In an age where smartphones have become natural extensions of the people who use them, there’s genuinely no escaping how they can affect people’s lives. But instead of resisting the technological takeover, Stretch Yo believes that technology should reinforce people to change their habits and not the other way around.
StretchYo aims to be the number one mobile app in the world, helping people implement and reinforce healthy habits to live better lives. The platform encourages its users to get out of their comfort bubbles and explore new, fun, and interactive activities where they can collaborate with friends to improve their habits and lifestyle. It also provides features focused on productivity, helping users stay on track and improve their turnaround time at any given task.
Born and raised in Nepal, the founder, Sarad Dhungel, is no stranger to using technology to change people’s lives. He has always been passionate about engineering and technology and its potential to change the world. With his background in engineering and a passion for problem solving, he entered the Intel-Cornell Cup, a famous competition held by Cornell Engineering and Intel to encourage students to develop technological solutions that add value to human life and celebrate the collaborative nature of innovation and design. Sarad and his team built and entered SLaTE8 into the competition, an innovation that translates American sign language to English text. Today, he is banking on his expertise and experiences to make an impact on people’s wellness, fitness, and productivity–a genuinely holistic approach to health.
StretchYo also goes beyond reinforcing its users to stay focused but also pushes them to achieve their goals using proactive methods. The app strives to help its users find the perfect balance between productivity and the opportunity to keep doing their hobbies and spending time with people and activities that bring them happiness.
The StretchYo app contains many features, including to-do lists that help users prioritize their goals and set the tone for the entire day. It also has a timer that helps users truly focus on one task and discipline themselves in sticking to the time they have allotted for the task. This helps them get into the zone and a productive state. The app also encourages them to build new habits, starting from small and finding the right routine to suit their lifestyle. StretchYo also included a feature where users can connect with other users on the platform and have their own accountability partner, a friend they can do challenges with.
Asked what he wants for StretchYo in the future, Sarad shared that he wants to add more features to the platform, including a music streaming capability people can use to play music for better sleep, relaxation, or productivity.
The founder said that the app began when he wanted to fill the lack of a platform with a zen-like approach to wellness and productivity. Eventually, StretchYo evolved into an app containing everything people may need for wellness and mindfulness.
“Technology is very powerful. But if you don’t use it in the right way, it can hamper us,” Sarad said. StretchYo was built to help people take control back from technology and use it to their advantage instead of allowing it to dictate or enforce a lifestyle where people are always stuck to their screens. The app is helping people make the best off of technology and gain good habits while simultaneously having fun with a community of like-minded individuals.
