I feel like I can’t open Instagram or Facebook these days without being shown a trainer who is a FASTer Way to Fat Loss Coach - there are so many of them! FASTer Way is feeling like the new Beachbody to me, and as the popularity of the program continues to grow and more questions get asked, I wanted to take some time to dive into the details for myself. 

Fun fact about me: I was once a Beachbody “coach” way back in the day when I first started on my fitness journey (sometime around 2015), so I am not unfamiliar with MLMs and their approach to fitness for the masses. 

I got up close and personal with the FASTer Way approach so that I could report back my thoughts and opinions as a personal trainer who offers something similar to my clients, but on a much smaller scale. Let’s peel back the layers and figure out what the FASTer Way is and whether or not it’s a good fit for you as you explore your personal fitness and health goals.

Getting Familiar With the FASTer Way

I’ve seen influencers promoting the FASTer Way to Fat Loss for a couple of years now. The crazy thing is that not all of them come out and say they’re promoting this company specifically, they usually are just asking people to join them for their weight loss round. If you do a little digging or click their links, you’ll see that they’re speaking of joining a FASTer Way to Fat Loss “round.”

So what are these “round” or challenges? FASTer Way does frequent 6-week challenges where they recruit women (and some men, too) into their program for a time-specific (6-week) challenge, promising they can lose up to 15 lbs of fat and gain lean muscle within that 6-week time frame. For context, they are suggesting that people will lose an average of 2.5 lbs per week for 6 weeks. 

Outside of these 6-week challenges, they have their VIP membership which is where they suggest clients go after they complete a 6-week challenge for continued coaching and workouts. They have a great system for getting people in and then keeping them in the program. I’ve also noticed that they run short, 5-day, challenges for a very nominal fee (like $20) a week or so before their 6-week challenge to get people in and interested and then sell them on the 6-week challenge. Again, it’s truly a great method and one that many people replicate. 

Included with the 6-week challenge is access to the FASTer Way app where you can enter your daily food log, generate a customized nutrition plan, message your coach, join in on the daily 30-minute workouts, and get access to recipes. 

FASTer Way Workouts

So what kind of workouts can you expect with FWTFL? I find the workouts to be similar to Beachbody (or BODi) workouts in that they are a follow along format, meaning that you watch a video and follow along with the instructor as he/she goes. I used to love this style of workouts when I first started on my fitness journey because I felt like it helped to keep me motivated and engaged throughout the workouts. A few years into my fitness journey, I realized that I was holding myself back from getting optimal results because I was always trying to keep up with a trainer who was at a different fitness level than me which meant I wasn’t getting enough rest between sets and wasn’t able to give full effort to my sets.

FASTer Way’s weekly workout schedule looks something like this each week:

• Monday: HIIT
• Tuesday: HIIT
• Wednesday: Arms
• Thursday: Legs
• Friday: Rest
• Saturday: Legs/Glutes

For those who like fast-paced workouts and circuit training, FWTFL workouts might be a great fit. Personally, I wouldn’t program HIIT workouts two days in a row and I would prioritize muscle-group specific training as that’s what has given me the best results. But overall, this schedule will help get you up and moving and that’s what’s most important!

Nutrition

The FASTer Way nutrition approach utilizes a mixture of macros, intermittent fasting, and carb cycling, which honestly, feels like a lot. I am a big believer in macros and taking an “everything fits” approach to sustainable nutrition, so I like that they’re aligned with me there. When it comes to intermittent fasting, I’m not against it, I just don’t utilize it or recommend it for my clients. I’d rather teach people how to eat when they’re hungry and not put too many rules around timing. 

Carb cycling is a great approach to weight loss when done correctly. I do suggest carb cycling to my clients on occasion, especially when they’re in a fat loss phase. I will customize their macros to give them more carbs and food freedom 2 days per week (usually on the weekends) and then do lower (but not too low) carbs the other 5 days of the week. 

With FASTer Way, you are doing the low carb days in conjunction with the HIIT workouts. The goal of this method is to deplete glycogen and maximize fat burning on HIIT days and then refuel with carbs on strength training days when your body needs them for building muscle.

The problem that I see is that they’re also having you intermittent fasting every day, so if you’re working out in the morning (before your eating window begins), there’s a good chance that your body is  already depleted of glycogen. This can cause you to be fatigued, burnt out, lightheaded, and to lack the energy required to put forth your best effort in your workouts and therefore get the best results. 

Coaching

There are a lot of FASTer Way to Fat Loss Coaches out there, which is great, you get to pick the one that you resonate with most. But what exactly does coaching entail when you’re an app member or a member in one of their 6-week challenges?

The answer: it depends on who your coach is! Some coaches are pretty involved, responsive, and more hands on whereas others are practically non-existent. A lot depends on how many people they have in their challenges and the degree to which they can handle their client load.

The coaching experience you get with FWTFL is more of a group coaching program vs a 1:1 coaching relationship (as many of the coaches lead you to believe…). The coaches are trained to check in with you via Facebook groups, answer your questions, and provide motivation, but they are not trained dietitians, macro coaches, or personal trainers who can give you more in-depth and personalized advice and adjustments.

All FWTFL coaches are trained by corporate, which means they all run the same play (same script, rules, and check-ins). This is not inherently a negative thing, it actually creates a really cohesive system. But if you’re someone with specific needs, you’re unlikely to get a customized plan from your FWTFL coach. 

Again, I can’t help but to compare FWTFL with Beachbody’s old model of “coaching” where basically anyone (with no experience or credentials) can sign up to be a coach and recruit others to workout with them).  I do think that FWTFL has a much more comprehensive training model than Beachbody ever did, but the play is very similar.

My Overall Feedback and Thoughts

I am not opposed to FWTFL at all - I think any program that gets people up and moving, teaches them a thing or two about nutrition and helps to keep them motivated and accountable is fantastic. That being said, I don’t think it’s the right fit for everyone (no program is). 

I love the community aspect of FWTFL, the fact that they focus on macros, and that they have people strength training multiple times per week. However, I definitely have some criticisms, too. 

First, I would prefer to see a bigger emphasis on strength training in the workouts as that’s the key to building lean muscle, increasing metabolism, and changing body composition. Second, I think the calorie cycling and intermittent fasting approach is a tad too much. In order to perform our best, we need food (and carbs) on board. I’ve spoke with many people who simply burned themselves out from trying to adhere to too many food rules with FWTFL. 

I have several clients in my app that came to me from following FWTFL. The general consensus is that they enjoyed the 6-week challenge and it definitely helped them kickstart their fitness and nutrition journeys, but that it was hard to stick with in the long term. They also complained about the monthly cost with the VIP membership ($99/month) and the fact that they didn’t always feel supported by their coaches (this was especially true for those who signed up under a coach who has hundreds or thousands of clients at once). 

I haven’t personally tried FWTFL myself, I am just an observer and have had many conversations with clients who have tried the program. I’m also someone who has gone through the Beachbody coaching method, so I am very familiar with the tactics.

As a large company, their mission is to get as many people they can into their program and as many coaches as they can promoting them so they can sell both their programs and their supplements. 

As someone who feels like they’ve tried it all, I can say with confidence that the approach I take within the FHM+ App is hands-down the most effective, realistic, and sustainable for busy women. We focus on muscle-group specific, progressive overload strength training workouts 3-5x per week for 30 minutes, easy, quick high-protein recipes, and personalized macros that are custom tailored to your unique and specific goals. 

Learn more about the FHM+ App here and start your free trial today.