UK’s greatest marathon sees Brits flip to ChatGPT for health teaching

With the UK’s biggest marathon approaching, new data shows ChatGPT fitness coaching prompts rose 18% as Brits battle the toughest point in the training calendar

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With Britain’s largest marathon merely two months away, the country is approaching what one expert describes as the most challenging period in the fitness calendar. While training regimens ramp up, lengthy runs reach their peak, and broader fitness ambitions see New Year enthusiasm start to wane as diaries become packed . . . artificial intelligence is taking centre stage.

Alice Rickard, a certified personal trainer, states: “March is the point where motivation is truly tested. The shininess of new trainers and the ‘new year, new me’ buzz has faded, the days are getting lighter, and social plans start filling up – and suddenly routines feel harder to stick to.

“For marathon runners, those long, physically demanding runs can feel mentally daunting and easy to postpone, whilst for others it’s the time when gym sessions or workouts begin to slip down the priority list. The real challenge isn’t missing one session; it’s how we respond when life gets in the way.”

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As this crucial moment for motivation arrives, fresh data from OpenAI shows a change in how Britons are attempting to remain focused. During the opening three weeks of February, ChatGPT prompts centred specifically on coaching and goal-setting increased by 18% – indicating rising demand for accountability and guidance as early-year drive begins to falter.

And this transformation is occurring on a massive scale. Over 40 million individuals across the globe turn to ChatGPT daily for health and wellness enquiries, with more than 5% of all worldwide messages centred on these subjects.

One in four of ChatGPT’s global weekly active users poses at least one health or wellbeing-related query each week – covering fitness, exercise, nutrition, mindset and recovery. 2.

Recent research3 from OpenAI examining what’s fuelling this transformation revealed that conventional fitness solutions are coming up short, with more than a third (37%) stating most fitness apps and programmes feel overly generic and lack personalisation. Meanwhile, one in three (33%) cite motivation as their greatest obstacle, whilst 30% battle to maintain consistency alongside work and family responsibilities.

Economic pressures are also playing a part, with nearly half (46%) saying escalating gym and class fees are holding them back.

Rickard, who integrates ChatGPT into both her own fitness regime and client programmes, adds: “When life gets busy or drive starts to dip, small disruptions can quickly spiral into a stop-start cycle – especially for anyone prone to all-or-nothing thinking. The secret to real progress isn’t intensity, it’s consistency, and that means having the flexibility to adapt rather than restart from scratch.

“This is where tools like ChatGPT are proving invaluable. It provides quick, personalised support – whether that’s reshaping a marathon week around fatigue, designing a quick home workout when the gym isn’t an option, or mapping out a meal plan that fits a hectic schedule.

“It helps turn often unavoidable ‘setbacks’into practical solutions rather than reasons to quit. You can, for example, ask it to swap a missed gym session for a 15-minute living room circuit, or whip up a healthy meal using ingredients you already have – small, doable actions that keep you moving forward.

“I use ChatGPT to support my own fitness journey, and I now encourage hundreds of clients to do the same. It’s not about replacing professional coaching – it’s about adding a flexible, always-available layer of personalised support to help people stay consistent.”

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