It's the start of a new year, which means gyms packed and the streets are full of people jogging around as part of their new fitness routines. While some scoff at the idea of New Year's resolutions, I welcome any opportunity for people to better themselves. If you, like me and millions of other people, have made a resolution to improve your health in 2024, you may be overwhelmed with where to start.
Luckily, ChatGPT and Copilot with Bing are here to help you out. The artificial intelligence tools are full of fitness knowledge, free, and easy to access. Here's a rundown of how to use the AI-powered services to help you keep your fitness goals in 2024.
As a quick note, fitness and health aren't just about weight loss, even if losing weight is a common New Year's resolution. Your health goals may include gaining weight in a healthy manner, being more active, or improving your mobility. My fitness goals are largely related to losing weight and improving mobility, so my examples are in those categories, but ChatGPT and Bing are just as useful for achieving other fitness goals.
Set goals with ChatGPT
Wanting to be more fit or get into better shape is admirable, but those aren't specific goals. Talking through why you want to improve your health will help motivate you to be consistent. It may also reveal priorities you didn't realize regarding your fitness.
Since ChatGPT is conversational, it's a great tool for organizing your thoughts. You can ask ChatGPT to give you a list of questions or to ask questions one at a time to simulate a conversation.
To get started, hop over to ChatGPT's website or use the ChatGPT app on iOS or Android.
I used ChatGPT to ask me questions about my fitness and goals one at a time, allowing me to answer about each topic with a single message. The AI bot asked about my preferred types of exercises, how much time I can reasonably set aside for working out, and if I had any health considerations. Perhaps more importantly, ChatGPT also asked why I want to improve my fitness.
ChatGPT remembers your previous statements and questions, so you don't have to repeat yourself, you can just ask for a correction or change. The tool also understands everyday language, so a prompt such as "can you help me set fitness goals for 2024?" should work just fine.
How to use ChatGPT to create a workout plan
The difference between a goal and a wish is a plan. Plenty of people want to improve their fitness and health, but without clear direction, you're less likely to succeed. ChatGPT is an excellent tool for creating workout plans. It's conversational, has a vast array of information, and can pin down what works for you.
Last year, I had ChatGPT devise several workout plans for American football players. The programs were tailored to specific positions, and it was easy to customize the plans based on how many days a person could go to the gym.
My main focus going using ChatGPT was to come out with a workout plan, but the tool accurately discussed the importance of nutrition and diet regarding fitness. It asked about my current eating habits to better form an understanding of where I am.
Lastly, ChatGPT asked about my support system, which was a nice touch. Going to the gym or working out is difficult enough on its own. Having friends and family on the same page can make a big difference.
By default, ChatGPT will respond with text in paragraph formatting, but you can ask it to create a table instead, making it easy to paste a plan into Excel.
To get started, you can simply ask ChatGPT "can you help me create a workout plan?" and then add more details. Alternatively, you can ask a more specific question if you know what you want.
Use Bing to learn about workouts
A full workout plan is nice, but not if it includes lifts you've never seen. In my experience ChatGPT only lists exercises that are standard in the gym, but if you're new to working out or have a different point of emphasis than you're used to, Copilot can get you on the right track.
Copilot, formerly known as Bing Chat, is a search engine infused with OpenAI smarts and Microsoft tech to combine AI and real-time information. You can access Copilot through Microsoft Edge's Sidebar (this link should open the Sidebar in Edge to Copilot) or by navigating to Bing.com and selecting that "Chat" tab. Microsoft is in the middle of rebranding the tool to Copilot with Bing Chat, so you may see a couple different names for it at the moment.
Copilot generates answers based on what you ask it. The tool draws information from the web to create responses in everyday language rather than a list of links and websites. But if you want to find out more, you can click on the source links for any response from Copilot.
For example, the workout plan created by ChatGPT included planks with a shoulder tap. These are a variation of the standard plank workout, but the workout plan didn't explain how to do the exercise. A quick search through Copilot gave me written instructions and a link to a website with photos and a YouTube video.
When you ask Copilot for help with an exercise, it won't always generate the same answer, but you can ask follow-up questions to get more information. I asked Copilot about planks with shoulder taps a second time and it did not show a video. I then asked for a video of the exercise and Copilot gave me three links.
If you just want text-based responses for questions about an exercise, you can use ChatGPT rather than Copilot, but ChatGPT only has information up until January 2022. I was unable to get ChatGPT to share a video or a YouTube link to find out more about planks with shoulder taps. Copilot with Bing Chat is better for getting more recent information.
Some personal advice
The tools above are a great way to have clear direction when trying to improve your fitness. Having specific goals, understanding your motivation, and having a plan of action are key to achieving results. ChatGPT and Copilot teamed up to give me a solid starting point and a specific fitness plan geared toward my goals.
I've struggled with my weight for most of my life, and I know it's difficult to begin a fitness journey. My suggestion is to focus on consistency and to have reasonable goals. I spent the last month with the goal of just going to the gym and moving for an hour. That helped me form a habit of going to the gym on a regular basis. It also built up my endurance to be able to handle more intense or longer workouts.
If you're trying to improve your health in 2024, I suggest making technology your ally. ChatGPT, Copilot, and other tools can help you begin a journey to fitness. They're also free and easily accessible.
If you want any advice on how to get more active or improve your health by using tech, please feel free to reach out to me on X (formerly Twitter).
