If you’re someone who works out and spends time in the weight room, then you’ve likely noticed other people writing things down during their workouts.
However, chances are you don’t know what they’re writing about, or maybe you’ve never thought much about it.
But really, they aren’t just writing about what’s on their mind or their days agenda. They’re actually writing about their workouts!
Writing down information from your workouts is known as keeping a workout journal with exercise logs.
And it’s a great way to track your progress in the gym!
In this post, I want to take a deeper dive into the benefits of keeping a fitness log and how you can start logging your own workouts to maximize your fitness progress.
In This Post You’ll Find:
What is a Fitness Journal and What Purpose Does it Serve?
To begin, I want to start out by talking about what a fitness journal even is. As well as what purpose it serves in the gym.
A fitness journal is a place where you log information from each of your workouts in order to keep track of your progress on your fitness journey.
The way this works is during each workout, you create a new exercise log in your fitness journal. Here, you’ll record all the information from that workout.
The information being any details from your workout you want to track. This will mainly depend on you and your own goals.
So depending on what your gym goals are, that will help you determine what information would be most helpful to keep track of.
For example, if my goal is to build muscle, then I’d want to specifically track things that relate to building muscle. Things like the amount of weight I lift and the number of reps I do.
This is a great way to help keep your workouts organized so you can maximize your progress in the gym.
When you record every detail of your workouts, you can then utilize that information in your routine.
Allowing you to challenge yourself and continue progressing in each exercise.
The Benefits of Tracking Your Workouts in A Workout Journal
Using a fitness journal can be extremely beneficial for both your workouts and your gym progress. And in more ways than one.
Understanding the why behind logging your workouts is essential for anyone who wants to see significant progress in the gym.
Here are some of the biggest benefits of taking the time to log your workouts in an exercise journal.
You Don’t Have to Remember All Your Weights
When you start lifting weights, at first, it might seem easy to keep track of the weight you lift.
And at first, it is pretty easy.
But as time goes on, you’ll continue increasing the weight and progressing in your lifts. There becomes so much more information to remember.
It gets to a point where trying to remember every little detail about your workout becomes unrealistic.
For example, remembering how much you lifted and how many reps you did during each set of each exercise in last weeks workout, isn’t an easy task.
However, recording and utilizing this information is crucial if you want to make maximum progress in the gym.
Making Progress in The Gym Becomes So Much Easier
When you have all the information recorded from all your previous workouts, progressing in the gym becomes so much easier.
Knowing exactly what your exact numbers were from your last workout, helps you push yourself more in your next workout.
Like I mentioned earlier, remembering the general range of things is easy.
Things like the general amount you lifted and general number of reps you did.
And although remembering the general range is helpful, it’s not what’s going to make you progress as much.
In order to progress to the max, knowing the specifics of your workouts is crucial, down to every last detail.
Knowing exactly how many reps you did on one set of one exercise at one weight versus how many reps you did the next set of that exercise at an increased weight is crucial.
Because all the changes in weights and reps means something.
And in order to be able to analyze your performance and use the information to your advantage, you need to have it recorded somewhere to look back on.
When you have all of these specifics written down, you can see the exact numbers you hit from your previous workout.
Then, you can make a plan for how you can progress on each of these numbers during your next workout.
Tracking Your Workouts Helps You Set Goals for Yourself During Each Workout
Knowing your numbers from last weeks workout allows you to analyze your numbers before this weeks workout.
When you do this, you can then set small goals for yourself during your workout.
For example, you can determine an area beforehand where you want to improve. Then, determine how you’ll push yourself to improve during this workout.
Doing this, put yourself in a mindset to achieve this goal before your next workout.
When you get to the gym for your workout, you’ll be pumped up and motivated to achieve this goal.
How Tracking Your Workouts Gives You a Goal Oriented Mindset
For example, let’s say in legs week’s workout, I leg pressed 150 pounds for 8 reps.
Now, let’s say I analyzed that information before this weeks workout. I might say hey, I think I can leg press 175 pounds for 8 reps in this week’s workout.
Now, that’d be a achievable, realistic gym goal for myself for my next workout.
I’ve now put myself in this goal oriented mindset, before I even started my workout.
I’ll get to the gym, knowing I’m going to push myself to hit 175 pounds today.
I’m now motivated, encouraged, and more likely than not, going to achieve that goal. All because I established it beforehand and got into this goal mentality.
On the other hand, if I didn’t remember my exact numbers from last weeks workout and didn’t have them written down, I’d start my workout without any predefined, specific goals.
So I’d get to the leg press and pick a weight depending on how I feel.
However, again, I only end up leg pressing 150 pounds for 8 reps.
Which was challenging and effective last workout, but this workout I could’ve progressed past that point.
Notice how the second time, I didn’t go into the gym with a mindset that I have a specific, detailed goal.
So I wasn’t motivated to achieve anything specific.
Whereas when I was able to analyze my numbers, I could set a detailed, organized goal for myself.
And in the end, be much more likely to achieve that goal.
Logging Your Workouts is Key to Progressive Overload
Progressive overload is one of the best strategies to keep making progress in the gym.
To progressive overload means that you’d progressively, on a regular basis, increase the intensity of your workouts.
Meaning you’d increase either the amount of weight you lift or the number of reps you do.
Doing this allows you to keep your workouts just as intense as they always were. Even as your muscles progressively get stronger.
Why Tracking Your Workouts Helps You Progressively Overload
Tracking your workouts makes progressive overload a thousand times easier.
Think about it, in order to progressive overload, you need to progressively increase the intensity of your workouts.
We know that the best way to do this is to progressively increase the amount of weight you lift or number of reps you do.
Now think about this, what is it exactly that we’re tracking in our workout logs?
That’s right, we record the number of sets we do as well as how much we lift and how many reps we do for each of those sets.
This is the exact information we need to know to progressively overload!
And not just the general information, but the very specific details.
Because progressive overload can be as simple as increasing the weight of an exercise by only five pounds.
Or, adding just one or two reps onto each set.
So in order to make these slight changes, you need to know the specifics of every exercise you do.
By knowing exactly how many reps you did and how much weight you lifted in your last workout, you can be very specific in how you can increase each of those numbers this workout.
And the best way to know all these specific details is by logging each exercise throughout your workouts.
What Progressive Overload Might Look Like in Your Workout
For example, if I know I squatted 135 pounds for 8 reps my last workout, then to progressively overload this workout, maybe I’ll squat the same weight, but for 10 reps.
Another option would be to squat 140 pounds, but for 8 reps again.
Or some combination of increasing the weight or reps, you get the idea.
However, if I didn’t know those exact numbers, I wouldn’t be able to effectively progressively overload.
I wouldn’t know what my previous numbers were.
As a result, I wouldn’t know what specific numbers I’d need to hit in this workout to progress from those past numbers.
But by keeping a fitness journal and logging my workouts, I can progress in the gym and make each workout challenging in an organized way.
A Workout Journal Makes Tracking Your Progress so Much Easier
The more information you write down from your workouts, the easier it will be to see your gym progress.
Think about it, if you write down the exact amount of weight you lift as well as the number of sets and reps you do each workout, then overtime you’re guaranteed to see changes in these numbers.
These numbers are all excellent indicators of your progress so ideally, these changes will be positive changes.
And when comparing the numbers from your most recent lifts to yours way back in the beginning, you should hopefully be seeing some pretty significant changes in your numbers.
Which would then let you know that you’re strength and performance are increasing.
Indicating that you’re training effectively and to see the results that you want.
So not only will this allow you to see the progress you’ve made, but it will also help you hold yourself accountable to continue progressing, hitting new numbers, and making more progress in the gym.
Seeing Your Progress Written Down Is Extremely Motivational
On top of all of that, seeing your progress written down, right before your eyes, is extremely motivational.
We all get times where we aren’t motivated to go to the gym.
Most commonly because we feel like we aren’t making any progress and are in the same spot as when we started. Despite all of our effort.
And I get it, staying motivated to workout is hard. In times like this, our workouts can feel pretty pointless.
Anytime you feel this way, looking back and reviewing your old numbers can help you overcome this feeling.
Seeing the progress you’ve definitely made and reminding yourself just how far you’ve come can change your perspective on your workouts.
Making you feel much more motivated and enthusiastic to get into the gym.
The Best Steps to Start a Workout Log and Increase Your Gym Progress
Keeping a workout journal can be crucial for your progress and development in the gym.
Here are the exact steps you can follow to start tracking your workouts today.
Create a Workout Routine (And Track Your Consistent Workouts)
As you might’ve imagined, it’d be pretty hard to track your workouts if you aren’t consistently working out.
Because of that, the first thing you want to do before starting your workout log is to start a workout routine.
Creating a workout routine for yourself is one of the best ways to get yourself consistently in the gym, working out.
On top of that, having a workout routine will help your workouts stay organized.
Ensuring that every workout you do, you’re working and making progress towards your gym goals.
On the other hand, if you didn’t have a workout routine, you wouldn’t be following a consistent program.
And without following any program, tracking your workouts wouldn’t make much sense.
Sure, you could still track your workouts if you wanted to.
But the main purpose of tracking your workouts is to see your progress and help you make progress in the gym.
So if you didn’t have any specific goals you’re working towards, then you wouldn’t really know what information would be helpful for you to track.
Additionally, if you aren’t following a consistent workout program, then your workouts are most likely always changing.
And tracking an ever-changing workout every week won’t be very helpful.
As a result, in order to track your workouts, you want to make sure there’s intention behind what you’re doing in the gym.
And the best way to do that is by starting a workout routine.
Find Somewhere to Record Your Workouts
The next step to tracking your workouts in the gym is to get a journal.
I say “journal” but really anywhere you want to write works perfectly, even if it’s not a physical journal.
If you want a physical journal, something small and easy to carry in the gym is ideal, since you don’t want to have too much to lug around while you’re working out.
However, if you don’t feel comfortable bringing a physical journal to the gym, I understand that.
I know for me personally, if I were to bring an actual pen and paper to the gym to write my workouts down, I’d feel way too self-conscious.
I’m sure some of you are probably in the same boat.
But don’t let this hold you back from tracking your workouts!
One of the best, easiest, most convenient places to keep track of your workouts is somewhere you most likely already carry with you everywhere you go. Your phone!
Or, more specifically, the notes app in your phone. I always have my phone on me in the gym, because I enjoy listening to music when I work out.
So writing down my workout information on my phone between sets is super easy and convenient.
And, it gets rid of any fear I had of judgement, since tons of people check their phones between sets in the gym.
Determine Information from Your Workout You Want to Record
Before you start writing things down, you’ll want to decide what information from your workouts you want to record.
The truth is, there’s so much information we can get from every single workout we do.
Everything we do in the gym should have a purpose and therefore will have impact on our results.
Because of that, almost all the information you can get from your workouts, you should. Then, you can analyze this information and use it to help yourself keep improving.
Personally, I’d say there are really three non-negotiable things you should be tracking from your workout.
These three pieces of information are:
1. The number of sets you do
2. The amount of weight you lift each set
3. The number of reps you do for each set
If you start tracking these three things from your workouts, then that gives you all the information you need to know.
Overtime, you’ll want to be able to look back on your numbers from these areas, since these will be your biggest indicators of progress.
And should therefore be your main three focus areas when you’re trying to maximize your progress in the gym.
Besides that, some additional things you might want to track are your rest time between sets, any drop sets you did, and whether or not you hit a new max.
Although none of these would be as critical for your progress.
Remember to Actually Write During Your Workout
When you first start logging your workouts, you’ll want to remember to be recording the information throughout your workout.
As soon as you complete each exercise.
One of the biggest mistakes people make is that they want to wait until after their workout to log their performance.
And I get it, stopping your workout to write and focus on the numbers can be really disruptive and make you lose focus.
However, although you might be tempting to wait until after your workout to record everything, but I would advise against doing that.
Mainly because that really defeats the whole purpose!
The purpose of keeping a workout log in the first place is so you don’t have to remember any of your stats, and don’t risk forgetting important details.
Things like the exact amount of weight you lifted, the number of sets you did, and the number of reps you did in each of those sets for each exercise.
Remembering all this data for every exercise and set you do is crucial for you to effectively track and log your workouts.
Without it, you risk your logs not being as effective.
Record Your Workout Information After Each Set
To make sure your workout log is as accurate and effective as possible, it’s best to continuously be writing things down throughout your workout.
You want to write down all the information you can, as soon as possible.
Meaning, as soon as you finish your set!
Right when you finish your set, after giving yourself a second to catch your breath, write down the information you want to record.
The amount of weight you lifted, the number set you’re on, the exact number of reps you did, and so on.
Doing this during your rest time is the best way to get down all the information you need, while it’s still fresh and ready.
You’ll then know that everything you’ve written down is as accurate as it gets!
Takeaways
Although tracking your workouts does require a little extra effort, it certainly pays off.
Not only does this help you stay organized and motivated, but it also helps you progress in more ways than one.
That’s why when you start recording information from your workouts, making progress in the gym becomes so much easier.
By analyzing the exact numbers you hit from your last workout, you can go into your next workout with goals and a plan to push yourself to make progress.
So start recording your workouts now and get ready to see more progress than ever before!
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