Exercise logging question

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DanArmstrong7260
DanArmstrong7260 Posts: 1 Member
in Fitness and Exercise

Exercise logging doesn't seem to be very flexible. My goal is 100 or more pull-ups per week. The days, sets, and reps per set vary depending on how I feel.

But the logging interface is very rigid - you have to set up an exercise with a specified number of reps and sets, while mine vary all over the place.

Similarly, I do a 3 minute and 20 second plank every morning. There are no reps and no sets. Unclear how I can enter this in the sets-reps-weight form

Am I missing omething? The interface seems set up for people who go to the gym and use machines.

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Answers

  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 36,957 Member

    The strength side of MFP exercise logging is pretty minimal. There are lots of good apps for logging strength exercise these days, much better than MFP. I'm pretty sure MFP will let you create custom strength exercise, but the variables are still reps/sets/weight. I don't use that feature even when I do conventional weight lifting.

    I haven't explored what one can do via the "workout routines" feature in the MFP phone/tablet app, but maybe that would work better for you.

  • AchilleusKozmo
    AchilleusKozmo Posts: 22 Member

    sounds like someone has the making of a good exercise tracking app! Let us know once you get it out there or you find something that hits the spot. I’m starting to appreciate the benefits of tracking, even though it goes against every one of my fibers to be so intentional.

  • springlering62
    springlering62 Posts: 9,698 Member

    I dispense with all that and let Apple Watch pull the load of calculating.

    I’d imagine other trackers do the same.

  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 10,610 Member

    If you're interested in the calories: they are probably a lot less than you think and not really worth logging. Overall, strength exercises are still logged in the Cardio section, and not in Strength. For progress I'd look at a different app, or a good old-fashioned spreadsheet.

  • mistymsanderson1
    mistymsanderson1 Posts: 2 Member

    Yeah I found the same thing. There are some of the basic strength training choices and it would not let me enter something without a weight being attached in the last column. I don't care about the calories but it would be nice to have something to track what I am doing.

  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 36,957 Member
    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/comment/48680330#Comment_48680330

    LOL at "old-fashioned spreadsheet". I'm one of the "tiny notebook and pen/pencil" set. For me, nothing else has worked as well for recording during workouts. I admit the apps or a spreadsheet will offer better reporting of trends and such.

    I'm not sure why so many answers here focus on the calories: OP seems to be talking about recording exercise details and progress. While my fitness tracker alleges it can auto-identify lifting exercises, then count reps/sets, it's really terrible at doing that with the remotest accuracy. YMMV. Other people even report better results with the same tracker I have, compared to what I see. Go figure. 😉

  • J72FIT
    J72FIT Posts: 6,061 Member

    Honestly I don't bother tracking workouts (other than walking) on my watch or Fitbit when I had one. Select "active" when setting up your calories and training should be baked into the cake.

  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 36,957 Member
    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/comment/48680946#Comment_48680946

    With complete and sincere respect, as someone here's who's seen evidence of your routine, @J72FIT :

    I can easily believe that setting activity level at "active" would work for you. For someone with a less extensive workout plan, "active" might be a bit on the optimistic side.

    It's certainly a reasonable option to bake exercise activity into one's calorie goal, and have the same goal every day, rather than doing the MFP "add exercise calories separately". I'd suggest that someone who wants to do that should base their goals on a TDEE calculator that's a bit more explicit about how much exercise is part of the calorie needs. This one isn't bad, IMO, though it does seem to be having some technical troubles right now:

    https://www.sailrabbit.com/bmr/

  • J72FIT
    J72FIT Posts: 6,061 Member
    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/comment/48680981#Comment_48680981

    and of course course correct if needed…

  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 36,957 Member
    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/comment/48682060#Comment_48682060

    Absolutely. Many-multi-week weight trend results are the best predictor of calorie needs. Calculators or trackers just give us starting estimates.

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