HOW TO TRACK AND SEE PROGRESS

Nothing is more motivating than seeing progress. When we get results, we want to do more of the thing that got us the results so it continues and increases. They reinforce each other; you get results and then, you stay focused, to then, get more results.

Habits are what drives progress. When habits are locked in, the progress and results are going to happen. There are two keys here to unlock. The first is, determine what are the results you are wanting to get and second, what are the habits you need to implement?

Let’s say that the results that you’re looking to achieve is to lose body fat. Great. So step one is to determine what are the habits that are needed to do so? Here are a few examples.

First, hit our nutrition goals or macros, so we know we need to develop the habit of logging our food. Second, we need to progress in the gym. Third, hit our minimum daily step goal.

Next we need to track these habits. You can’t measure what you don’t track. Tracking the nutrition is simple. Look at your food log and it will tell you immediately if you’re hitting your macros. Same goes for your training log. Finally, step count. There are lots of different wearable tech options out there, but find one that works for you and use it to track where you are at.

These are all leading indicators, which mean they have to happen first, before the lagging indicators show up. Losing bodyfat and/or gaining muscle is a lagging indicator.

We can take this one step further. It’s one thing to track the results of your key impact habits, but what if we simply need to lock in a habit?

In this scenario, we can track the habits themselves. This is when I like to get even more visibility of what are my key habits and use a habit tracker.

Each week, decide what the frequency is. Training 5x per week? Tracking 7 days, meal prep 2 days, grocery store 1 day? These set you up for daily habits.

There are lots of methods. Could use a spreadsheet, some use their phone, others like to write them down. I use the last method as even though it is old school, I think there is something powerful that happens when you take something that is in your head, and that thought travels through your body and you physically put it to paper.

Let me give some more examples of trackable leading indicators: Sleep, fluid, mobility work, taking supplements, screen time, reading, journaling. A lot of you have many habits that you all are tracking and I love it. You each have some of the same, but they are all individual to you.

Let me say that motivation gets way too much attention. If you have to rely on motivation, it will fail you. The key is to become robotic when it goes to your habits. This will allow you to continue to do the things you need to do, even when the desire is gone that you had when you set the goal.