Virtual Coaches and AI

Written by Menswear Style
in
Health & Fitness

on the

27th January 2025

Sports training is rapidly evolving, and with artificial intelligence (AI) having a bigger influence in the modern world, it was only a matter of time before virtual coaching would start to benefit. Setting a new benchmark for personalised athlete development, being able to develop tailored training routines that adapt to an athlete’s needs is what AI can offer, improving performance through precision and efficiency.
So, as traditional coaching methods blend with the latest technology, athletes from amateur to elite levels can enjoy unprecedented support when training. Below, we’ll take a look at how it helps and what the future may hold.

The Evolution of Virtual Coaching 

For a long time, coaching relied on subjective assessments and generalised training that applied broad techniques across all athletes rather than being personalised. However, as technology advanced, so did the approach to training.
The introduction of video analysis tools marked a significant step forward, allowing coaches to scrutinise performance with greater accuracy. This developed further with wearable technology providing real-time data, offering insights into an athlete’s physiological and biomechanical metrics. This set the stage for AI, which today analyses vast amounts of data from these wearables to provide accurate training adjustments tailored to individual needs. This evolution represents a significant shift towards more scientific, precise, and personalised training strategies in sports.

How AI Enhances Training 

By using data to tailor training to individual needs, AI can help process inputs from various sources, be it wearables, video analysis, and performance metrics, to identify patterns and areas for improvement. For instance, AI can analyse an athlete’s movement during training to detect inefficiencies or potential injury risks, offering corrective advice in real time. It also simulates different training scenarios to predict outcomes, helping coaches make informed decisions about the intensity and focus of workouts.
The key part here is the data collection, however, as AI needs this to be able to help analyse and find patterns. This means the technology behind how data is gathered from athletes is constantly changing. We’ve mentioned wearables, but there are also other innovations that coaches can use.
Companies such as Feldspar have developed a best-in-class sensor-enabled performance running track that gathers data while an athlete is running on it. This means that without the need for wearing any additional sensors, the track itself can provide real-time insights into performance and technique. AI helps to further interpret this data and quickly find patterns to provide recommendations that coaches can use for feedback.
The continuous adaptation of training plans based on an athlete’s progress and feedback ensures optimal performance. This level of customisation was unattainable just a few years ago when using only traditional coaching methods, so adjustments were slower and often based on less precise information. By providing detailed, actionable insights, current tech empowers coaches and athletes to achieve peak performance with greater efficiency.

What Are The Benefits of Virtual Coaches? 

Virtual coaches, powered by AI, offer several advantages that revolutionise traditional training methods. 

– They provide unparalleled accessibility so that athletes can receive expert coaching and training from virtually anywhere at any time. This is especially beneficial for those in remote areas. 

– Virtual coaching systems are designed to deliver highly personalised training plans. AI analyses each athlete’s performance data to tailor exercises and routines specifically to their physical capabilities and goals, ensuring more effective outcomes. 

– They are cost-effective, reducing the need to have a coach physically present at every session, which can be financially demanding. 

– They can handle vast amounts of data and serve multiple athletes simultaneously, making them scalable solutions that can support teams or individual athletes equally. 

These benefits collectively enhance the training experience for athletes, making it more effective, personalised, and accessible. As it is a significant leap forward in a short space of time, it does raise questions about how its use can provide an advantage to those who can afford to use it, as well as what happens to traditional coaching roles.
For now, at least, virtual coaches are a useful tool for coaches and athletes to have, and as the technology advances, the hope is that the costs will fall to allow for much wider adoption, helping to level the playing field and provide much fairer competition amongst athletes at all levels.