Career Development and Wellness

As lawyers figure out how to responsibly, ethically, and effectively integrate AI into their legal practices, a good place to start might be where lawyers generally struggle the most—their health and well-being. Most personal trainers, nutritionists, and other health gurus are fastidious about tracking and analyzing their clients’ eating and workout habits, making incremental adjustments, and tracking and evaluating their results. An iterative data tracking and analysis process is the perfect task for AI. Many fitness professionals are already using AI in their coaching and training. This article explores how lawyers may use this incredible new(ish) technology to hack their time, health, and well-being.

Fitness

AI is being integrated into the fitness world in every way imaginable. Apps that used to be limited to tracking your stats now use AI to provide real-time feedback, training, and performance improvements. These are great for those already committed cyclists, swimmers, runners, or other athletes, but they have become equally valuable for beginners or those training for a specific event. And, just like the law, these tools don’t necessarily replace a qualified coach or a trainer but can be used to improve the results efficiently.

For example, apps like Fitbod and Vi Trainer use AI to create training plans based on your fitness level, available equipment, and muscle recovery and can provide real-time coaching. These apps can track your progress and adapt each workout, making it an efficient solution for targeting training without spending time on planning. For swimming, MySwimPro creates AI-guided workouts to improve endurance and technique tailored to your skill level and personal goals. If you are still deciding whether to jump into a specific fitness tool, an AI chatbot can help plan a fitness routine. Try the following prompt to see how it works for you:

Create a workout schedule for the next 8 weeks, prioritizing at least 4 days per week of strength training, one day a week of Zone 2 cardio, one day a week of Zone 4 interval training with one day of rest, and one or two fun fitness activities like biking or paddle boarding. Please make sure I get at least 150 minutes of cardio each week.

This prompt provided a solid workout schedule that someone with prior fitness knowledge and a significant comfort level in a traditional gym could follow. With a few modifications to the prompt, the workout schedule can be even more personalized. Regardless of which tool or app is used, AI is changing the game in fitness.

Nutrition

Macro counting, calorie counting, meal planning, recipe modification—it’s all possible and super-efficient using AI. There are numerous tools specific to nutrition that use AI to optimize and personalize results. From MyFitnessPal to LifeSum, personalized nutrition tracking and programming options are plentiful. And, just like fitness, a simple chatbot query yields pretty good results. For inspiration, try something like this:

Please prepare a meal plan for the week for [number of people] with a total number of calories per person of approximately [number of calories]. We follow a [type of diet or dietary restrictions] diet. Please include recipes and a shopping list for the week. We plan to eat out on Wednesday night and need lunches only on Tuesday through Thursday.

Mindfulness, Sleep, and Stress Management

AI can track, make suggestions, and analyze behavior to help improve rest and improve mental clarity. Certain apps, like Wysa’s AI-driven mental wellness platform, provide personalized support through customizable cognitive behavioral therapy based exercises, stress management tools, and guided check-ins. Apps like Headspace and Calm use AI to provide personalized mindfulness sessions, breathing exercises, and meditation programs. These apps can track stress levels and recommend specific exercises or meditation routines to help attorneys manage stress and improve focus. Regular use of these tools has been shown to reduce anxiety and enhance overall well-being.

AI-powered sleep trackers, such as Sleep Cycle, analyze sleep patterns and provide recommendations for improving sleep quality. They offer insights into sleep habits and suggest adjustments to create a healthier sleep routine, ensuring busy lawyers can recharge and wake up refreshed.

Time Management and Administrative Tasks

One major impediment to health and well-being for many lawyers is time (or perhaps priorities). If this is true for you, then using AI to get some time back in your day may allow you to fit in activities you already enjoy. Some apps are perfect for busy lawyers, such as apps that help track time, organize email, and schedule meetings. If you aren’t ready for such in-depth AI integration, many other tasks can be offloaded to AI, which will still save time. For instance, some parents use AI chatbots to create their children’s sports or carpool schedules. AI chatbots are also good at formulas, writing snippets of code, marketing research, creating draft emails, and creating lists of ideas or market research.

The Ultimate Hack

To truly harness the power of AI, you can use a holistic app, like Gyroscope, that combines all of the above. For all who have read this far but still think they don’t have time or the motivation to cobble together their own personalized set of AI tools and life hacks, I suggest having AI create a plan for you. For example, using your AI chatbot tool of choice (ChatGPT or Claude, for example), type in one of the following prompts, filling in the bracketed area with your information:

Please prepare a list of suggestions for the use of AI resources or tools that will help with the health and wellness objectives for a [age] year-old lawyer who lives in [geographical location] with [health concerns] who prioritizes [goals]. Please include specific tools or programs that are free or low-cost and provide privacy of the data that is entered. Activities for fitness should include [favorite sport or activity] if specific tools are designed for this purpose. The suggestions should be formatted as a draft plan addressing many different areas of health and wellness that do not take more than [time] hours per [day/week].

Note: Being polite in AI interactions doesn’t hurt and alters the results favorably.

Closing Thoughts

AI is not just helpful to attorneys in handling legal tasks; it’s also a powerful tool for managing non-legal aspects of work and personal life. All of the ideas expressed in this article are intended to help readers understand how useful and powerful AI can be for health and wellness improvement. As with all technology, however, you should use these tools with caution to ensure your privacy and personal information is not put at risk or used in a manner you are uncomfortable with. The key to making the most of AI is to explore various tools, identify those that fit your needs, and integrate them into your daily routines. By leveraging AI’s capabilities, attorneys can build a more efficient, productive, and balanced lifestyle.