AI vs Personal Trainers: Are Coaches Being Replaced?

AI is changing the fitness industry at rapid speed.
These days most athletes and gym-goers are turning to tools like ChatGPT to build their own programs — and surprisingly, some of them are actually pretty good.
But here's the real question: can AI actually replace coaching?

What AI does well
Let's give it credit. AI is genuinely good at programming.
It pulls information from across the internet and spits out a program based on the prompts you give it — and that can be useful.
We even use it ourselves as a tool: our coaches draw on it for inspiration, to explore new methodologies, and to keep refining and evolving how we program.

Where it falls short
Here's the problem: AI doesn't factor in you.
It doesn't see what a coach sees when we profile and assess an athlete.
You might have tight hips. You might have a weak lower back.
You might be asking it for more upper body when what you actually need is lower body. You might need fast, reactive work, but you're only chasing strength.
AI can't see any of that — so unless you already have the eye of a seasoned strength and conditioning coach, the program it builds might not be the program you actually need.

And it doesn't factor in your motivation.
It won't hold you accountable.
It won't give you feedback unless you're uploading videos and asking the right questions.
That's exactly where coaching earns its keep — and where the real results come from.

Because individualization matters more than ever.
You can have the coolest program in the world, but if you're not going to do it, it's worthless.
You need a program that suits you — then and now — built around your individual needs.

And AI simply can't replicate the accountability and buy-in that actually drive results.

How we actually use it
I'll be honest about how it fits into our world. I use it to explore new methodologies and have them explained to me.

A recent example: we started looking into the Texas Method — the idea of a high-volume day balanced against a separate high-intensity, lower-volume day.
If it wasn't for ChatGPT, we might never have stumbled across it. But here's the key part — we didn't just copy and paste it.
We took it, applied our own knowledge, our scientific understanding and our years of experience, and worked out who it's actually suitable for.

That's the whole point. AI is brilliant for building understanding. But when it comes to implementing it with a real person, you need the eye of a coach.

The bottom line
A good coach gives you individualization, accountability, buy-in, and the ability to adjust as your body and your life change — and that's what gets you the best results, and gets you there as fast as possible.

ChatGPT might still get you moving in the right direction. But it won't see the whole picture — and it might not get you all the way there.

Want to hear more of my thoughts on this? Head over to Episode 43 of the Your Athlete Hub podcast.