Why you should keep a workout log.

At my gym, WNY MMA and Fitness, we require all of our students keep a workout journal. In their journal they write down in detail their warm-up routine, the workout, the “score” or results of the workout, and any thoughts or feelings they had in regards to the day. When they write down the workout they include the weights they used and any modifications made to the exercises.

Why do we require students keep a journal?

First and foremost because keeping a journal accelerates the learning process. Starting a new workout routine can involve learning new skills and new jargon. By writing down your workouts you are taking an additional few minutes to process what you have learned, repeat the concepts and terminology to yourself, and engrain it into your brain. Plus, if you forget what an exercise is called, you now have an easy reference.

Logging workouts also helps you remember the appropriate weights to use on a workout.Sometimes from workout to workout it can be hard to remember which kettlebell you used or which weight dumbbell you lifted. You might be working out on your own and there’s nobody to ask, or maybe you wanted to do a little more than last time, but you’re not sure how much weight you had put on the barbell. Having a journal to double check can quickly give you an answer that’s possibly even more accurate than what your coach may estimate.

As a coach, I find that if you as a student are journaling, I have a greater ability to help you on your fitness journey. if you have a detailed log of your workouts, it aids me in giving advice on how to progress because I know exactly what you have been doing, instead of guessing. Perhaps your progress has stalled out and you’re not sure why. If you have a journal we can sit and look through your workouts and try to pinpoint the problem. This is especially helpful if you are also logging details like sleep, water intake and nutrition. Logging isn’t just for workouts!

Finally, the best part of journaling is being able to track your progress. This is a great benefit both for when you are having a good day at the gym and when you are having a bad day. I have been doing CrossFit for a little over six years and I have a stack of journals, one for each year. It’s a lot of fun to be able to look back and see how far I have progressed. And, when I’m having a day where I’m being hard on myself, it’s encouraging to see I really have come a long way already and that the journey is full of peaks and valleys.

What are the basic benefits of journaling?

• Faster learning
• Remembering weights
• Having information to analyze
• Tracking progress

And remember – journaling isn’t just for CrossFit. You can keep detailed records of your workouts no matter what your exercise regimen. For example, you can log your run times and distances, you can log the new yoga moves you learned and what was challenging about them, or you can log your weightlifting numbers. Personally, I keep a kickboxing journal where I write down any new combos or techniques I learned in class. 

So what all can you  write in your journal?

• Warm-up routine 
• Skill practice or new movements learned
• Workout and “score” of the workout
• Weights used and any scaled movements
• Post-workout stretching or mobility work
• Hours of sleep
• Water intake
• Mood
• Any circumstances surrounding the workout
• What the BEST part of your workout was!

No matter what you are doing for your health and fitness, journaling is a valuable tool that will help you remember details and accelerate your progress.

Origanal post

Dont forget to DEADLIFT

Here are 7 reasons why the Deadlift is a superb exercise for serious Athletes…
1. If you’re a bodybuilder, or a guy who wants to be JACKED, very few things add slabs of granite-hard muscle to your body like heavy deads

2. If you’re a powerlifter or strongman – your sporting success depends a lot on how good your deadlift is. The deadlift is where power meets are won and lost and in any given strongman competition, one or more events are strongly deadlift based

3. Deadlifting builds a pretty decent grip; at least once you get fairly strong at it. In most sports, having a stronger grip will make you a better athlete.

In fact, my friend Elliot Newman recently spoke with Dr Stuart McGill and ‘Stu’ said that one very common thing he sees in many ELITE athletes is a lack of grip strength. So making those paws stronger is good – no matter what level you’re at

4. If you program your deadlift training sensibly, it will make you a lot STRONGER from head-to-toe. In particular – your glutes, hamstrings, entire back, core, forearms and grip will get stronger.

And when you get stronger, good things usually happen. For instance, you’ll probably notice that you get FASTER and more POWERFUL too. Faster, more powerful athletes are always better athletes.

5. The deadlift is relatively simple to learn (at least compared with many other barbell lifts). Sure, not everybody is ready to pull from the floor, but there is a variation to suit everybody – even if their mobility totally sucks.

The short learning curve and adaptability make the deadlift a great choice for athletes because it means that they don’t have to spend months drilling the exercise before they can actually load up some weight and see a meaningful improvements in strength, muscle mass and sporting performance.

6. The deadlift teaches AGGRESSION. If you aren’t aggressive with a heavy pull – it isn’t gonna budge an inch. This aggression is something that many sports require, so there’s a nice carry over effect.

7. The deadlift really hits the posterior chain hard (the back of the body). So if you’re one of those guys who has over-trained the ‘mirror muscles’ (front of your body), incorporating deadlifts into your training is a great way to bring balance back to your physique.

Of course – to be a good athlete – one who performs like a BEAST and is resilient to injury… it helps to be balanced.

So there you have it…

Now, before you rush off to pull a Deadlift PR, I need to tell you a couple of important things…

• You must deadlift with good form. Failure to do so can result in some extremely nasty injuries. Go to enough powerlifting meets and sooner or later you’ll see lower back injuries, tweaked hamstrings and torn biceps galore.Not fun.BUT… the prevention method is simple – deadlift with good technique!
• You must program your deadlift training sensibly. Seriously, get it wrong and you’ll likely end up overtrained faster than Usain Bolt runs the 100. No joke.

Original Post By: http://jasonferruggia.com/ Edited By: WNY MMA