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VO₂MaxUnderstand, measure and improve your cardiorespiratory fitness

Feature · Using AI to support consistent action

Working toward better VO₂Max in the age of AI

Make AI and apps part of a routine you can keep up.

“I know what to do, but I’m too busy to keep going.” “I can see my smartwatch numbers, but I’m unsure what to do next.” At times like these, conversations with AI and apps for goals and records can be tools for turning intentions into action.

Regular aerobic exercise suited to your health and fitness is central to working toward better VO₂Max. This article suggests ways to support behaviour change: starting exercise, continuing and sometimes restarting. Alongside what you have learned, pay attention to what you actually did today.

Here, AI means generative AI you interact with through text. The prompts and steps below are editorial examples, not a programme tested for its effects on VO₂Max.

Try a sample AI prompt

Supporting behaviour change

Four actions for starting, continuing and restarting

  1. Choose an action goal

    Choose exercise that fits your current routine, then decide on one time and place to do it.

    Make it a goal you can check

  2. Put it into practice

    Follow the plan you chose. Include rest when your condition calls for it.

    Put how you feel today first

  3. Record what you did

    Record your exercise or steps in notes or an app, and review your progress.

    Separate fitness targets from completed actions

  4. Keep going or restart

    Build on what helped. After a break, choose another realistic opportunity.

    Review your approach with AI or a professional

Review what you did, then choose the next action

Suggestions for making goals, exercise, records and reflection part of daily life. You can start with simple notes, even without a smartwatch or app.

Turn “I should exercise” into an action today

For example, turn “I want to get fitter” into a specific action, such as planning a lunchtime walk on a day when you can walk comfortably. Afterward, review your record and build on the circumstances that helped. If you miss a session, consider why and choose another opportunity to restart.

Set a goal, check what you did and choose the next step. AI and apps can be used to support these actions. Begin by choosing one situation you find difficult, rather than adding more tools.

Visual guide

Choose a tool for the situation you face

Unsure how to keep going → Talk with AI

Organise a schedule that fits your life or consider why a plan fell through. Choose your next action yourself.

Want to review your efforts → Use an app or notes

Keep action goals and records of what you did, then check your progress. Build on what you completed.

Want a fitness guide → Use a smartwatch

Check your VO₂Max estimate and the conditions used to obtain it. Review it separately from your daily actions.

Examples of tool roles and situations in which to use them. App features vary by product. Step counts and completed challenges do not themselves show an increase in VO₂Max.

First, choose aerobic exercise that suits you

Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare recommends regular activities such as walking, running and swimming to support cardiorespiratory fitness. Its guide is at least 30 minutes per session on three or more days per week, at moderate-to-vigorous intensity, perceived as “somewhat hard”. MHLW guidance (section 6; PDF in Japanese)

If you are new to exercise, start light and short. You do not need to meet that guide from the outset. See how to start exercising for a gradual approach that takes your condition into account.

I have not been very active latelyFind a manageable way to begin →I want variety in my walking routineExplore interval walking research and precautions →I go to a gym or personal trainerSee what to discuss with your trainer →I want to use my smartwatchLearn to read your value and use it alongside exercise →

Start by asking AI to help identify where an activity can fit into your life. When changing the type, intensity or duration of exercise, check the original public guidance or consult the professional supporting you. Do not increase the load based only on AI advice.

Three AI prompts you can use

Copy a prompt and replace the text in square brackets with your own situation. Start with just one. You do not need to include your name, address, travel routes or health-screening results.

1. Fit exercise into your schedule

Use this when you want to decide when and where to continue exercise you have already checked is suitable for you.

Sample prompt · Select the text to copy it

Please help me plan a schedule so I can keep exercising.
Exercise: [an activity I have checked is suitable for me, and a duration I can manage comfortably]
Available times: [for example, weekday lunch breaks or weekend mornings]
Difficult situations: [for example, overtime, rainy days or days I cannot get to the gym]

Without increasing my current intensity or duration, suggest two options for when and where to exercise. Please include an alternative for days when my plan falls through.
Ask for any missing information. Do not diagnose medical conditions or set a target heart rate. Finish with things I should check before choosing one option, and what to record to see whether I followed through.

After reading the response: Choose one option and put it in your calendar. Include travel and changing time, and check that the plan is realistic.

2. Review your records to find what helps you continue

Use this to identify what made exercise easier to maintain, without automatically increasing the amount.

Sample prompt · Select the text to copy it

Please organise these exercise notes, separating facts from assumptions.
Planned exercise: [type, frequency and duration]
Exercise actually completed: [type, frequency and duration]
Missed sessions: [reasons, where known]
Perceived effort and next-day tiredness: [in my own words]

Start by showing what I actually did. Then make a table of what helped me continue, difficult situations and ideas for scheduling next time. If I have stopped exercising, ask questions to help identify an easy opportunity to restart. Mark unknowns as unknown, and show your calculations for total duration.
Do not judge changes in fitness or diagnose illness from these notes alone, and do not increase exercise intensity or volume. First ask questions about how I can keep the routine going.

After reading the response: Compare the response and its totals with your original notes. Check that planned and completed sessions have not been mixed up, and that AI has not invented reasons. Choose one thing that helped and use it in your next plan.

3. Prepare for a conversation with your trainer

Use this when you want to include endurance work in your gym routine.

Sample prompt · Select the text to copy it

Please prepare a note to take to my next conversation with my trainer.
Goal: I want to keep up aerobic exercise while working toward better VO₂Max.
Current exercise: [type, frequency and duration]
When I can attend: [days and available time]
What I want to discuss: [for example, combining strength and aerobic exercise, or activity on non-gym days]

Do not fill in information I have not provided. Briefly summarise my situation and write three questions for my trainer. Leave specific exercise intensities and amounts of progression as questions to discuss, rather than deciding them.

After reading the response: Edit the AI-generated note yourself before taking it along. Share health conditions, medication and other information needed for exercise decisions directly with your doctor or the professional supporting you.

These are sample texts for use with external AI services. This page has no feature that sends records to AI. Even with instructions, AI may not follow them correctly, so check its responses before using them.

Review VO₂Max separately from what you actually did

Smartwatch VO₂Max is an estimate. A review of device validation studies also reports that individual estimates retain error. Small rises or falls alone cannot establish whether an exercise routine worked. See estimation accuracy and limitations

Visual guide

Review these two records side by side

Your activity record

  • Activities completed, frequency and duration
  • Perceived effort and next-day tiredness
  • Situations that helped and reasons for missed sessions

Use it to plan your next opportunity

Your VO₂Max record

  • Date, value and unit
  • Device model and activity used for the estimate
  • Conditions such as how you felt, heat and hills

Compare the same method under similar conditions

Examples of what to record. Even when asking AI to make a table or graph, retain dates and the distinction between measured and estimated values. Do not fill missing days with invented values.

One option is to review your activity records at a regular time, such as the weekend. This is an opportunity to reflect on your habits, not a suggestion to judge VO₂Max improvement within one week.

If your value falls or stays the same, do not increase exercise volume for that reason alone. Check measurement conditions and changes in how you feel too. Even if a value is not yet available, you can review the exercise you actually did.

An example of reflection

Use a missed session to plan the next one

  1. Record the facts

    I missed my planned after-work walk on a day when I worked overtime.

  2. Use AI to organise options

    Consider a different time of day or rescheduling to a day off.

  3. Choose one option yourself

    Set aside a time when you can walk comfortably. Do not try to make up all the missed exercise at once.

  4. Next time, check what you actually did

    Review whether the schedule fitted your life. Reduce the amount or rest if tiredness persists.

The following is a fictional everyday example. It is not an actual AI response or an exercise programme tested for effectiveness.

Can we say that using AI increases VO₂Max?

Evidence for regular aerobic exercise and evidence for AI support need to be considered separately. This article’s prompts are suggestions for fitting exercise into daily life. They do not predict how much using any particular AI might increase VO₂Max.

Research has explored support for planning

In the 2025 GPTCoach study, 16 US adults aged 21–71 interacted with a purpose-built generative AI system using three months of their historical health records. Participants rated the advice favourably for fitting their circumstances and being actionable.

However, this was an evaluation in one session under researcher supervision. Long-term exercise adherence and improvement in VO₂Max were not evaluated. General-purpose generative AI may not provide the same functions or effects. Original GPTCoach paper (sections 5–7)

Take care with health decisions and the information you enter

WHO highlights risks from inaccurate answers, overreliance and personal information when generative AI is used in health. This article recommends the following practices. WHO’s official explanation (2024)

  • Put your health first. If you have a medical condition or take medication, consult your doctor before starting exercise. If you experience chest pain, severe breathlessness or dizziness, stop exercising and seek medical advice rather than continuing a conversation with AI. Checks before starting and on the day
  • Do not delegate target heart rates or medication decisions to AI. General heart-rate guides do not apply to people taking medication that lowers heart rate. Check with your doctor or the professional supporting you rather than using AI-generated numbers as they are.
  • Use only the information needed. Screenshots may contain names or location information. Write only the relevant details in a way that makes you harder to identify, and check the AI service’s settings and terms for storage, use in training and sharing.

Your next step

Choose one opportunity to move next

First, check how to start in a way that suits you and choose exercise you can manage comfortably. Then use a prompt to make the time and place specific.

Find a suitable way to start exercising

Ready to act? Make one plan for this week →

Sources

  1. Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare: Physical Activity and Exercise Guide for Health Promotion 2023, INFORMATION 6, Cardiorespiratory fitness (peak oxygen uptake). (in Japanese; title translated) https://www.mhlw.go.jp/content/001195874.pdf
  2. Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare: Physical Activity and Exercise Guide for Health Promotion 2023, INFORMATION 4, Points for safe physical activity and exercise. (in Japanese; title translated) https://www.mhlw.go.jp/content/001195872.pdf
  3. Molina-Garcia P, et al. Validity of Estimating the Maximal Oxygen Consumption by Consumer Wearables: A Systematic Review with Meta-analysis and Expert Statement of the INTERLIVE Network. Sports Med. 2022;52:1577-1597. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-021-01639-y
  4. Jörke M, Sapkota S, Warkenthien L, et al. GPTCoach: Towards LLM-Based Physical Activity Coaching. CHI 2025. doi:10.1145/3706598.3713819. https://arxiv.org/html/2405.06061v2
  5. World Health Organization. WHO releases AI ethics and governance guidance for large multi-modal models. 18 January 2024. https://www.who.int/news/item/18-01-2024-who-releases-ai-ethics-and-governance-guidance-for-large-multi-modal-models

No specialist review; sources providedContent last checked: Editorial policy