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July 3, 2025

Case Study: FasCat Coaching

Client Overview

FasCat Coaching, founded by Frank Overton in Boulder, Colorado in 2002, is a performance-driven cycling and endurance training company that combines science-based methods with personalized coaching to serve competitive cyclists, gravel riders, and multisport athletes. With roots in physiology and power-based training, FasCat is known for its “sweet spot” methodology and its athlete-first values of empathy, balance, and community. Competing with platforms like TrainingPeaks (analytics) and Strava (social fitness), FasCat differentiates itself through a hybrid model: professional human coaching delivered with a focus on accessibility and scalability, aimed at helping “working athletes” fit high-performance training into busy lives.

The Challenge

To extend its reach and sustain growth, FasCat recognized the need for a mobile platform that could scale its coaching expertise beyond the limits of one-on-one services. The business opportunity was clear: while traditional personalized coaching commands premium pricing, it remains inaccessible to many athletes who want structure, guidance, and accountability without the high monthly cost. By developing a mobile app, FasCat could tap into a subscription-driven revenue model, expand customer acquisition beyond its existing coaching base, and compete directly with other dominant players in the industry.

The envisioned app would replicate the benefits of human coaching by integrating with wearable devices to capture real-time performance, recovery, and nutrition data; providing instant feedback and workout analysis; and dynamically adjusting training plans to reflect progress and setbacks. Beyond training, it would include meal guidance and recovery tracking to position itself as a holistic performance platform. The challenge was to design a solution that maintained FasCat’s reputation for empathy and scientific rigor, while delivering the automation, personalization, and affordability that modern athletes demand. Success would position FasCat to bridge the gap between high-cost coaching and self-service tracking apps, creating a differentiated, scalable offering in a highly competitive market.

Our Approach

Delivering FasCat’s vision required more than a mobile app; it demanded a connected ecosystem capable of ingesting fragmented wearable data, applying proprietary performance algorithms, and delivering personalized training and meal content at scale. To achieve this, we focused on three core challenge areas—device connectivity, data processing, and content management—supported by a modular, cloud-based architecture.

Device Connectivity & Data Ingestion

  • Integrated with wearables and platforms such as Garmin, Whoop, and Zwift.
  • Supported athlete uploads of workout files containing GPS, elevation, cadence, power, and heart rate data.
  • Combined internally developed connectors with Terra’s API to normalize heterogeneous data sources into a common structure.

Data Normalization & Proprietary Analytics

  • Designed pipelines to process and standardize exercise files across multiple formats.
  • Ensured workouts flowed through FasCat’s proprietary algorithms, transforming raw telemetry into actionable training insights.
  • Built for scale: handling high-volume ingestion with asynchronous processing so results could be surfaced in near real time.

Content Management for Training & Nutrition

  • Implemented a headless CMS solution to manage training plans, workouts, and meal programs.
  • Enabled coaches to author, update, and publish content without requiring engineering involvement.
  • Ensured CMS content could be consumed seamlessly across mobile and backend services.

System Architecture Principles

  • Adopted a modular, microservices-inspired architecture spanning mobile, backend, CMS, and serverless processing.
  • Focused on scalability (able to grow with user adoption), interoperability (integrating third-party data and services), and adaptability (supporting evolving coaching methods and features).
  • Leveraged cloud-native infrastructure with CI/CD pipelines for multi-environment deployments and continuous improvement.

The Solution

To bring FasCat’s vision to life,required a multi-project platform that unified mobile, backend, data pipelines, and content services into a seamless ecosystem for athletes and coaches. The solution combined a consumer-facing mobile app with cloud-based infrastructure, fitness data integrations, and content management, ensuring both scalability and personalization. By modularizing components, we created a system that was resilient, flexible, and ready for future growth.

Mobile Application (Flutter, iOS & Android)

  • Athlete-facing app built in Flutter with BLoC state management, Firebase authentication (Google/Apple), and RevenueCat for subscription handling.
  • Delivered personalized workout results, training plans, and notifications, supported by Firebase Analytics and Remote Config.

Backend API (Node.js, TypeScript, MongoDB)

  • Core service managing users, training plans, calendars, and subscriptions.
  • Integrated with Shopify for e-commerce and Terra’s API for fitness device data.
  • Secured with JWT + Firebase Auth and supported by Swagger API documentation.

Data Pipelines & Processing

  • AWS Lambda functions for ingesting and processing workout data.
  • Event-driven architecture (S3 → SQS → Lambda) to handle high volumes of workout file uploads.
  • Python-based data service (Flask, MongoDB) for normalization and fitness analytics.

Proprietary Analytics Integration

  • Custom pipeline that pushed each workout through a proprietary performance algorithm, generating scores and insights used by both the mobile app and human coaches.
  • Designed for low-latency processing so athletes could see results quickly after upload.

Content Management System (Strapi + PostgreSQL)

  • Headless CMS to store and deliver training plans, workout structures, and meal plans.
  • Cloudinary integration for media handling.
  • Empowered FasCat coaches to author and manage content directly without developer dependencies.

Web & Coach Tools (Next.js + React)

  • Web interface for onboarding and account management.
  • Provided an administrative layer for managing users and reviewing content outside the mobile app.

Infrastructure & DevOps

  • Cloud-native deployments using AWS (Lambda, S3, SQS, Elastic Beanstalk) and Render (CMS).
  • GitHub Actions CI/CD with automated testing and multi-environment support (Dev, Staging, Production).
  • Monitoring and observability through Sentry, Winston logging, and Firebase Analytics.

The Results

The launch of a mobile app and supporting infrastructure transformed the company’s business model from a one-to-one coaching service into a scalable one-to-many platform, allowing FasCat to reach far more athletes without diminishing the quality of its coaching insights. By embedding the principles of personalized coaching into a digital product, they successfully extended the benefits of expert guidance to a broader audience at a fraction of the cost. This shift unlocked new recurring revenue streams, reduced dependence on limited coach capacity, and positioned FasCat competitively against established digital training platforms.

Scalable Growth Model

  • Expanded from an inherently limited 1:1 coaching structure into a subscription-based, one-to-many delivery model. 
  • Created the potential to serve thousands of athletes simultaneously while maintaining the personalization athletes expect.

Revenue Diversification

  • Introduced a recurring subscription model via the mobile app, reducing reliance on high-cost coaching packages.
  • Opened opportunities to upsell premium coaching on top of scalable digital plans.

Market Competitiveness

  • Positioned FasCat as a viable alternative to dominant competitors by offering a differentiated hybrid model that combines expert coaching with adaptive, app-driven experiences.
  • Increased brand visibility in the endurance training market by aligning with the growing demand for AI-assisted and mobile-first fitness platforms.

Operational Efficiency

  • Reduced the administrative overhead of delivering training and meal plans by centralizing content in Strapi, enabling coaches to focus on value-added interactions.
  • Automated data ingestion and workout analysis, ensuring results were available quickly without manual intervention.

Customer Impact

  • Delivered the essence of one-on-one coaching—personalized feedback, adaptive training, holistic planning—to a much wider audience.
  • Enhanced athlete satisfaction and retention by providing instant feedback loops and seamless integration with wearables.

Key Takeaways

FasCat Coaching’s digital transformation illustrates how service-based businesses can scale their expertise without sacrificing quality. By reimagining its one-on-one coaching model as a technology-enabled platform, FasCat bridged the gap between human expertise and digital scalability, creating new growth opportunities while preserving the brand’s hallmark of personalized training.

Digitization Unlocks Scale

Converting human-delivered services into app-driven workflows can multiply reach while retaining personalization.

Hybrid Models Differentiate

Combining expert coaching with automation and AI created a unique position against data-heavy platforms like TrainingPeaks and socially driven ones like Strava.

Content + Data is a Winning Formula

A robust CMS for training and meal plans, paired with pipelines to process wearable data, provided both structure and adaptability.

Recurring Revenue Builds Stability

Moving from high-cost, capacity-limited services to a subscription-driven model diversified revenue and supported long-term growth.

Technology is a Force Multiplier

Cloud infrastructure, serverless pipelines, and integrations enabled FasCat to serve athletes at scale while reducing operational overhead for coaches.

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