If there’s one thing more boring than people telling you about their dreams, it’s people telling you about their exercise. And if there’s one thing more boring than people telling you about their exercise, it’s people telling you about how they use AI. With that in mind, here’s how I’ve been using ChatGPT as my running coach. Stick with me.
Most runners now use an app called Runna, which creates personalised runs for you, according to your target race date, time you have to train, and what not. One friend who has recently started running – ‘I could barely drag my lardy arse around 5k at 6:00/km’ – managed to run a 55-minute 10K after just two months using it.
However, there’s a catch. It’s £15.99 a month. What price fitness? What price mental clarity? What price improved cardiovascular and arterial function? Well, not £15.99, was my thinking. But I had to get a running coach, simply because my own intuition was leading me astray. Most new runners just pelt it when they set off, and so did I. Within five minutes, my breathing was scrambled and scratchy, and I was wanting to walk. To keep up a regular running habit, you have to associate running with pleasure: you can’t shudder at the thought. The mental association of ‘going for a run’ shouldn’t be ‘oh yes, last time I did that, I could feel my lungs in my nose’.
