A successful fitness journey requires the right diet and practical workout routines. It would help if you also cultivated the right mindset to overcome getting and staying fit. Tracking this progress, no matter how small, is equally as important. Here’s why.
Why You Should Track Your Fitness Journey
Tracking enables you to see the direction you’re headed in. You need to monitor whether the diet you have adopted is effective or not. Don’t act on instinct and assume that you are on the right path since you run a couple of miles every day. Knowing you are on the right way is a motivational factor that keeps you going and going. Measuring your fitness progress allows you to pinpoint the functioning practices and the routines that need to be revised.
Here’s how you should monitor your fitness progress.
Document Progress on Social Media
Share your journey with friends and loved ones on Instagram. Posting before and after pictures can be a source of inspiration to keep going. The more likes or attention you garner, the more likely you will keep going. Don’t place too much emphasis on the naysayers, however. Focus on the supporters only.
Take Regular Pictures
Being unfit often erodes our self-esteem and confidence. Be bold. Take as many pictures in front of the bathroom mirrors with nothing on but your undies. Take front, side, and back photos and stash them somewhere private. Revisit these pictures after a week or month after starting the fitness routine to see any changes.
Track Your Waist-to-Hip Ratio
The hip-to-waist ratio is an indicator of your metabolism. Bulging hips point to potential obesity. But, according to University of Oxford research, you need to maintain healthy thigh, butt, and hip fat levels to reduce the risks of diabetes type-2 and heart disease. The waist-to-hip ratio gets calculated by dividing the waist measurements by the hip circumferences. Ideally, you want a ratio of 0.85 or below.
Tracking Workouts Using Apps
The latest fitness tracking apps keep tabs on the distances you run daily. The apps also calculate the calories you’re burning on each run. Apps like Runkeeper also provide the user with ideas and recommendations. Finally, applications like Nike Fuel help connect you with other fitness enthusiasts along your jogging routes. This companionship helps ease the complexities of working out alone.
Download Sleep Apps
Get a sleep app to track your sleeping patterns and the quality of your sleep. The more you work out, the more rest your body and mind need to regenerate. If you over-exercise and fail to get enough sleep, you risk burnout. Sleep deprivation also adversely affects your health. You’ll also risk developing type 2 diabetes, inflammation, and heart disease.
Track Your Fitness Goals Daily
Have a target in mind when embarking on a fitness journey. Set realistic goals to avoid frustration. Make sure you track these fitness goals daily. Set both short-term and long-term goals and adhere to them religiously. This approach allows you to make changes and improvements to your weight loss program and diet.
