Logging Workouts for Accountability

I log all my weightlifting sessions, with pen and paper, and have for years. Doing so greatly increases my level of personal accountability. Specifically, it helps me do what I planned, and stay honest about my progress over time. I think everyone would benefit from logging their workouts and here I document how I do it and why it’s worthwhile.

How

My primary objective in the gym is hypertrophy, followed by strength, so those dictate the organization of my specific logs. However I think the underlying principles are important regardless of your fitness objectives. ¹

Logging Principles

1. I track what I do
2. What I could have done
3. And how it compares to last time

Log Header

I start every log with the date, time, and the workout I’m doing (usually push, pull, or legs).

Sat Push 10/11/25 13:57

It’s pretty easy to think I workout more often than I really do. Last Fall I got busy and knew it’d been a while, maybe a couple weeks. Then I finally got in a leg day and saw in my log that it had been much longer, over a month since my last leg workout. Logging my workouts helps me stay consistent.

Logging Exercises

For each exercise I track the weight and reps. This is principle 1, What I do, and is pretty standard for a workout log. However there are three additional important components.

Reps in Reserve (RiR)

After I complete a set, I record how many additional reps I could have done before reaching muscle failure. If I stop doing shoulder presses after 10 reps, but think I could’ve done 2 more reps before my arms got all wobbly and I couldn’t move the weight, that’s 2 RiR.

Logging RiR is important for principle 2, What I could have done. It helps me avoid simply doing an exercise until I “feel tired” or “think that’s enough.” Of course, not every workout can be 100% or even 90% effort. That would be insane. 100% effort is what you do when a bear is chasing you, and it’s not possible to go that hard any given Tuesday in the gym. Reps in reserve allows me to set expectations for workout intensity (usually 1-2 RiR) and stick to them.

Rep cadence

Repetition cadence, or the speed with which a rep is performed, is part of principle 1, What I do. Controlling the weight is important both during the concentric motion (tightening the muscle to pull, push, lift the weight) and the often overlooked eccentric motion (extending the muscle to let the weight come back to rest). For hypertrophy, I aim for an explosive concentric movement that takes 1 time unit, followed by a slower eccentric movement that takes 3 time units.² I log this rep cadence as 1 / 3. In a rowing exercise, for example, I pull the weight toward my chest (concentric) for a 1 count, then let the weight back down for a 3 count.

While I always aim for this same rep cadence of 1 / 3, I still always write it down for every exercise. This style of lifting is quite tiring and if I were to do a different rep cadence like 1 / 1 that would totally change the exercise. Trying to slowly lower the leg press weight for a 3 count while on the last rep of the last set is damn hard. If I don’t hold myself accountable by logging cadence, it’s easy to throw in the towel.

Last time I did this exercise, what did I do?

Before I do the first set of an exercise, I look back in my log to the last time I did that exercise, and note the weight, reps, and RiR of the first set. This provides a benchmark for today’s first set and relates to principle 3, How it compares to last time.

If last push workout I did 180 lb for 9 reps with 1 RiR on the machine press, I record that in today’s log as

Machine Press (180x9 1)

I use this to make an informed decision when choosing today’s weight and set expectations for the number of reps. It also keeps me mindful of how I’m progressing over time. Whether I’m advancing or plateauing, I’m reminded to push myself at least as hard as last time, or maybe focus on rest and recovery this week.

Putting it all together

Combining these elements, my final log for an exercise will look like this

1. Machine Press (180x9 1)  <- what I did last time
180x9   1  1/3  <- 1st set: 1 RiR and a 1/3 cadence
160x10  1
160x8   .5  <- last set I like to approach failure

The 1. marks this is my first exercise of the workout. The .5 reps in reserve means I didn’t push to absolute muscle failure, but I certainly couldn’t have completed another full rep with good form.

I do this for every exercise and end my log with the time I finish.

Here’s my log from yesterday’s push workout, with my own shorthand. You can see I didn’t improve much from last push day, and even regressed a bit on the shoulder press.

Why

The first principle is that you must not fool yourself, and you are the easiest person to fool.

– Richard Feynman

Keeping a log helps me pursue my exercise objectives by giving me a framework that remains constant even as my motivation and focus fluctuate. Without a log I’m certain I’d fool myself into thinking that I worked out more often than I did, that I pushed each set as hard as I could, that I maintained control as I had planned, or that I made progress from last time.

It’s easy to get to the gym when I feel motivated and life is going well. It’s easy to apply myself to each exercise when I’m excited for the workout. But the other 2/3 of the time I need my workout log to hold me accountable.

I think everyone should keep a workout log. Of course it will look different than mine, but progress with fitness, or really anything, requires knowledge of

1. What you did
2. What you could have done
3. How it compares to last time

Using paper

My log is pen on paper and that’s ideal. Of course this could be put in an app, but for what purpose? I like the tactile nature of my notebook and the flexibility it gives me to keep notes however I feel like. Not to mention the satisfaction of a stack of notebooks with all my workouts going back to 2017. ³

If you keep a workout log yourself, or just have thoughts on the process, shoot me a message. My log format has changed a bit over time and I’d enjoy hearing how others approach this.