Strongr Fastr Workout, Meal and Diet Planner - Interview with the developer of a fantastic app

Did you have any prior development or coding experience?

Yes, I had a substantial amount of coding experience when I started developing the app, but a lot of it really wasn’t directly relevant so I had to teach myself a lot of things as I went along. I’ve been doing small coding projects since I was 11 or 12 when I taught myself to code. But I probably didn’t become a competent coder until I studied computer science in college. After college, I also worked as a software developer for two years at a company that develops healthcare software for hospitals. When I quit that job to develop Strongr Fastr, I had to learn a whole bunch of different technologies (Ruby, Rails, JavaScript, React, Cordova) and I’m definitely still learning today.

What was the most challenging aspect of developing mobile app?

I think the most challenging aspect for me was all the time I put into development before I made a single dime. It took about 18 months from when I started to when the first version of the app was released. During that time before a product has even remotely proven itself but you’re pouring all your time into it, there’s a ton of psychological pressure and self-doubt. Something like 90% of apps never make a single dollar and that’s something that keeps you up at night. You think you have a good idea but you can’t really know for sure what the market will be like until you go live, especially in a space as competitive as fitness apps.

_{Philip Schinis}

Philip Schinis is the founder of Strongr Fastr and a lifelong fitness enthusiast with a passion for helping people get stronger, healthier, and more active. He studied Computer Science and Finance at the University of Pittsburgh (’13) and formerly worked as a software engineer at Epic Systems, developing electronic medical records systems for large hospitals. He lives, works, and runs in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Name a few of your favorite apps and reason you love them.

Something that’s kind of ironic about me as an app developer is I don’t really use that many apps. I do use Strava to track my runs and I’ve used Moodflow on and off to track my mood. Strava is just a very simple/solid/reliable app for what I need. You open the app, two clicks, and you’re off running. And it’s just nice to have all your runs in one place and be able to look back over your aggregated stats. Sort of similar to Moodflow, you open it, tap a button that says how you’re feeling and make some notes if you feel like it. It’s just simple (and also pretty) and performs its basic function well. And then it’s useful to be able to look back over your logs and see if there are any patterns.

How long have you been working on this app?

About 5 years in total at this point. I started development at the end of 2015, though the first 6 months was a lot of me just learning new technologies. I released the beta a little over a year later and then finally launched at the end of 2017. Since then it’s been a lot of iterating, marketing, and over the past year, a complete redesign.

What need of the user did you have in mind when developing this app?

I wanted to create a fitness/meal planning app that puts nutrition first and does a really good job of it. That is, I wanted to make it really easy for people to achieve their fitness goals by creating meal plans for themselves that they’ll like, stick to, and that is actually tailored to their specific nutritional needs. And I thought if you paired that with a curated set of proven, evidence-based workout routines you’d pretty much have an all-in-one fitness solution that cuts through the noise and gives users a tailored step-by-step plan to achieve their goals.

In what way do you think your app is better than similar apps on the market? Please describe in detail what innovation you think you bring and what you are proud of in your app.

Lots of apps claim to do what Strongr Fastr does (workout and meal planning). If you download any of these apps you’ll quickly realize the “meal plan” is either just some static PDF, or they’re just giving the same cookie-cutter meal plan and nutrition recommendations to everyone or that the required grocery list and amount of cooking is not something anyone would actually stick to. Strongr Fastr’s core innovation is that the meal planner is flexible while still keeping you on track to your goals and that the meal plans it creates are tasty, nutritious, and something that everyday users can actually use and stick to. Consistency is the most important thing in fitness and the app really makes it easy to consistently eat in a way that will get you to your goals without having to do much thinking.

What are your future plans and expected features of the coming new versions of this app?

We just finished up a top-to-bottom redesign of the app that made it way faster, prettier, and easier to use. So check that out. In the future though probably the biggest potential feature we might add is integration with grocery delivery services like Instacart to make following along with your meal plan that much easier.

Assuming new users of your app are reading this page. What do you want to ask them to do (contact you about X, Share the app, etc.)?

If you like the app please share and review it! And if you have any questions or feedback please contact me ([email protected]) or my partner ([email protected]). We’re constantly improving and very responsive to feedback.