Don't do intense first time, normal should be fun enough still. There's still some challenging fights and the game goes at a nice pace most of the time.
I just finished the first gym on normal mode and I was hoping it would be a lil harder buuUUTTT i'm worried if i switch to intense the game will consume my life LMAO
Like first gyms really aren't supposed to be THAT hard lol. Plus Rejuv has a lot of content so the game gets more challenging as it goes along. I'd do intense on 2nd playthrough.