Tracking Success

How many meals a day do you have?
How often do you up your weight in the gym?
How many calories do you burn a day?
How many more days until your vacation?

I could go on and on with questions like this. The point is, I really believe part of being successful at something is tracking it and keeping yourself accountable.  (Think about how accountable we’d all be if we tracked everything in life the way one pays attention to a vacation countdown!)

1) Track your meals

It’s a good habit to track all of your meals including protein, carbs, fat, sugar, water, veggies, and fruit.  If you don’t write it down or have a chart to go by, then how will you remember?  It can also be very insightful to look back at your consumption and see trends, trouble times of day or how you may be feeling based on either not having enough food or possibly too much.  Tracking your food is knowledge just waiting to be found!

2) Track your workouts

It’s the same thing with the gym. You need to keep track of your sets, reps, weight, and days.  Have a plan going in and results coming out.  How can you improve if you don’t know where you started where you currently are and where you want to go?

3) Planning and tracking your week

Planning out your week in advance is another must when it comes to organization and staying accountable through tracking.  Determine what body parts you focus on each day, when do you do cardio, when are your rest days, etc.  Write out a 1 week calendar with the days of the week at the top and the body part or plan of action for each day under that.  I suggest putting it on your fridge so you’re forced to look at it and feel accountable every time you open it up or pass by it!  Writing out a weekly schedule keeps you from accidentally skipping a body part and messing up your symmetry.  It’s my bet that all the guys at the gym with huge arms and no legs have simply ‘forgotten’ their legs because they don’t have a routine written down… right??!!  J

4) Write down your goals

Lastly, your goals need to written down too. This goes for any goals.  Training, lifting, cardio, life, work, family, all of it!!  I find that if I write down my goals I’m more dedicated to working towards and achieving them.  And remember, it’s okay to modify or change your goals along the way.  After all, we all grow and change!

5) Methods of tracking

So after writing them down, how should we track our progress?  I personally like the old fashioned method of tracking things… writing everything down using a good old pen and paper!   Although today it’s very convenient to keep them in your phone so you always have them with you!  Pictures and video are another wonderful way to track your goal. Pictures give you a hard-copy, visual representation of how your body is changing and if it’s changing the way you want it to.

In the end, no mater what your goals are, I suggest you start tracking in the method most convenient and inspiring to you.  As you move closer towards your goals you’ll be so happy you have a reference of just how far you’ve come and the work you’ve put in!   I wish you the best with your goals, and thanks for listening!

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