How To Properly Track Your Strength Training Progress

Sometimes, it can be challenging to get the courage to begin a fitness regime, knowing how much time and effort it takes to see the best conclusions. Furthermore, you might not even know how to begin if you are a neophyte to the whole ordeal. Properly tracking your strength training progress gives you the tips you need to get those gains.

Keep a Journal To Track Progress

Writing down your workouts is a fantastic way to hold yourself accountable and realize all the progress you are making. It may be easy to remember what you did with one exercise the day prior, but it’s much more efficient to coordinate and track everything you do. You’ll likely notice some muscular gains earlier during your regime, so seeing your improvements over the weeks keeps you motivated to improve consistently. In the beginning, tracking the basics, like the number of sets, reps, and exercises completed, is a solid start. However, once you get further along, keeping track of your rest intervals, time of day, and energy levels might tell you more about your body.

Test Yourself

Tracking is vital to your training program as it tells you how much you need to test yourself. If you track the sets and weights you complete, it gives you something to shoot for the next time you hop on some strength equipment. You can test yourself in various ways, like increasing your reps on a certain weight or going for your max. However, keep in mind that your safety is critical, so don’t overexert yourself just to beat a previous best.

Take Your Body Measurements

Getting your measurements before training gives you a baseline to know how much your strength program is working. While some will be more interested in their weight, body fat percentage is a better indicator of how much muscle you’re gaining. Even though it’s tempting to measure or weigh yourself daily, try not to because doing so will cause stress if you don’t see the gains you expected. Even minor results will make you feel accomplished, keeping you focused on reaching your loftiest goals.

Compare the Old You to the New You

Taking a picture of yourself before training may be embarrassing, but it allows you to see your body changes physically. A picture can tell a thousand words, and you can only tell so much in a mirror. Therefore, taking photos will give you material for a great slideshow transformation. Outside of seeing the changes, you’ll start feeling the changes with the clothes you wear.

Now that you know how to properly track your strength training progress, you can check out Utah Home Fitness for the best fitness equipment that fits your needs. Remember, changes don’t happen overnight, so stay dedicated, and you’ll see the results.