Great day at Nevado de Toluca with Joseph, and my first time trying an FKT.
The whole trip up to the peak is completely exposed but we were lucky with a mostly overcast day with pretty low winds. The hardest part of the trip was climbing up to the first false summit. We spent a lot of time trying to find a safe(ish) route up and around the rocks and taking our time around some snow, ice, and mud. The view at the very top is spectacular. Poles might have come in handy in the first sections, which had dusty slopes with loose rocks, but I didn't miss them. I only drank around 750 mL total, and carried an extra 1L. Overpacked on warm clothes and food but we could have gotten by with a much smaller pack. I don't believe they sell any food/water at the welcome center where this hike starts, but they do at the lower entrance.
The original GPX for this trip on the descent to the lake from km 5.2 to km 6.2 shortcut is blocked at the exit by a fence with barbed wire and had two guards, so I took the standard route down and wouldn't advise anyone to take the shortcut in the future.