I let ChatGPT plan my workouts for 5 months. It completely transformed my fitness journey | Mint-OxBig News Network

After years of broken promises, I finally decided to get in shape this year. The first step, obviously, was to start eating healthy and going to the gym. Soon afterwards, I started hitting a few roadblocks, as maintaining the correct posture during exercises became a major concern, while identifying the foods aligned with my health goals wasn’t exactly easy either. This is where ChatGPT came in, and it helped me immensely over the past five months, acting as my personal trainer, dietician, and sometimes even as my motivational coach. Let me explain how.

ChatGPT as my personal trainer

Like I said earlier, identifying the correct posture for any exercise can be a difficult task, especially for someone like me who struggles with shoulder mobility issues. Any upper body exercise done with the wrong posture would lead to serious pain in my shoulders. This is where ChatGPT comes in. I usually ask ChatGPT to design a full daily workout schedule for me while describing, in detail, the correct method for each exercise.

The inputs given by ChatGPT, along with YouTube tutorials, have been really helpful in improving my form.

And just in case you still struggle with identifying the correct posture, you can always ask ChatGPT to generate an image showcasing the correct form.

Apart from that, ChatGPT is also helpful in identifying the intended muscle areas for each exercise, like explaining how squats target your glutes and quads, while bicep curls target your biceps brachii and brachialis. The chatbot becomes immensely useful in breaking down these muscle areas from scientific terms into actual areas on your body, helping you identify where you should feel the stretch during exercises and potentially improving your mind-muscle connection.

ChatGPT as my health advisor

Soreness after going to the gym is natural, as your muscles break down and your body works to rebuild them stronger. However, there are times when an exercise done incorrectly can lead to unintended pain in the body. I use ChatGPT as a sort of health advisor in these scenarios, helping me assess my pain level and whether it crosses the threshold for seeing a doctor or if simple recovery at home would be better.

For instance, I had a gnawing pain in my lower back after my first deadlift session, where I had overexerted myself. ChatGPT told me that mild soreness is fine but advised me to consult a doctor if the pain persisted. Since I didn’t want to miss my workout that day, I also asked ChatGPT about exercises I could do without putting unnecessary strain on my lower back.

ChatGPT as my diet coach

ChatGPT helps me not only break down the macros of each meal I eat but also recommends what I can eat daily without going overboard on my calorie limit. It also suggests meals based on the items I currently have at home, reducing the friction that often comes with eating healthy. Lastly, it helps me verify whether some of the beliefs I hold about food are actually true. Can dals and sattu help meet my protein requirements? Is whey protein safe? These are some of the questions I have explored with ChatGPT.

ChatGPT as my motivation coach

One of the standout features for me on ChatGPT has been the addition of memory, which means it now remembers most of our past conversations and knows my preferences. For me specifically, ChatGPT knows that I am deeply inspired by ex-US Navy SEAL David Goggins and that I follow a few fitness creators diligently.

In view of this knowledge, I use the chatbot as my personal motivation coach on days when I feel down and don’t feel like going to the gym. Here’s what I do, and what you could do as well: just ask ChatGPT, “I don’t feel like going to the gym today, what do you think [David Goggins] would say about this?”

Instantly, you get a perspective from your role model, which, on most occasions, will be enough to get you out of bed and going to do the task at hand.