Hello everyone
I have been going to the gym for several years on and off but not in such a way that I have ever seen any major results. I am looking at trying to build muscle now rather than mess about on a treadmill! I just wondered how does everyone remember what exercises they need to do? I often go to the gym then get home an realise I have missed out an exercise, and never keep track of what weights I am lifting, does everyone write it down? Does anyone take a notebook to the gym with them??
Thanks
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11-09-2009, 12:11 AM #1
- Join Date: Feb 2009
- Location: Leeds, West Yorkshire, United Kingdom (Great Britain)
- Age: 39
- Posts: 65
- Rep Power: 185
How do you keep track of your work out?
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11-09-2009, 12:44 AM #2
I do have a notebook in which I write every exercise, the weight and the number of reps done. Also sometimes I make side notes, like to increase weight next time...
When I go to the gym I just take a look at what i did previously and write down on a new page all I want to do today. After each exercise I write down the weight and reps and see what comes next. At the beginning I had to look to see exactly what is next, now I kind of know them by heart. Although I will probably have to change them after New Year as I already do this routine for 2 and a half months...
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11-09-2009, 02:25 AM #3
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11-09-2009, 02:25 AM #4
- Join Date: Sep 2009
- Location: United Kingdom (Great Britain)
- Age: 50
- Posts: 597
- Rep Power: 291
I'v started using a notebook too. Before, they wrote it all out on cards for me at the gym and you just filled in what reps & sets etc each time, but as I'm varying what I do each time now I need to write it down. I take my notebook round with me.
"Ain't about how fast I get there.....it's the climb"
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11-09-2009, 03:18 AM #5
- Join Date: Feb 2008
- Location: United Kingdom (Great Britain)
- Age: 34
- Posts: 6,247
- Rep Power: 3425
I take a notebook around the gym with me and make notes when I'm resting between sets. I usually write down a rough plan of the workout beforehand, so I remember to include everything I planned on.
The one disadvantage with tracking every workout is that you sometimes find yourself going by numbers rather than the 'feeling' and fatigue- I've found it's beneficial to take a day every now and then where you don't count at all.Last edited by CharliC; 11-09-2009 at 03:22 AM.
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11-09-2009, 03:59 AM #6
- Join Date: Aug 2009
- Location: Missouri, United States
- Age: 36
- Posts: 803
- Rep Power: 1447
I write my weight training down, I have a food log, and I have a cardio log. I make my own workout routines and I will grab one of those cheap Walmart notebooks and just use it. I kind of make myself a "graph" or you might even call it a "table." I decide the number of reps and sets I'm doing on each body part, and then I write down the exercises I am doing. I have a page for every day of the week and the body part, or lack thereof, I am working on that day. I write down the weight I used, the sets, and the reps. I think it is very important to write it down. How do you know where you are going if you don't know where you've been??
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11-09-2009, 04:18 AM #7
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11-09-2009, 05:18 AM #8
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11-09-2009, 05:33 AM #9
- Join Date: Nov 2008
- Location: West Virginia, United States
- Age: 43
- Posts: 5,597
- Rep Power: 10019
I use the free bb.com workout book. I like it bc I can track everything there and flip through it for reference. I log full workouts, cardio, supplements (which & how much), calorie in and calorie out, etc. I can usually find patterns in what makes a productive workout. Plus, I make little notes as to what exercises I will add weight/reps/sets next. I think it helps. But I'm a really visual person, lol. I like to be able to flip back a month and see what has changed.
~ Julie
MS, ATC, NASM-PES
LIVELONG Nutrition Rep
www.bodybuilding.com/store/live/live.htm
Trained by: Ryan Rogerson (Rog447)
ISSA Certified Fitness Trainer/Specialist In Performance Nutrition
www.rogersonfitness.com
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11-09-2009, 05:34 AM #10
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11-09-2009, 07:15 AM #11
- Join Date: Jul 2009
- Location: Texas, United States
- Age: 45
- Posts: 248
- Rep Power: 212
I log in every workout on my blackberry. I like looking back to see how far I've progressed and also to see where my weaknesses are, such as those exercises where the weight hasn't gone up in a couple of months or I haven't incresed in reps. Plus, keeping track of every workout is like a sense of accomplishment to me in a way. As far as food intake, I log in all that stuff on Daily Plate.
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11-09-2009, 09:00 AM #12
- Join Date: Jun 2006
- Location: Phoenix, Arizona, United States
- Age: 59
- Posts: 185
- Rep Power: 230
I never go the gym without my workout journal! I use a Meade Student Planner and plan my workouts for the week. While at the gym, I log everything I do: lifts, reps, sets, etc...
I've been doing it for years. I don't know why I started...I guess because I am a perpetual list maker. And like someone else said, it is fun going back and tracking your progress.
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11-09-2009, 09:50 AM #13
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11-09-2009, 10:26 AM #14
I have a table printed out with my workout that includes the date, average and max HR, exercise, weight and reps. I have another table for cardio that has type of cardio, machine used if applicable, average and max HR, and distance if applicable.
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11-09-2009, 10:46 AM #15
- Join Date: Nov 2008
- Location: West Virginia, United States
- Age: 43
- Posts: 5,597
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Spend more than $99 @ bb.com and it's one of the free gift options. Or you could just purchase it for $2.99 here: http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/bbcom/workoutlog.html.
I like it, simple yet lots of space to write stuff down.~ Julie
MS, ATC, NASM-PES
LIVELONG Nutrition Rep
www.bodybuilding.com/store/live/live.htm
Trained by: Ryan Rogerson (Rog447)
ISSA Certified Fitness Trainer/Specialist In Performance Nutrition
www.rogersonfitness.com
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11-09-2009, 11:03 AM #16
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11-09-2009, 11:27 AM #17
- Join Date: Aug 2007
- Location: New York, United States
- Age: 52
- Posts: 35,279
- Rep Power: 44724
Spiral notebook. I like to look back at old workouts every now and again. I also use it because between everything I need to remember for work, kids, etc., I find I can't remember my weights for most exercises. If I carry my notebook, I can look back and see what I did last time.
https://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=17995794
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11-09-2009, 12:26 PM #18
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11-09-2009, 01:13 PM #19
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11-09-2009, 01:41 PM #20
- Join Date: Nov 2007
- Location: Hawaii, United States
- Age: 41
- Posts: 494
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11-09-2009, 05:10 PM #21
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11-09-2009, 08:00 PM #22
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11-10-2009, 12:06 AM #23
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11-10-2009, 09:44 AM #24
- Join Date: Feb 2009
- Location: Saskatchewan, Canada
- Age: 38
- Posts: 858
- Rep Power: 643
I personally make an excel spreadsheet up, print it and take it to the gym. I staple the weeks worth of workouts together, and when that week is done I take the pages and put them in a binder...
I just find it faster, and that way I know my workouts for the week, so I can plan out my time accordingly. Also, some of the BB.com weights workouts come with their own print out training logs, which might be helpful if you are still pretty new to weightlifting
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11-10-2009, 09:46 AM #25
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11-10-2009, 02:28 PM #26
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11-10-2009, 02:40 PM #27
- Join Date: Jan 2007
- Location: Michigan, United States
- Age: 53
- Posts: 252
- Rep Power: 272
I wish I had that kind of memory
I, like so many others, write out a plan of attack, then I attack!! I write it all down, date it, notes regarding what to do next (raise weight, raise reps, focus was spot on, ect.), any aches and pains, any problems with form (getting the picture - I write it ALL). Like someone else posted, how do you know where you are going if you don't know where you have been? Better yet, how do you know what to try next, if you can't clearly remember what has worked in the past and what hasn't? Workout logs are so worth it...What Life is Really About - Be willing to work hard. Do what you know you should do. Go to church. Be happy with what you have. Don't chase after things you don't need. Stand up for what you know is right. Take care of yourself and your family. Help those people who need you. - Unknown
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11-10-2009, 02:57 PM #28
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11-10-2009, 04:14 PM #29
- Join Date: Oct 2009
- Location: melbourne, Australia
- Age: 48
- Posts: 1,510
- Rep Power: 415
A journal/exercise book is the way to go to jot down your training, reps and sets. Much easier than remembering what to do if you forget.
Angie....
"For me life is continuously being hungry. The meaning of life is not simply to exist, to survive, but to move ahead, to go up, to achieve, to conquer" - Arnold
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(=.=)
()_()
POINTS TO REMEMBER - If you can't kill it, grow it, or pick it, you probably shouldn't be eating it!!!
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11-12-2009, 01:42 PM #30
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