Question 1

How do I connect my AI?

Accepted Answer

You don't need to pay for an AI. PB-Runner works with Claude's free plan: create a free account, install the Claude desktop app and add the PB-Runner connector, and your AI can read your training history and write your next session. On the Connect your AI screen, link your AI, then just ask — for example, “Build me a 5×1km interval session for Thursday and put it on my watch.”

It also works with paid Claude plans, and with ChatGPT on Plus and above (not the Free or Go plans). The Claude connector must be added in the Claude desktop app — adding it from the browser or mobile apps doesn't work; on ChatGPT you add it with Developer mode in ChatGPT's settings on the web, and some ChatGPT plans limit connectors to reading your data. The full step-by-step walkthrough, from creating a free Claude account to your first training plan, is at pb-runner.com/guide.

Connecting is tied to your account, not your device, so it works the same wherever you sign in. On iPhone the Connect your AI screen is reachable from Home, the Training Hub and Custom Runs; on Android you'll find it from the app's main screens.

Question 2

Can I create custom workouts with AI?

Accepted Answer

Yes. On the Connect your AI screen, link your AI, then just ask — for example, “Build me a 5×1km interval session for Thursday and put it on my watch.” Your AI creates the session and it appears on your watch and phone, ready to run with live guidance and cues.

You don't need to pay for an AI — it works with Claude's free plan and with paid Claude plans; you add the connector in the Claude desktop app (adding it from the browser or mobile apps doesn't work). It also works with ChatGPT on Plus and above, added with Developer mode in ChatGPT's settings on the web; some ChatGPT plans limit connectors to reading your data.

Question 3

How do guided runs work, and what cues do I get?

Accepted Answer

A scheduled or AI-authored session — or one you build yourself in Custom Runs, the local interval builder — plays as a guided run: the app advances each rep and fires cues at splits, segment boundaries and off-target pace. You can choose the split-cue style (off, beep or spoken), turn pace alerts on, and mute mid-run. Spoken cues work in English and French, and after a guided interval run you get a rep-by-rep breakdown.

On iPhone the session plays on the Apple Watch — leave the phone behind if you like — and spoken cues work on both the phone and the watch; defaults are haptics on and sound off. On Android the guided run plays on the phone with spoken and beep cues, and the full guided guide and the split alerts on a normal run are toggles you set once, so they persist across runs.

Question 4

How do training plans work?

Accepted Answer

Training plans are authored by your connected AI today — you ask it to plan, and it proposes and commits scheduled sessions (there's no manual in-app plan builder yet). Your sessions show in the Training Hub's Schedule, and a completed run is matched automatically against the planned session, so your adherence and progress reflect what you actually ran.

On iPhone the Schedule is in Training Hub → Schedule, with a week bar and a past-weeks consistency history. On Android the Schedule is in the Training Hub too, showing the week's sessions and your consistency.

Question 5

I scheduled a run but it isn't ready to play

Accepted Answer

A scheduled session has to reach the device you'll play it on before you can start it.

On iPhone, to play a session on your Apple Watch, open the iPhone app with your watch nearby before the run — the day's session syncs from the phone to the watch over that connection. If the phone hasn't been opened near the watch since the plan was set, the watch won't have the session yet; open the phone app, give it a moment, then it's ready on the wrist.

On Android there's no watch — a scheduled session plays on the phone, so open the app and today's session is there, ready to run.

Question 6

How do I join a race and get my results?

Accepted Answer

You can join a race from the app — pick a listed race from the race picker, or type a race code or name into the join field (an exact code matches first, then a name search). Joining features the race on your Home screen, where its schedule, course and information pages stay up to date. Race-day alerts arrive as push notifications, so it's worth allowing those. When the organiser publishes results, your finish is delivered back to you in the app.

On iPhone you're offered the race picker at first launch and can add more later from Races → Add another race. On Android you join the same way from the Races area; on aggressive OEM skins, allow the app's background delivery so alerts arrive (see notifications).

Question 7

I'm not getting race or push notifications

Accepted Answer

Push notifications are set up when you first launch the app, after joining a race — allow notifications when prompted.

On iPhone, allow notifications when asked, or turn them on later in Settings → PB-Runner → Notifications. On Android, allow notifications when prompted; on aggressive OEM skins — for example Xiaomi's HyperOS/MIUI, such as Redmi phones — background delivery also needs the app's Autostart turned on and its battery usage set to unrestricted, otherwise the system stops the background service and pushes don't arrive. Both are in the system app settings for PB-Runner.

Question 8

How do I log how a run felt?

Accepted Answer

After a run you can record how it felt — your effort, how tired you were afterwards, and how much you had in reserve — on the How it felt card. It's stored with the run and available to your connected AI, so coaching can weigh how the run actually felt, not just the numbers. It's especially useful on a phone-only run with no heart rate, where perceived effort stands in for heart rate. You can add or change it anytime, on iPhone or Android.

Question 9

Is my data mine? Can I get it out?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Your runs are yours. PB-Runner is built to be the connection between your training data and your own tools, not a place that locks your data in. Connecting your own AI gives it direct read access to your full training history, and a one-file export of everything PB-Runner holds for you is planned.

Question 10

Do I need a subscription?

Accepted Answer

Not right now. PB-Runner is free while we launch — recording on Apple Watch and iPhone, sync across your devices, your full history and the dashboard are all included. Connecting your own AI is free for now too, and may become a paid option later; your recording and history stay free.

Question 11

Which of my runs sync to PB-Runner?

Accepted Answer

PB-Runner reads your runs from Apple Health, so a run has to be in Apple Health first. Any running workout there — from PB-Runner, an Apple Watch, Garmin, Strava or another app — can sync.

New runs arrive automatically once you're signed in. To bring in your older runs from other apps, use the Sync Runs screen — import everything in one go, or pick runs one by one. Runs that were recorded on an Apple Watch — in any app — usually come across close to complete.

Question 12

What do I get from an Apple Watch run?

Accepted Answer

Everything, at full resolution: your GPS route and map, heart rate second by second, pace, distance and elevation, plus cadence, stride length, ground contact time, vertical oscillation and running power. Guided intervals come with a rep-by-rep breakdown afterwards.

This is the richest data PB-Runner can hold. Older Apple Watches simply leave out the metrics they don't support — nothing breaks, you just see fewer fields.

Question 13

Can I record on my iPhone without a watch?

Accepted Answer

Yes. PB-Runner records on the iPhone alone and keeps going with the phone in your pocket — you get your route, distance, pace and elevation, plus your cadence and stride length, worked out from the phone's motion sensors.

What the phone can't measure on its own is your body. Heart rate and the deeper running-form metrics — running power, ground contact time, vertical oscillation — come from sensors on a worn Apple Watch. Wear your watch while recording on the phone and those fill in too.

Question 14

Can I record treadmill runs?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Choose Treadmill when you start a run on your Apple Watch or iPhone. Without GPS, distance comes from your motion, so when you finish we ask what the treadmill said and you can set the run to the belt's number: pace and splits update to match. You can also adjust the distance later from the run's detail screen. Corrected runs count toward your volume, consistency and schedule, but they don't set personal bests or move Race Fitness; that keeps your records honest.

Question 15

Can my AI log a run I didn't record?

Accepted Answer

Yes. If you ran without recording, say on a gym treadmill, tell your connected AI something like “log my treadmill run, 8k in 42 minutes”. It confirms the details with you, then the run lands in your history and counts toward your volume and schedule. Manually logged runs don't set personal bests or move Race Fitness.

Question 16

Why do my Garmin runs look thinner?

Accepted Answer

It comes down to what Garmin shares with Apple Health, not anything PB-Runner does. Garmin passes across the basics — distance, duration, pace, calories and usually a coarse heart-rate summary (a handful of readings, not the second-by-second trace) — but not your GPS route, your cadence or the running-form metrics. So a Garmin run has no map and a coarser heart rate than an Apple Watch run.

Full Garmin and Strava integrations are planned: a direct connection would bring the full detail across, routes and all, rather than relying on what Garmin hands to Apple Health. Until then your distance, pace and heart-rate trends all come through, so your training history stays useful.

Question 17

What about Strava?

Accepted Answer

Strava works both ways. You can share any PB-Runner run to Strava with one tap, so you keep your feed, your friends and your kudos — there's no need to switch.

Coming the other way, we never read from Strava directly. A run you recorded in Strava reaches PB-Runner once Strava writes it to Apple Health — and what it carries depends on where it was recorded. Strava runs recorded on an Apple Watch usually arrive close to complete, route, heart rate and form metrics included. Strava runs from a Garmin or another device carry whatever that device shared.

Question 18

I use Nike Run Club, Runna or another app — does it sync?

Accepted Answer

The same rule applies to every app: if it writes your run to Apple Health, PB-Runner can read it, carrying whatever that app chose to share. What arrives depends mostly on where the run was recorded. Apps that record on an Apple Watch usually write the full detail to Apple Health — route, heart rate and form metrics — so that history imports rich. Runs from non-Apple devices like Garmin carry the basics only. Recording with PB-Runner on an Apple Watch remains the surest way to get everything, per-rep guided detail included.

Question 19

Why didn't my run show up?

Accepted Answer

A few things worth checking, in order:

Permissions — PB-Runner needs permission to read your workouts from Apple Health. Open the Health app, tap your profile picture, then Privacy → Apps and Services → PB-Runner, and make sure the running and workout categories are turned on.

It hasn't reached Apple Health yet — if the run came from Garmin, Strava or another app, open that app and let it sync first, then check again.

It's an older run — runs recorded before you joined PB-Runner don't sync by themselves; bring them in from the import screen.

A new run needs a moment — give Apple Health and the sync a short while to catch up.

Question 20

My older Garmin or Strava runs aren't showing up to import

Accepted Answer

PB-Runner can only see runs that made it into Apple Health, so the fix is almost always on the source app's side.

First, check the source app is allowed to write to Apple Health: open the Health app, tap your profile picture, then Privacy → Apps and Services → the app in question, and make sure the workout categories are turned on. Garmin Connect and Strava also each have their own Apple Health toggle inside their settings — check that too.

Then check what's actually arrived: in the Health app, go to Browse → Activity → Workouts and look for the runs. If they're there, they'll appear on PB-Runner's Sync Runs screen. If they're not, the source app hasn't written them yet — most apps only write new runs from the day the permission is switched on, so older history may never arrive from their side.

Question 21

My watch run has no map or no heart rate

Accepted Answer

Two usual causes. If location permission wasn't granted, the run records with no GPS route and no map — re-check that PB-Runner has location access and that Screen Time isn't blocking changes to Location Services. And indoor or treadmill runs have no GPS by nature; you still get time, pace, heart rate and, on a worn Apple Watch, your form metrics.

Question 22

What permissions does PB-Runner need, and why?

Accepted Answer

Apple Health, to read your runs — this is the essential one; without it there's nothing to show. Location, so the watch and phone can record your route during a run; 'While Using the App' is enough. Motion & Fitness, which supports the on-device metrics while recording.

You can change any of these later — Health permissions live in the Health app under Privacy → Apps and Services; Location and Motion live in iOS Settings under PB-Runner.

Question 23

What is the PB-Runner Android app?

Accepted Answer

PB-Runner on Android is a phone app: it records your runs with your phone's GPS, capturing your route, distance, pace and elevation, plus your cadence and stride length worked out from the phone's motion sensors.

Heart rate and the deeper running-form metrics come from a sensor worn on the body, which a phone in your pocket doesn't have, so phone-only runs don't include them. Android doesn't use Apple Health — there's nothing like it on the platform. Your runs record in the app and sync straight to your PB-Runner account, where your dashboard, history and any AI you connect can use them.

Question 24

Can I log a treadmill run on Android?

Accepted Answer

The Android app doesn't record treadmill runs yet. You can log one through your AI instead: connect your AI, then tell it something like “log my treadmill run, 8k in 42 minutes”. It confirms the details with you, then the run lands in your history and counts toward your volume and schedule. Manually logged runs don't set personal bests.

Question 25

How do I sign in on Android?

Accepted Answer

Tap Continue with Google on the sign-in screen and choose your Google account. That's the sign-in on Android. It's the same PB-Runner account you'd reach any other way, so your history, schedule and coaching all follow you in.

Question 26

On Android, my runs stop recording in the background, or I'm missing notifications

Accepted Answer

Some Android phones are aggressive about shutting background apps down to save battery, which can pause a run while the screen is off or hold back notifications. If that happens, allow PB-Runner to run freely.

On most phones that means two settings: turn on Autostart for PB-Runner, and set its battery use to Unrestricted. On Xiaomi and HyperOS phones, for example, that's Autostart switched on plus battery saver set to No restrictions for PB-Runner. Other makers — Samsung, Oppo and the rest — have their own version of the same two switches, usually under the app's battery or background settings.

Question 27

I use PB-Runner on Android and iPhone — does everything stay in sync?

Accepted Answer

Yes. It's one account, so your history, schedule, coaching and races live with your account rather than on any single device. Sign in with the same account on Android and on iPhone and everything stays in step — a run you record on one shows up on the other, and a plan your AI writes reaches whichever device you're carrying.

The difference between devices is what each run can capture, not where your data lives.

Question 28

Why do my Android runs show fewer metrics than my Apple Watch runs?

Accepted Answer

It comes down to the sensors on the device that recorded the run, not anything PB-Runner leaves out. A phone records your route, distance, pace and elevation, plus cadence and stride length from its motion sensors. The deeper detail — heart rate, running power, ground contact time, vertical oscillation — comes from sensors worn on the body, which a phone can't provide on its own.

So an Android phone run carries the essentials your training load and progression are built on, and an Apple Watch run adds the body and form metrics on top. Both sync to the same account and sit side by side in your history.

Question 29

What permissions does the Android app need?

Accepted Answer

On Android, PB-Runner asks for Location, so the app can record your route during a run; Notifications, so you get race alerts; and physical-activity access for the on-device metrics. You can change these in the system settings under PB-Runner. For background recording and push on aggressive OEM skins, see the background-recording and notifications notes above.

Question 30

My run didn't show up on Android

Accepted Answer

On Android, a recorded run syncs to your account directly — there's no Apple Health step. Make sure you're signed in and online, then give it a moment. If it still hasn't appeared, reopen the app so it can finish syncing.

Question 31

How do I delete my account on Android?

Accepted Answer

Open the Profile tab and tap Delete Account, then confirm. This permanently removes your account and everything PB-Runner holds for you — there's no undo, so only do it when you're sure. Runs stored in any other app you use aren't affected.

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