We saw this trend on IG: Go about your normal nighttime routine, and instead of going to bed, you tell the kids we're going on a pajama run. They have no idea what that entails, but it's an exciting surprise. Monday was National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day, so we went out for cookies. No one got chocolate chip. 😂
New trAIning Partner
Dia and I hit the gym together most mornings. She got into Barre and Mat Pilates earlier this year, so I've been training alone.
I spent all of Q2 phoning it in - no real routine or program. I was determined to change things in Q3.
I found a new trAIning partner in Claude.
The original prompt: I want you to be my trainer / accountability partner in the gym. I have ~30 minutes/day 4x/wk to get the most out of my workout. I want to do 3 different exercises per day (upper, lower, accessory) and progressively overload as time goes on. I will do this program for all of Q3 and then reassess.
Here's the program we landed on:
It's not much, but it fills every bit of 30 minutes. If I don't finish a workout, I use Friday as my makeup day.
The thing I'm most surprised by, however, is how I interact with Claude.
Sometimes I ask it for permission to switch the order of days based on how I'm feeling.
Or I talk to it the way I'd talk to a friend from college that I used to work out with.
I've tried a few different fitness apps in the past to log my workouts, but they never really stuck.
This might not either, but I will say one of the things I'm enjoying most is sharing my sentiment towards the workout as a whole or even a particular movement.
Recording the numbers is one thing, but logging the rate of perceived exertion or general feeling after a workout seems just as valuable. When Q3 is over, not only do I want to see the number go up, but I also want to see that I was actually pushing myself to improve by doing hard sets.
I asked Claude to provide a qualitative summary of my progress so far, and here's what it spit out:
I'm still not sure if this is a novelty item that will wear off or an actual step change to the way I'll train going forward.
I'm enjoying it for now, and that's good enough for me. 💪🏽
✌🏽❤️
P.S. - If this behavior sticks, I might start using Claude as a MyFitnessPal alternative and restart tracking my meals. Something about the chat interface makes it so easy and somewhat enjoyable.
P.P.S - I'd love to know how you're using AI in your personal life. Hit reply & lmk.