AI Fitness Summaries: Are They Really Helpful?

Fitness apps are now packed with AI summaries. These summaries are supposed to make sense of all the data collected from wearables. But do they really help? Take Strava's Athlete Intelligence, for example. It takes workout data and tries to explain it in simple terms. Whoop has Whoop Coach, which gives daily reports and workout suggestions. Oura has Oura Advisor, which summarizes data and points out long-term trends. Even smart beds now greet users with summaries of their sleep. But these summaries often feel useless. They usually just repeat the data that's already shown in charts. For instance, a summary might say, "You slept 7 hours with a resting heart rate of 60 bpm. " But this information is already visible in the charts. The summary doesn't add much. Workout summaries are even worse. Strava's AI might say, "Intense run with high heart rate zones. " But it doesn't consider important factors like weather, recent injuries, or workout history. For example, a summary might not mention that the user ran in extreme heat or had a recent injury. Some apps, like Runna, provide slightly better insights. But even these are not very helpful. For instance, Runna might suggest an "easy" run, but it doesn't consider the user's recent injuries. Chatbots in these apps are not much better. Whoop Coach might not respond to injury-related questions. Oura Advisor, on the other hand, provides more helpful responses. But even then, the user has to guide the chatbot to get useful answers. The problem is that these AI features are limited. They can't provide holistic, personalized insights because they don't have access to all the necessary health data. Plus, they have to balance speed, cost, data privacy, and legal liability. So, these summaries are often just repackaged data. In the end, current AI features in fitness apps are not very useful. They are more like book reports written by a fourth-grader relying on a Wikipedia summary. They are not worth paying extra for. Maybe one day, these AI insights will be truly helpful. But that day is not today.