When it comes to fitness, while it can be incredibly rewarding to see your results, keeping track of your personal progress, particularly if you have set yourself a goal to reach, is also a great way to stay motivated. One reason is that it can take time to see results, but you can instantly know if you are making a change. T
racking your personal progress is key to understanding how your body performs and feels because of its training. Journaling and writing things down can provide insight and clarity into what works best for your body and can help you plan out your next goal.
What should I track?
A fitness journal is there to help you lay out your goals, progress and workouts. Using simple notes can easily help improve your accountability, help you build healthy habits and understanding of your overall progress. Below is a simple guide on what you should be keeping track of in your fitness journal:
Goals
Start your diary by setting clear goals of what you want to achieve. This can be anything from a number goal (e.g I want to lose 10kg in 4 months) or a weekly goal (e.g I want to walk at least twice this week) that way you can clearly see what it is exactly you are working toward. SMART goals are a great way to set goals out ( Specific, Measurable. Achievable, Relevant and Time).
Workouts
Your fitness journal should also have record of the workouts you are doing, in clear detail. Writing down your workouts is a great way to keep track of what is working for your body and how to add onto what you have done before in order to keep adding stimulus to keep improving. It is also to refer back to incase you need some inspo on a workout to do. This could look as simple as “30 minute cardio, 3x 10 squats, 3x 10 push ups”
Nutrition
Fitness journals are not only about the type of physical workout, however it is a great way to keep track of your health and nutrition, particularly while you are working toward a specific goal. Logging your meals, snacks, and water intake will allow you to assess your dietary intake for the week and adjust accordingly.
Recovery
A significant factor in achieving goals is ensuring your body has sufficient time to recover from training. You can include your recovery details in your fitness journal such as sleep logs, ice baths, compresses etc. This can also be a good way to keep on top of your time management, ensuring you are setting aside enough time to rest and recover where possible, which is key in injury prevention.
Overall, a fitness journal can provide a visual representation of your progress, allowing you to stay motivated and accounted. Highlighting what is working for you and what isn’t, allows you to adjust your routine accordingly, tailoring it specific to your body and lifestyle needs.
By Ben Lucas
About Ben Lucas
Ben Lucas is the co- founder of Flow Athletic, an incredibly successful yoga and fitness studio based in Paddington, NSW.
Ben was an NRL player for the Cronulla Sharks. He went on to open three extremely successful PT studios, which he sold to launch Flow Athletic. He has completed nearly 50 marathons and raised over $ 300,000 for charity. Ben is currently the head coach for the Sydney Marathon.
