearing your thoughts whenever you have a chance.