The habit tracker I was looking for but couldn’t find.

In November 2024 I hurt my back. I won’t go into all of it (you can read the full story here if you’re curious). But after I messed up my back, I needed to put a series of daily habits into place to help it heal - a gentle full body workout, a hip/core mobility flow, and walking every day.

These were things I needed to do every day, or else my back would really hurt.

I wanted an easy way to track those habits. And I also wanted to track how I was feeling, so I could figure out the patterns of what things lead to me feeling good versus having bad days.

But all of the apps I tried didn’t work the way I was looking for. First of all, most of the apps were really complicated and just not very good. And I also noticed everything was hyper focused on streaks, and having a big focus on performance.

One thing I've learned over the past year is that perfection is the biggest killer of consistency. We think we need to be perfect, and if we can't do it perfectly, then it doesn't count. Or we've broken our streak and it's somehow bad. And I just don't think that actually works for most people. In my experience, the best way to be consistent is to be okay with things not being perfect. Had a crazy day and couldn't get to your habit today? That's okay - it happens to the best of us! Don't beat yourself up or feel guilty, just hop back on the wagon tomorrow and keep going.

I was really just looking for a simple, fun app that gently encouraged me to want to be consistent. Every app I tried was either really overcomplicated and frustrating, or very aggressive with the fomo of needing to keep my streak alive.

I had a classic “there’s got to be a better way” moment, and started trying to come up with ideas for what would feel like a 10/10 experience.

One of the most challenging things about implementing new habits, or making positive changes in our lifestyles, is that it can take a while before we actually start to see tangible results in our day to day reality. That can get really demoralizing, and it makes it easy to give up.

What I love about Meadow is that each day you do your habit, you get a little reward, and you visibly see the progress you’re making - even when you can’t see it in your day to day reality yet.

You’re still planting seeds, even when you can’t see them yet.

You’re still making progress, and if you stick with it, eventually you will see the fruit of your hard work in your actual life. But in those early days, when progress is slow and hard to see, I find it so helpful to get a supportive boost that shows it to you in a more visible way.

So that’s why I built this app. First and foremost, it’s the app that I wanted to use. But beyond that, I think everyone struggles with the lack of visible progress when you first try to do new habits, and it’s why most of us quit. I think Meadow can help make a positive impact on that, and help people stay more consistent and get the results they’re looking to get from their new habits.

So if this resonates, I would love to invite you to try it out. Come join us on this journey, and plant your first meadow.

— Spencer