Cassie Douglas
What would you say if you were asked where you saw your brand in the next five years? Maybe you’d like to open a storefront or be cast for the next big movie, but to the 33-year-old Nrïsh founder and nutrition expert Will Armijo, his goal is to have his nutrition and weight loss program become the official leading competitor to Weight Watchers.
As once someone who struggled with weight loss, trying and failing a multitude of diet programs, Armijo made it his mission to find the one weight loss program to rule them all, and he did just that. “I founded the company in 2014 as Will-Powered and begin coaching then. It was rebranded to Nrïsh in the spring of 2020.”
Originally starting in Phoenix, Arizona, Nrïsh has quickly grown into an international program with a goal to help people around the world achieve their ideal body results through the power of education and healthy eating.
“Nrïsh is a program designed to help people kill the diet,” as Armijo puts it. “My promise to people is when you leave our program, this should be the last program you ever do and you shouldn’t need to diet ever again.”
So, how does it work and what makes it different?
“First and foremost, [we focus on] education,” he told ICON in an exclusive interview. “One of the biggest things you’ll see in this industry is a lack of education. A lack of education means dependency, and education means independence and being able to do things on your own.”
To do that, Nrïsh uses a combined approach focusing not only on weight loss but also on wellness, taking typical dieting and turning it into a personal learning experience with a heavy emphasis on the importance of organic and natural foods.
Additionally, Armijo employs a team of wellness experts including Briana Owen, an Integrative Health Practitioner, Josiah Igono, a doctor of performance psychology and mental health specialist as well as certified strength and conditioning coach, and Josh Garcia, an exercise and performance coach, to come up with custom macros weekly to suit individual needs. By doing so, Armijo hopes to arm his clients with the knowledge they need to be successful on their own.
“We help you learn what to eat, when, and how much, for your goals, body type, current weight, and activity level. You can exercise a lot, or not at all… it is not a requirement to get results on this program. If you want an exercise program we have one of the best online exercise programs around,” a portion of the Nrïsh website reads.
Starting from humble beginnings, wanting to help people and determination was a recipe for success for Armijo, as now his innovative program boasts some incredible stats, with up to 90% of people losing weight in the first 30 days!
So what’s the future for Armijo and his brand? “[In 5-10 years I see us] competing directly with Weight Watchers and Noom,” Armijo said, noting that while things are going well, the takeover is still in the planning stages. “We’re working on building an app so we can compete with them on a mass scale.”
While we’re waiting for Nrïsh to be the next big thing, you can connect with Armijo and his endeavors through Instagram @I.am.willpowered.