Mr Z

Why General AI Chatbots Give Generic Workout Plans

Francesco Zen, founder of ZTraining · Last updated 19 June 2026

The questions that never get asked

Working with a client, the questions that shape a session aren't about sets and reps. They're about the person. Do you feel confident when you train? Does a loaded squat bar make you nervous? How did you wake up: energised, or already running on empty? Every one of those answers changes what the session should actually look like, and none of them show up in a one-line prompt.

What those answers actually change

People who feel overwhelmed tend to do better with machines: they let someone express effort without the added demand of stabilising a free-weight movement.
People with more drive and energy respond better to compound movements, which channel that intensity productively.
Compound lifts consume more glucose. For someone travelling or skipping a meal, that's a real variable: pushing a heavy compound session on low fuel makes things worse, not better.

A generic plan can produce a good result or a bad one. That's exactly what makes it generic. The outcome depends on whether the inputs happened to match the person, which is closer to chance than to design.

What changes the outcome

This is the gap Mr Z is built to close.

He built Mr Z, an AI coach trained on his methodology to bring the same approach to a wider audience.