Full Tutorial: Build Your AI Coach to Improve Your Health and Fitness in 2026
A step-by-step guide to hiring a AI health coach that gives you personalized advice
Dear subscribers,
Today, I want to show you how to set up your own AI health and fitness coach.
A few months ago, I got a DEXA scan that was a wake-up call — I had 25%+ body fat and low muscle mass despite working out 3x a week.
I was clearly doing something wrong, so I decided to work with my friend Dan Go to get serious about my health. I also hired another coach that’s (you guessed it) AI.
If you don’t want to pay thousands for a professional coach, AI can give you surprisingly personalized health advice if you give it the right context.
So let’s cover how to:
Start with the fundamentals
Create a personal health plan
Set up your AI health coach
Example prompts to ask your coach
How to check-in regularly for advice
1. Start with the fundamentals
If you don’t know Dan Go, he’s a fellow middle-aged Asian dad who reaches millions of people and has helped thousands of founders and tech professionals get fit. Here’s his basic advice and how I’ve adjusted my lifestyle:
Sleep 7-8 hours. I’m trying harder not to bring my phone to the bedroom. If I’m being honest, I succeed maybe 50% of the time (Dan, don’t judge me!).
Get 0.8g protein per pound of bodyweight. I get my protein from salmon, mahi mahi, beef, and chicken that I eat on top of salads for dinner. I also drink a protein shake in the afternoon and have largely cut out alcohol, refined carbs (goodbye rice 🥲), and late-night snacking.
Walk 8-10k steps daily. I go on walks around the neighborhood between meetings and use AI to voice dictate my thoughts like a crazy person.
Lift weights 3-4x a week. I’m pushing myself harder and started focusing on my legs more (the biggest muscle group).
This stuff isn’t rocket science, but staying consistent is hard. If you can’t afford someone like Dan to keep you honest, here’s how to set up AI as the next best thing.
2. Create a personal health plan
Create a Google Doc called “Health” and add the following:
Status. Your current weight, body fat percentage, lean mass, and visceral fat. You can get this from a smart scale or a DEXA scan.
Goal with milestones. Set a specific target like “reach 20% body fat by March 1” and get AI to set monthly milestones based on your current status.
Life context. Your schedule, job demands, family situation, and constraints. I tell AI I work from home Mon/Fri, have two young kids, and don’t have much time.
Diet. Your daily protein target and typical meals. I split mine by home vs. office days since my eating patterns differ.
Exercise. Your workout split, exercises, sets, reps, and weights. Include both strength and cardio workouts.
Sleep. When you go to bed, wake up, and any sleep issues. Sleep is the foundation for everything else.
Challenges. Be honest about what you struggle with. For example, I had a terrible late night snacking habit.
In addition to your health plan, consider getting a:
DEXA scan. DEXA costs ~$80 and gives you an accurate body fat number. This might be your wake up call too — my DEXA body fat was 8% higher than my scale.
Blood work. Upload your annual blood test results. AI can interpret markers and flag areas of concern.
3. Set up your AI health project and prompt
Now let’s bring AI into the picture. Create an AI project called “Health” and attach your health plan document. For your convenience, I’ve included:
My health plan template that you can fill in and attach to the project.
My health coach prompt to get AI to give you objective, personal advice.
Here are the links: