The world is becoming more conscious about fitness with time, and thus the requirement for technical solutions to meet this growing demand is also diversifying. Recently, several global startups have begun to use predictive analytics and artificial intelligence to assist fitness enthusiasts in tracking and monitoring their nutrition and calorie intake, as well as making recommendations for a healthy diet.
Today, we take a look at the pros and cons of AI in nutrition and fitness and how artificial intelligence comes into the picture of fitness and nutrition coaching.
Role of AI in Nutrition and Fitness Coaching
AI has progressively gained traction in the health and fitness industry. What were once generic workout routines and meal plans are now becoming hyper-personalized experiences. Some AI-powered applications serve as virtual coaches to assist with personalized workouts, while others monitor your health and habits to design customized nutritional plans. Meanwhile, language learning models like ChatGPT are already helping in creating healthy meal plans for people.
Incorporating AI into diet and fitness apps can improve the experience so much that personalization is becoming the norm rather than an exception.
Applications of AI in Fitness and Nutrition
As AI gets access to more of your data, its ability to personalize fitness and nutritional plans will grow even better. Some exciting developments are just on the way.
Wearables
Wearable fitness devices are becoming quite popular nowadays, collecting a plethora of biometric data that can be used to fine-tune your fitness and nutrition plans.
For example, using data obtained from your smartwatch, AI products and services will be able to offer the best meal plan to ensure you recover fast after a long journey—and when to eat it so you get a good night’s sleep!
Genetic Analysis
In general, AI systems can access huge amounts of data from your genetic sequence to offer next-level personalization. By analyzing raw DNA data with the help of third-party genetic testing services, AI algorithms will be able to develop customized fitness and nutritional plans as per your genetic strengths and weaknesses.
AI can also prepare meal plans depending on how your body can handle specific nutrients (or not) and your tendency to food allergies and intolerances.
Pros of AI for Fitness and Nutrition Coaching
A typical misconception about gyms or fitness centers is that they have little use for AI. However, fitness and nutrition coaching platforms have seen significant benefits from artificial intelligence.
Workout From the Comfort of Your Home
Going to the gym or a fitness class does bring in a few challenges. Be it about money, lack of confidence, or the distance, working out anywhere other than the comfort of your home brings in its own set of challenges. With the help of the best AI workout app available nowadays, you can feel confident with fitness routines and stick to them as per your own schedules.
Get more customized workouts and diet plans
AI can help provide recommendations for customized diet charts and workouts ideal for every client. This is done by tracking personal behavior and habits, such as analyzing recurring exercise patterns. An AI workout generator gives users a better understanding of their daily health-related behavior and needs and adjusts accordingly.
Cons of AI for Fitness and Nutrition Coaching
It’s quite clear that fitness applications and virtual personal trainers make it simpler and hassle-free to stay fit and healthy. However, there are significant limitations when compared to in-person fitness and nutrition coaching.
Safer Experience
Proper exercise form is crucial to avoid injury and levitate your workout benefits. While virtual coaching technologies are improving and monitoring your form, they still fall short of the accuracy that an in-person coach can provide. In-person instructors also excel in providing real-time feedback, ensuring that you maintain the proper form throughout your training sessions.
The Flexibility of Human Coaches
As you progress with your fitness goals, you may face a few difficulties and might plan to switch up your goals. In these cases, a human coach can easily asses and revise your plan, ensuring your workouts and diet plan remain effective and fresh.
Accountability and Motivation
People commonly feel responsible and stay accountable when they have a human personal trainer. Being enrolled in a fitness coach’s exercise program, they tend to stay committed to achieving their targets. Simultaneously, personal trainers also motivate and push their clients towards their goals – a quality that would be very difficult for any AI app to replicate.
Conclusion
By using the power of big data, complex algorithms, and machine learning, AI-driven solutions can deliver satisfactory fitness and nutrition recommendations. However, humans will always have the upper hand as fitness and nutrition trainers. The best way forward may be a hybrid approach, where fitness AI compliments human trainers, and both together offer an optimum solution.
Author – Ankita Mondal (Content Writer, INFS)
