Working out has been part of our modern-day life. If working out is part of your routine, you can monitor your progress using a workout log. This allows you to change workouts as needed to ensure steady progress. Without it, you might find it too difficult to remember what you have done and determine when you need to kick things up a notch.
Contents
Workout Log Templates
What is an exercise log?
You can compare a workout log to a journal that indicates the type of exercise or training that you do on a regular basis. For this purpose, you can either use a notebook or an online application.
Use it to maintain a record of your workout sessions or the workout sessions of other people for easy tracking and for more effective training regimens. With a workout log template, you can track down your workout activities.
There are several reasons, especially for the dedicated practitioners, why it is important to keep track of exercises done. First of these is that the log can easily help you with challenges and problems. This allows you to make the appropriate changes so that you can achieve your health goals with the least amount of effort.
Workout Journal Templates
Why do you need one?
To stay focused and feel motivated by your fitness goals, you need strict discipline to keep your workout log and follow your workout schedule. Having the right workout spreadsheet template where you write down your gym sessions to help you better in reaching your health goals. Here are some of the reasons why you need the log:
- To help you set better goals
Too much exercise can damage your body tissues and as such, you should avoid this. If you exert too much, it only results in failing to achieve the goals that you have set and this could be very demoralizing.
With a log, you can monitor your progress. Be as realistic as possible when setting your goals. Going slow will help you succeed and ultimately, prevent you from getting discouraged, demoralized or damaged. - To help you feel more motivated and inspired
One of the most rewarding and gratifying aspects of keeping a log is the advantage of reviewing your progress in the gym. Through this, you will discover how much progress you have achieved. The log shows you in chronological order how much longer, faster or farther you need in a span of so many workout sessions.
Such an accomplishment boosts your sense of pride and will be a reminder that you’re capable of getting stronger. As a result, it will inspire you to accomplish more. - To allow you to discover patterns
When you regularly keep track of the physical activities you’re involved in each day, you will come to discover patterns to help you maximize your workout sessions when you feel energized and take a break when you’re feeling down. - To improve your exercise routines
Another benefit of keeping this log is that you will have a desire to write about an amazing workout every day. As such, this enables you to create better goals by using a plan for how to achieve your goals.
Whether these plans are short- or long-term, what matters most is that you can keep track of and measure everything in your log. At the end of the day, you may consider your log as a blueprint for your fitness goals.
Tips for making your workout log
The first thing you need to do is to organize your thoughts when making your own workout sheets. Use simple terms that are easily understandable. Lengthy sentences just complicate things.
The information you write in your log will later serve as a reference to the progress of your workouts. Make sure that when you make your workout journal template, you should accomplish the following goals:
- It should be very quick and easy for you to fill it up
Your log shouldn’t include complicated wordings that might confuse you. Filling it up should be very easy so that you can spend more time exercising and less time thinking about what to write down.
Writing in a well-organized log shouldn’t take too much effort and time from you. Nor should it be difficult to search for the page you need to write your notes on for the day. - It should help you reach your goals
Your log should contain only essential information that reflects what you have accomplished each day. You should only input important information so that you can use the relevant data as a basis in making decisions on what to do during your next workout. - It should be very versatile
It would be a waste of effort and time if you would depend on new systems or new applications each time you want to have a new workout. Based on the current system you have adapted for your log, you should already adapt to any training style. You should get to use your current log for recording results whether you follow your own workout regimen or decide on a new course.
Workout Spreadsheets
How to log workout plan?
When keeping track of your progress in the gym, regardless of what workout log you decide on, make sure to track entries and take notes relevant to your fitness goals. Here are a couple of useful metrics you can consider entering in your workout log template:
- Input the dates and times of your workouts.
- Jot down the workout routine that you have planned preferably the day before. Make sure to include reps, sets, rest in-between those sets, and the weights that you plan to use.
- Input your current weight to help you keep track of the weight you lost.
You should be very clear about your goals regarding the results you want to see. Ask yourself the question, “What are my health and fitness goals?” Write these preferred goals somewhere in your log then develop a system that works backward to help you reach your goals. Then you can use a 3-step process to track your progress:
- A day before your workout, write down the exercises you plan to do.
- Before you start your actual workout, jot down the date, the time, and your weight.
- Record your progress and mark each of the completed set.
