Comparison
Aldo Coach vs Strong
Strong, the workout tracker, is a fast log: you plan your own training and record every set. Aldo Coach logs the same way, then adds a coach. Claude writes your program, reads every set and adjusts your plan as you train.
The short version
| Aldo Coach | Strong | |
|---|---|---|
| Who writes the program | Claude writes a program week by week around your goal and your calendar. | You do. Build your own workout templates, or start from the few included in the app. |
| During the workout | Rest timer starts on its own, also on your lock screen, Dynamic Island and Watch. Log reps left (RIR) or RPE. Last session's numbers sit on every set. After each set, the coach can change the sets still to come and says why. | Rest timer starts on its own. Log weight, reps and RPE. You plan the next set yourself. |
| Warm-ups, supersets, circuits | The coach writes your warm-up for the day. Supersets, circuits, and AMRAPs and EMOMs with a clock. | Tag warm-up, drop and failure sets. Supersets and circuits. |
| Progress and PRs | Estimated max, automatic PRs and charts, all included free right now. | One-rep-max estimates and records. Charts come with Strong PRO. |
| Price | Free right now. Paid tiers later. | Free version: unlimited workouts, up to 3 custom routines. Strong PRO: $4.99 a month or $29.99 a year. |
| Phones | iPhone app. Any phone's browser. | iPhone and Android apps. |
| Apple Watch | Yes. Log sets, rest timer, coach messages. | Yes, with or without your iPhone. |
| Apple Health | Yes. Reads sleep, bodyweight, HRV and heart rate. Saves your workouts. | Yes. Shares workouts, bodyweight and nutrition data. |
| Bringing past training | Import Strong's CSV export directly. Also spreadsheets, PDFs and photos. | Imports workouts from Apple Health. Its own CSV export can't be imported back into Strong. |
| Export | CSV of every set, plus a full backup. | CSV. |
| Languages | English | English and 10 more |
| Track record | Launched September 2026, built by one lifter. | 4.9 stars from 109,000 ratings. |
Strong details checked on October 26, 2026 from Strong's website, its help center and its US App Store listing. Apps change, so check Strong's App Store page for current prices.
Logger or coach?
Strong: a fast, simple log
Strong calls itself "the simplest, most intuitive workout tracking experience," and its help center promises "no ads, ever." You start an empty workout or one of your templates, pick from over 200 built-in exercises (or create your own), and tick off each set's weight and reps. A rest timer starts on its own after each set.
It covers the details lifters care about: warm-up, drop and failure set tags, supersets, RPE, one-rep-max estimates, body measurements and a full Apple Watch app. Charts, the plate calculator and the warm-up calculator come with Strong PRO. Its listing says it's "optimized for a progressive barbell routine such as Starting Strength or StrongLifts 5x5," and adapts to any routine you choose. Deciding what to lift and when to add weight is up to you.
Aldo Coach: the same log, with a coach on every set
The logging basics are all there. A rest timer starts on its own when you log a set, and it shows on your lock screen, the Dynamic Island and your Apple Watch. You log reps in reserve (RIR) by default, or RPE. Last session's numbers sit on every set. Supersets and circuits are built in. Estimated max, PRs and charts are included, with nothing paywalled right now. You can export every set as a CSV, or a full backup.
The difference is who plans. Aldo Coach writes a full program toward your goal, week by week, around your real schedule. In the session, you log each set and the coach sets your next weight and writes why, right under the set. Finish a top set easier than planned and the back-off sets go up, one tap to accept or keep them.
What Aldo Coach adds to a workout log
It reads your readiness for you. Before it builds a session, the coach checks days since your last workout, how your last session felt, how much you trained this week, how recently each muscle was worked and any active injuries. With Apple Health connected, it also sees your sleep, HRV and resting heart rate against your own 4-week norm. No questionnaire. Feeling beat up? Just tell it.
It changes the rest of the session as you go. After each set, the coach can change the weight or reps of the sets left, skip or add a set, or change your rest.
It checks every workout. Rate the session 1 to 5 and add a note. The coach says "No change needed" or suggests a program change. You review it or skip it.
It reviews your week. Trends, and recommendations for next week, plus a 12-week estimated-max trend.
It writes your warm-ups and plans your deloads. A warm-up and mobility work for that day's session, built around your injuries and limits. It checks for a deload after each session, and you can ask for a deload week any time.
The coach takes action. Tell it to swap a lift mid-workout, or that you're away next week, and it changes your session or your plan itself. You tap to accept. You can type or just talk to it.
It syncs your calendar. Connect Apple Calendar or Google Calendar and a work trip, a late shift or a busy week becomes part of the plan instead of the reason you fell off it.
It remembers. Your injuries, your PRs on every exercise, and the lifts you like and don't. Tell it about a limitation once and it plans around it.
It reads the program you already have. Turn a photo, PDF or spreadsheet into a program or a workout, or into your past workout history.
It's tailored to any goal. Powerlifting, bodybuilding, CrossFit, or staying healthy. Conditioning is part of the plan too: EMOMs, AMRAPs and circuits run on their own timer.
I'm a powerlifter. Coming back after my first meet, I had nobody at the gym to ask "do I add weight today?" I used ChatGPT and then Claude as my coach, but my sets lived in a separate workout app.
I spent my time copying training from one to the other. So I built one app that is both: the log and the coach.
Which one fits you
Pick Strong if
- You write your own program and want the simplest possible log.
- You want a plate calculator and a warm-up calculator.
- You like saving your own routine templates.
- You want built-in exercise videos or a body measurements log.
- You want a native Android app.
- You want the app in a language other than English.
- You want an app with years of reviews behind it.
Pick Aldo Coach if
- You want the program written for you, and changed as you train.
- You want a coach that reads every set and tells you why.
- Your week changes: shifts, travel, kids, a busy stretch at work.
- You're working around an injury.
- You want PRs and charts included, at no cost right now.
The limits: Aldo Coach doesn't track food. It's in English only. The App Store app covers the US, Canada, the UK, the EU, Iceland and Norway; anywhere else, it runs in your browser.
Weighing other apps? Read Aldo Coach vs Fitbod, or what an AI workout coach app should actually do.
Questions
Is Aldo Coach a good Strong app alternative?
Yes, if you want the app to write your program and adjust it set by set. It logs what a tracker does (rest timer, RIR or RPE, supersets, PRs and charts) and imports your Strong history. If you want plate and warm-up calculators, an Android app, or an app in a language other than English, Strong suits you better.
Does the Strong app have an AI coach?
Strong's website and App Store listing describe a workout tracker: you build your own templates and log your sets, with charts, a rest timer and plate and warm-up calculators. Neither describes an AI coach or programs written for you (checked October 26, 2026).
Is the Strong app free?
Strong has a free version that saves unlimited workouts but is limited to 3 custom routines. Strong PRO costs $4.99 a month or $29.99 a year in the US, per its App Store listing, and adds unlimited templates, all charts, and the plate and warm-up calculators.
Can I bring my Strong history to Aldo Coach?
Yes. In Strong, export your data as a CSV (Settings, then Export Strong Data on iPhone). Then import that file in Aldo Coach. Aldo Coach reads Strong's export layout, so your past sets land in your workout history.
Is Aldo Coach free?
Yes, right now, with nothing for sale in the app. Every set you log goes to Claude, which costs money per user, so paid tiers will come later.
What AI does Aldo Coach use?
The coach is Claude, made by Anthropic. Claude Opus writes your program and Claude Sonnet coaches you set by set.
Keep the log. Add the coach.
Your program, your log and your coach in one app.