Languages and Units
The YOUB app is available in English, German, French, Italian and Spanish. The coach writes to you in the language you chose for the app, or in your phone's language if you never chose one, and it can switch to another language when you ask it to: any language written in the Latin alphabet works. Distances, speeds and elevation show in metric or imperial units. You pick both under Settings > Appearance.
App Languages
The app's own screens, buttons and fixed texts are available in five languages:
| Language | In the language picker |
|---|---|
| English | English |
| German | Deutsch |
| French | Français |
| Italian | Italiano |
| Spanish | Español |
On first start the app follows your phone's language. If your phone is set to a language the app does not offer, the app shows English. To change the app language, open Settings > Appearance and pick a language under Language. The app switches right away.
The Coach's Language
The coach's messages are not limited to the five app languages. The coach writes in one language for your whole conversation, chosen in this order:
- The language you asked the coach to use, or the language you picked under Settings > Appearance > Language. Whichever you set last applies.
- Your phone's language, when you never chose one. A phone set to Portuguese gets a coach writing Portuguese, even though the app's own screens are in English.
The same language applies everywhere the coach writes: in the app chat, over WhatsApp, and in the coach's own messages such as the morning check-in or the message after an activity.
Asking the Coach to Speak Another Language
To change the coach's language, ask in the chat, for example "Please write to me in Dutch from now on" or "Parla italiano con me". The coach stores the language and sticks to it in every later conversation until you change it again, by asking for a different language or by picking a language under Settings > Appearance.
The coach does not change its language just because you write one message in another language. When your coach writes English and you send one message in German, the coach keeps answering in English; asking "please answer in German" changes the language for good.
Which Languages the Coach Writes
The coach writes in any language that uses the Latin alphabet, for example Portuguese, Dutch, Polish, Czech, Swedish or Turkish, in addition to the five app languages. For languages written in another script, such as Greek, Russian, Arabic, Hindi, Chinese, Japanese or Korean, the coach answers in English. When you ask for such a language, the coach tells you that it will keep writing in English.
Proper names, place names and the titles of your activities stay as they are, whatever language the coach writes in.
Units
YOUB shows distances, speeds and elevation in one of two unit systems:
| Setting | Units |
|---|---|
| Metric | km · m · km/h |
| Imperial | mi · ft · mph |
The default comes from the region of your language setting: accounts with a US region (for example US English or US Spanish) start with imperial units, all others with metric. To change it, open Settings > Appearance and pick Metric or Imperial under Units. Once you pick one, your choice stays, independent of your language.
The unit setting changes only how values are displayed. YOUB stores every value in metric units, so switching back and forth never changes or rounds your data.
Voice Messages
You can send the coach voice messages in the app and over WhatsApp. A voice message is transcribed in the language you speak in, and the coach answers it in writing, in its usual language.
The coach also speaks to you while you record a session with the YOUB app, in your app language (see Audio Cues While You Record).
Audio Cues While You Record
When you record a run, walk or ride with your phone in the YOUB app, the coach speaks short audio cues in your ear:
- Completed kilometres are announced.
- The start, a pause, the resume, a weak or returning GPS signal and the finish are announced.
- When you record a planned session with one steady target pace, the coach tells you whether you are on pace, slightly or clearly too fast, or slightly or clearly too slow. Structured sessions such as intervals get the kilometre and status cues, without pace cues.
- Before a planned session, the coach gives a short spoken briefing about the session, written for you from the plan and your recent training. The briefing also appears as text on the recording screen.
The audio cues are available in the five app languages: English, German, French, Italian and Spanish. The cues follow the same language setting as the coach (your choice under Settings > Appearance > Language, otherwise your phone's language). When that language is not one of the five, the cues are spoken in English. The splits are always announced per kilometre, whatever your unit setting.
Audio cues are on by default. The recording screen has a button to mute and unmute the coach during the session; your recording continues either way.
Related
- How YOUB Works: the coaching loop from goal to plan to analysis.
- WhatsApp: coaching over WhatsApp, in the same language as the app chat.
- FAQ: short answers to common questions.