Logging
One tap. Next set.
Big numbers, auto-rest timer, RIR auto-suggested from your last sets. Live Activity on the lock screen so you never miss a rest. Apple Watch sync.
Closed beta. Summer 2026
Your coach reads the research. And your last 30 sessions.
Forto is the iOS lifting app where you talk to a scientific AI coach grounded in peer-reviewed hypertrophy research (Schoenfeld, Helms, Nuckols). Free tracker forever. Coach add-on 9,99 €/month. Closed beta opens summer 2026 on TestFlight.
A B C D E
2,400+ lifters on the waitlist
★★★★★ from the closed beta. TestFlight summer 2026
Forto Coach
Reading: Upper / Lower. Week 5/8
Demo I'm flat on bench. Plateaued at 100kg for 3 weeks.
Your bench volume dropped 22% the last 2 weeks. RIR drifted from 2 to 4. Let's swap to 4×6 @ RIR 1-2 and add a paused variant on day 4. Cool?
Yeah. Send it.
Done. Updated weeks 5-7 of *Upper-Lower-Push*. Top set Tuesday: 102.5 kg.
Program updated. 4 substitutions. Volume +14%
2,400+
lifters waitlisted
24
program templates
<1s
per set logged
12k+
studies in corpus
The product
Tracking you'd expect. Intelligence you didn't.
Forto starts as the fastest gym tracker on iOS. Then it gets weird, in a good way.
AI Coach
Adjust mid-set.
"Knee feels off, swap squats." Suggestion in 4 seconds, with reasoning. Apply, and your program is rewritten. All on-device by default.
Programs
5 messages to a program.
No 30-question intake. Tell the coach your goal, days, equipment, injuries. It writes a 4-8 week program, auto-adjusted weekly from your real sets.
PRs. Trends
See what you would miss.
RIR drift, fatigue index, plateau onset. Forto suggests a deload before you stall. Confetti when you smash a PR.
In-session. Screens
The bar. The numbers. Nothing else.
Every screen designed for the moment between heavy sets. Numbers you can read with chalked hands. One tap to the next.
Now lifting
Bench press
Set 3 of 4. 102.5 kg
Reps. RIR
6 ·2
e1RM est. 120 kg
100×6 ✓
102×6 ✓
Now
LOG. START REST
🏆 New PR +2.5kg
Session. Log a set
Forto Coach
Reading: Push-Pull-Legs. Week 5/8
My deadlift won't budge for 3 weeks. What do I do?
Your log shows RIR drifted from 2 to 4 over 3 weeks. You've been undershooting. Two options:
- Deficit deadlifts day 2 (+ROM, fixes lockout)
- 5×3 @ RIR 1 (intensity push)
Recommend #2 from your recovery markers. Apply?
Apply to week 6 →
The AI coach
Plateau? Just ask.
No other tracker has this. The coach reads your actual sets, not a stale form, and proposes evidence-based changes. You accept, it rewrites the program.
12k+
studies indexed
<4s
response time
100%
on-device default
Adaptive programs
Your program is alive. So is your coach.
Most apps lock you into a 12-week PDF. Forto gives you a program written for you in 5 messages, then keeps tuning it every week based on what actually happened in the gym.
- Talk it into existence. Goal, days, equipment, injuries. 90 seconds.
- Auto-adjust weekly. Volume, intensity, RIR. Recalibrated from real sets.
- Swap anything live. "Replace squats with leg press". Done, with a science-backed alternative.
- Safety-validated. Every AI output passes volume caps, RIR ranges, frequency rules.
Most apps
Static PDF
12-week plan, locked. Knee hurts week 4? Tough luck. Travelling? Skip.
Week 1 Squat 4×6. Bench 4×6. Row 4×6
Week 2 Squat 4×6. Bench 4×6. Row 4×6
Week 3 Squat 4×6. Bench 4×6. Row 4×6
Week 4 Squat 4×6. Bench 4×6. Row 4×6
Forto
Living program
Reads your fatigue. Asks how you feel. Adapts before you stall.
Week 1 Squat 4×6. Bench 4×6. Row 4×6
Week 2 Volume +8%. RIR 2 → 1.5
Week 3 + Paused bench (plateau detected)
Week 4 Deload -30%. Auto-scheduled
How it works
From hello to your first session, in 4 steps.
No 30-question intake. No spreadsheets. Just a conversation and a real coach in your pocket.
- 01
Tell the coach about you
Tell the coach your goal, training days, available equipment, and any injuries, in plain English. Takes about 90 seconds.
- 02
Receive a custom program
Receive a custom 4 to 8 week program, validated against scientific safety caps for volume, RIR, and progression.
- 03
Log sets in one tap
Log sets in one tap during your session. Forto auto-adjusts volume, intensity, and RIR targets every week from your real sessions.
- 04
Ask anything mid-program
Ask the coach anything mid-program. It explains the why, substitutes exercises live, or rewrites blocks when life changes.
FAQ
The questions we get most.
Short answers. Same text the search engines and AI assistants see.
What is Forto?
Forto is an iOS strength-training app that pairs a sub-second set tracker with a conversational AI coach. The coach reads your last 30 sessions and the latest hypertrophy research, then writes and adapts your program in plain English.
How does the AI coach work?
You chat with it. The coach receives a minimal context for each request, your active program plus a summary of recent sessions, and prompts a model grounded in a corpus of peer-reviewed strength science. Every output passes a SafetyValidator that caps volume, RIR, weight progression, and frequency before it ever reaches your program. On-device by default.
How is Forto different from Hevy or Strong?
Hevy and Strong are excellent loggers, but neither one writes programs or thinks about your training. Forto adds a conversational AI coach, 24 science-backed program templates, automatic weekly recalibration from your real sets, and live exercise substitution when something hurts or you travel.
How much does Forto cost?
Tracking, history, PRs, charts, Apple Watch, and Live Activity are free forever, with no card required. The AI Coach add-on is 9,99 € per month or 79,99 € per year (about 33% off). TestFlight early adopters lock in 5,99 € per month for life.
When will Forto be available?
Closed beta opens summer 2026 via TestFlight. App Store launch follows later in 2026. Join the waitlist to be picked from the first wave of about 500 seats.
Does Forto work offline?
Yes. The full tracker runs offline. Sets, programs, PRs, history, and charts work with no connection. iCloud sync is optional. Only AI coach requests need the network.
Is my training data private?
Yes. Training data lives on your iPhone first (SwiftData), with optional iCloud sync. No third-party analytics on personal training data, no IDFA, no data resale, no cross-app tracking. AI coach requests send a minimal context only, and conversation history is not retained on the backend.
Who built Forto?
Forto is built solo by an indie French engineer with 12+ years of training and about a decade of iOS experience. The product is grounded in the peer-reviewed work of Brad Schoenfeld, Eric Helms, Greg Nuckols, and Mike Israetel rather than in influencer opinion. Get in touch at support@joinforto.com.
The science
Grounded in peer-reviewed strength science.
The coach prompts a corpus built from primary research, not influencer takes.
-
Schoenfeld et al. (2017)
Dose-response relationship between weekly resistance training volume and increases in muscle mass
Journal of Sports Sciences
-
Helms et al. (2019)
Application of the Reps in Reserve based Rating of Perceived Exertion scale for resistance training
Strength and Conditioning Journal
-
Nuckols (2021)
Optimal weekly training volume for hypertrophy is highly individual
Stronger by Science
-
Israetel et al. (2023)
MEV, MAV, MRV: the volume landmarks framework for hypertrophy programming
Renaissance Periodization
The builder
Why Forto exists.
Forto is built by an indie French engineer who has been lifting for 12+ years and shipping iOS apps for almost as long. After watching one too many "AI lifting coaches" miss every actual lesson from the hypertrophy literature, they decided to build the app they wanted for themselves: a tracker fast enough to disappear, and a coach that actually reads Schoenfeld, Helms, Nuckols, and Israetel.
The science corpus is curated from Brad Schoenfeld, Eric Helms, Greg Nuckols, and Mike Israetel. Forto is open about its limits: not medical advice, and the AI coach is not a doctor or a physical therapist.
Honest comparison
We love Hevy. Here's why we built Forto anyway.
Best-in-class trackers exist. None of them think. That's the gap.
← Swipe to compare →
| Feature | Forto | Hevy | Strong |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free unlimited tracking | ✓ | ✓ | — |
| Apple Watch + Live Activity | ✓ | ✓ | — |
| Smart PR detection | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Custom programs in 90 seconds | ✓ | — | — |
| AI coach that knows your history | ✓ | — | — |
| Live exercise substitution | ✓ | — | — |
| Auto-deload detection | ✓ | — | — |
| On-device privacy by default | ✓ | — | — |
Pricing
Track free. Coach is 9,99 €/mo.
Or 79,99 € per year. Save 33%. No card. Cancel anytime.
Forto. Free
0 €
Forever. No card.
- Unlimited tracking & history
- 7 starter program templates
- PRs, charts, exports
- Apple Watch & Live Activity
Forto. Plus
9,99 €/mo
Or 79,99 €/year. Save 33% (~6,67 €/mo).
- Everything in Free
- Conversational AI coach (24/7)
- 24 custom program archetypes
- Live exercise substitution
- Auto-deload detection
- Early-adopter pricing kept for life
Pricing is final on App Store launch. Early TestFlight users pay €5.99/mo or €49.99/year for life.
Be first on TestFlight.
~500 seats on the first wave. We pick TestFlight users from the waitlist order.
No spam. One email when TestFlight opens.