Nike Health Club
Personal/Passion project
Role
Art Director, Digital Designer
This is my exam project from when I studied Art Direction at YRGO back in 2015. Since then I have kept it as my passion project since male mental health is an important subject we rarely talk about.
It started as a regular campaign but has evolved into a concept for an app, called "Nike Health Club". It's a combination of Art Direction and Digital Design.
Nike Health Club
Exercising is key to your well being physically but we forget to talk about our mental health, and especially men's mental health. Society tells men that it's simply not acceptable to have too many feelings, therefore they rarely seeks help in the first place. This may be one of the reasons why suicide statistics are higher for men than women. Going to the gym is no longer a symbol for feeling great about yourself mentally, it has more than ever become a symbol for something a bit more shallow. Nike wants to acknowledge the fact that men also struggle with their mental health. Sometimes you have to start the fight from within and be strong, mentally. Therefore they would like to start a discussion and have developed an app (Nike Health Club) for young men to log their feelings and seek activities in their local area to overcome emotions like depression etc.

“We train soldiers, warriors and athletes, and then expect them to be emotionally intelligent to open up when they need help. Worse, we expect them never to need help. We must bring vulnerability, as a core principle of emotional strength, into the framework of masculinity.”
– Dr. David Plans, CEO of BioBeats
NHC Campaign
The campaign starts off by sending out direct mails to various clubs and sports associations around Sweden, asking the question: Is this a place that prioritize mental health? By asking this question we want to invite those clubs and associations to help Nike be ambassadors and mentors for males looking for a place where they can grow their mental strength without feeling any pressure.
A few weeks later when this is settled and Nike have enough ambassadors, a film will be posted on Youtube. This film is settled around one young man who tells the viewers about the struggle he’s been through and how a good workout and going to the gym gave him a new point in life.
The message in the film is to tell other men that they’re not alone in their struggle and there are many ways to deal with it. He is telling them to find what makes them strong within. The film will be spread on Instagram with Nike as the sender and will proceed into a bigger campaign.
NHC App
Through the campaign, men will be invited to tell their stories, their struggle and how they found their inner strength. Either by instagram, posting a video or just a picture of themselves. All using the hashtag #strongwithin. These will later be displayed in the app, NHC.
Nike Health Club is more or less a log for your feelings. It allows you to log you mental state in the app and it will guide you to different tasks or activities that you can do to resolve those emotions. It's like a partner for someone that is alone and that are struggling to open up about it. We want men to feel less alone and exercising is a key to boost your mental health.
In the app you can also read articles about other men and their mental health, how they dealt with it and how they came ut with a better view of their life. NHC also opens up to seek activities around you area, for you if you want to reach out and feel less lonely. Join a team, go for a run or just sit at home and do some mindfulness.
Whatever makes you #StrongWithin.