Toby on Fitness Tech

Toby looks back on switching gyms, rebuilding his top game, cross-training, injuries, competition, and how aiming for purple belt helped him avoid the blue belt blues.

Website: https://tobyonfitnesstech.com

White belt is where you build the habits that either support everything that follows or make the later belts much harder. In the first episode of The BJJ Belt Journey, Toby covers the full three-year white-belt story: training volume, weight and strength work, learning defense from upper belts, choosing difficult training partners, managing ego, and what competition taught him.More from Toby on Fitness Tech: https://tobyonfitnesstech.comChapters0:00 Intro0:03 What to work on at white belt2:54 My white belt and five stripes5:08 Weight, strength, and training load8:29 Three years at white belt11:08 Avoiding the blue belt blues14:53 Build defense first16:25 Jiu-jitsu as an anchor19:45 Learning from upper belts22:19 Challenging yourself23:10 A competitive white-belt rival26:49 Choosing hard training partners28:27 Defense and learning to tap29:28 When to turn off strength29:50 Ego lesson34:57 Competition experience36:00 White-belt takeaway36:56 Thanks for watchingTagsBrazilian jiu-jitsu, BJJ, BJJ white belt, white belt tips, jiu-jitsu journey, martial arts, grappling, BJJ defense, BJJ competition, BJJ mindset, learning jiu-jitsu, Toby on Fitness Tech

Speediance quietly added Partner Custom Workouts in routine software update, may biggest improvement machine since I got it.I show where new Solo or Partner option appears, how add another logged-in user, why letting partner join custom AI-generated workouts matters. I also cover Pilates rollout cable-position guidance disappeared in same software update.No major announcement. No press release. Just major new feature, plus one frustrating interface change.Visit Toby on Fitness Tech: https://tobyonfitnesstech.comChapters0:00 Intro0:03 Speediance's surprise update0:33 Partner Custom Workouts here0:40 How Solo or Partner works1:02 Why major improvement1:23 AI-generated partner workouts1:47 Why should not be locked behind AI2:19 What same update took away2:29 Pilates system context3:53 Cable-position labeling changed5:25 problem user feedback6:13 Thanks watchingTagsSpeediance, Speediance Gym Monster, Speediance Gym Monster 2, Speediance update, Speediance partner workout, partner custom workout, Speediance Pilates, smart home gym, fitness technology, AI workout, connected fitness, home gym, strength training, Toby on Fitness Tech

Toby uses this unedited livestream to explain where AI agents feel right now: Fable is back, Claude Code still feels like the strongest harness in his workflow, model comparisons break down when people ignore the surrounding tools, and the real intelligence often comes from the harness, APIs, scripts, devices, and local systems wrapped around the model.The episode also covers open and local models, Hermes agents, Google Antigravity, Project Aria, Agent Stack Daily, training dashboards, heart meds, running, lifting, and why jiu-jitsu still matters even when it leaves you beat up.More from Toby: https://tobyonfitnesstech.com

Toby uses this unedited livestream to explain where AI agents feel right now: Fable is back, Claude Code still feels like the strongest harness in his workflow, model comparisons break down when people ignore the surrounding tools, and the real intelligence often comes from the harness, APIs, scripts, devices, and local systems wrapped around the model.The episode also covers open and local models, Hermes agents, Google Antigravity, Project Aria, Agent Stack Daily, training dashboards, heart meds, running, lifting, and why jiu-jitsu still matters even when it leaves you beat up.More from Toby: https://tobyonfitnesstech.com

Whoop sent out a garments survey, so Toby turns that into a broader real-world breakdown of whether Whoop still makes sense for grapplers and strength athletes.

He explains why the older Whoop 4.0 underwear placement worked better for jiu-jitsu, what the new 5.0 puck changed, why the new setup tracks worse on the mat, and the spacer workaround he uses to keep older 4.0 garments usable. From there the episode expands into bicep straps, chest straps, manual workout entry, whether anyone should buy Whoop right now, and how Fitbit, Amazfit, Polar, and Garmin make the category much harder for Whoop.

The back half moves into the bigger training-tech picture: heart-rate accuracy, recovery-score overreliance, Garmin's stronger gamification, and how Toby uses Aria with Whoop, Garmin, Eight Sleep, and Speediance data to avoid overtraining.

Not medical, financial, or training advice. This is personal experience and commentary based on the devices and garments Toby has used.

More from Toby: https://tobyonfitnesstech.com

Chapters:

00:00 Whoop 5.0 Garments Need a Rethink

00:30 Why 4.0 Underwear Worked for BJJ

03:34 The 5.0 Puck Placement Problem

05:54 It Tracks Worse Too

08:55 The Spacer Trick That Saves 4.0 Gear

10:39 Why Bicep Straps Fail in Grappling

12:36 Chest Straps and Manual Entry Are Not It

15:02 Should You Buy Whoop Right Now?

16:36 Whoop 5.0 Made the Garments Worse

19:55 If Whoop Reverts, I Will Buy Again

21:11 Fitbit, Amazfit, Polar, and Garmin

24:46 Wearable Accuracy Is Better Than People Admit

29:12 AI Training Plans After Overtraining

31:55 Do Not Let Recovery Scores Stop You

34:27 Garmin Is Better for Gamification

Tags:

Whoop, Whoop 5.0, Whoop 4.0, Whoop garments, jiu jitsu, BJJ, grappling, wearable tech, fitness tracker, recovery score, Garmin, Fitbit, Amazfit, Polar, heart rate accuracy, strength training, fitness tech

This is the full cleaned replay from my livestream comparing the AI coding agent and coding-harness landscape: Hermes Desktop, Claude Code, Codex, MiniMax Code, OpenClaw, and Antigravity.I talk through why harnesses matter, subscription limits, why I still use Claude Code from the command line, why Codex is one of the fastest and most polished apps for me right now, why MiniMax M3 surprised me on value, where Hermes and OpenClaw are strong or frustrating, and why Antigravity's usage and pricing structure is confusing.Pricing, quotas, and plan comments are based on what I was seeing in my accounts at the time of recording. These tools and plans change quickly, so double-check the current limits before spending money.More from Toby: https://tobyonfitnesstech.comSuggested chapters:00:00 Full AI coding agents livestream begins03:26 Codex speed and polish05:10 MiniMax M3 value surprise10:25 OpenClaw strengths and friction12:04 Hermes Desktop impressions14:12 Antigravity usage and pricing confusion16:00 What I would pay for17:45 Current favorite app52:40 Wrap-upTags: AI coding agents, AI coding tools, Codex, Claude Code, Hermes Desktop, MiniMax Code, MiniMax M3, OpenClaw, Antigravity, Gemini, OpenAI Codex, Claude Opus, agentic coding, coding harness, AI IDE, developer tools

After an argument on Reddit about whether the Speediance ring is "trash," I lift on the Gym Monster setup and break down what actually matters: the ring vs. the ring clip vs. the Tonal-style clicker, why the bare ring degrades your grip, and where each accessory lands on my tier list.I also get into the stuff Speediance keeps getting wrong and right: dynamic weight modes finally being stable since V3, the UX bug they fixed and then re-broke, Bluetooth ring disconnects, the software bug they once tried to charge me $80 to "replace," thumbless-grip strength math with real deadlift and bench numbers, and the partner free-lift / custom-workout feature I keep asking them to bring back before the Tonal goes back on the wall.Part workout, part smart-home-gym reality check, part "please just add a weight-lock setting."Not medical, financial, or training advice. This is personal experience and commentary; talk to qualified professionals for your own health, training, and purchasing decisions.More from Toby: https://tobyonfitnesstech.comChapters:00:00 Is the Speediance Ring Trash?01:00 The Ring Clip vs the Tonal Clicker03:39 Proof: How the Bare Ring Degrades Your Grip10:51 Tier List and the $80 Replacement Gouge13:40 Buggy Updates and Bluetooth Disconnects17:52 Thumbless Grips and Real Strength Numbers23:49 The Click Fix, Partner Mode, and TonalTags: Speediance, Speediance ring, Speediance ring clip, Tonal, Tonal clicker, Gym Monster, smart home gym, digital resistance, dynamic weight modes, grip strength, thumbless grip, free lift mode, partner workout, fitness tech

Today I lift on the Speediance/Gym Monster setup while unpacking a few fitness-tech and fitness-influencer topics: a public correction about how I heard Greg Doucette's Turkesterone/Anavar comments, the Speediance Pilates launch and recurring UX bugs, FitHub Titan resistance claims and confusing marketing, dynamic weight modes, internet comments about physique and fat loss, the software/AI background behind Project Aria, and whether Garmin/Whoop-style fitness trackers are actually useful.This one is part workout, part smart-home-gym discussion, part wearable-tech reality check.Not medical, financial, or training advice. This is personal experience and commentary; talk to qualified professionals for your own health, medication, training, or investing decisions.More from Toby: https://tobyonfitnesstech.comChapters:00:00 Arnold Classic and a Public Correction10:50 Speediance Update and Pilates Push14:23 FitHub Titan Gets Complicated20:04 Dynamic Weight Modes31:49 Internet Hate, Physique, and Fat-Loss Context43:11 Why Listen to Me?54:00 Are Fitness Trackers Accurate?1:00:30 The Whoop AFib Story1:07:13 Useful, Not PerfectTags: Greg Doucette, Speediance, Gym Monster, FitHub Titan, smart home gym, digital resistance, fitness tech, Garmin, Whoop, fitness trackers, recovery score, Turkesterone, Anavar, TRT, GLP-1, Project Aria

Answering a viewer's question about elbow pain and walking through the same three-stage approach I use for my own chronic wrist pain so I can keep training without giving up progressive overload.

I cover dumbbell form and elbow position, why eccentric mode on a smart gym can take pressure off the joints, VersaGrips vs. cheap knockoffs, the stack of wrist guards, braces, and thumb spicas I rotate between, and the heated wrist massager I use on bad days. From there I get into smart-gym software, Speediance vs. AEKE vs. Fit Hub Titan, Tonal-style arms, why I am waiting for a 300+ lb machine, my 240 to 210 lb cut, Project ARIA, and why I disagree with planning a month-long deload.

Personal experience, not medical advice. If you have acute or persistent pain, see a qualified clinician.

More from Toby: https://tobyonfitnesstech.com

Chapters:

00:00 Viewer question: training around elbow pain

00:52 Why I switched from barbells to dumbbells

01:12 Cable machines, eccentric mode, and rep tempo

03:49 Form demo: elbow position with adjustable dumbbells

05:08 Chronic wrist pain and training through injuries

06:02 Why I disagree with planning a month-long deload

08:57 My three-stage approach to chronic joint pain

09:04 Step 1: VersaGrips and why the knockoffs did not cut it

11:42 Step 2: Wrist guards and braces

13:18 Step 3: Heated wrist massager

16:23 Three-stage recap

16:41 Smart gyms with Tonal-style arms

28:06 Honest take on Speediance software updates

29:05 Cutting from 240 to 210 and seasonal periodization

32:15 Project Aria: my AI fitness assistant

34:52 What I did after my last wrist flare-up

38:30 Knee braces and accumulated training injuries

41:51 Make training enjoyable

44:46 Intentional training, intentional family time

47:04 Fit Hub naming, Speediance Whoop competitor, and Nanos

52:44 Why I will not train like David Goggins

55:01 Wrap-up and thanks

Tags: Elbow pain, wrist pain, progressive overload, smart gym, Speediance, AEKE, Fit Hub Titan, VersaGrips, home gym, fitness tech, injury management, strength training