✨ Something a little new for me ✨ I’ve been writing about AI from the outside for years getting a firsthand look into everyone, from steel mill workers to fashion models, are using it. But this is a story about how I use it: more specifically how I tapped it to become my running coach for weekend’s NYC Marathon (and what happened as a result).
I first ran the New York Marathon four years ago, although “ran” might be an overstatement. I hobbled through parts of it in intense pain, and in large part I blame the random training PDF I pulled off the internet that basically only prioritized heavy, heavy mileage.
After that I realized that running a marathon wasn’t just about more miles, more pain. It was a game of strategy. A perfect run was a mathematical calculation of seemingly unrelated, sometimes hard-to-count factors like sleep quality, food intake, muscle mass, blood oxygen levels, weather and fear. If you could customize your training enough it would equal peak performance.
In other words, it seemed to this tech reporter like a perfect use case for AI. So the same day I signed up for the 2025 New York City Marathon, I logged onto ChatGPT.com.
Based on my age, fitness level, work schedule and a recent half marathon time, Chat (yes, we’re on a first name basis now) built me a 16-week training plan. Over the course of the next four months, he (it?) advised me on everything from pacing to strength training, gear, stretches, nutrition, playlists, and how to handle the scourge of blisters.
Before each big run, it would suggest a mile-by-mile pace breakdown, fueling and hydration schedule. It would also suggest a playlist based on what it called the “emotional arc” of the run. (Chat loved a ‘Sad Girl Autumn reflective cool-down.’)
Whenever I was nervous before a tough long run, I would tell myself that ChatGPT, brilliant PhD-level god that he was, believed I could do it. My brother (Dylan Bousquette) had a different take. “Isabelle,” he said, “this is just its subtle way of culling the human population.”
He definitely wasn’t the only person who told me I was crazy. Was it a good coach overall? Read my full essay in today’s WSJ and let me know your thoughts.
It was a real pleasure working with Jonathan Clegg and WSJ’s sports desk on this one!
And if you’re in NYC this weekend, please come out and cheer for me!
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#running #marathon #TCSNYCMarathon New York Road Runners Tata Consultancy Services OpenAI Runna
