High Powered Journaling

Not long after I started lifting, I began writing down my workouts in a training journal. The date, exercises, sets, reps, and a few notes to detail the workout made up the bulk of my journal entries. As time went on, I was diligent about logging all these workouts, and I accumulated a couple of years worth of journal entries. But I really didn’t know just what to make of them. I realized journaling held a lot of potential for me, but I couldn’t really find the key to unlock the potential. The greatest use of my journal was seeing what my PRs were for certain movements as well as checking the last weights and reps of an exercise that was being rotated back into use so I had an idea of what my previous capabilities were and what I should expect currently.

Journaling Direction

Eventually, I came across Reactive Training Systems and the Reactive Training Manual that really provided a lot of direction for my journaling and really let me expand it into something that provided me with the feedback I had been seeking. I started with a training template that had assigned exercise slots rather than specific exercises. My three squat slots are prime squat, squat assistance, and squat supplement, although the individual naming isn’t important. Just use whatever labels make the most sense to you. Some might prefer terms like squat one, two, and three or first and second quad exercise. Use whatever makes sense to you. The advantage of tracking by exercise slots is the slot stays the same regardless of what exercise variation is used. I feel this makes it easier to watch the progression of the movement even if the exercise variation has changed. It is also easier to observe progression of that exercise slot over time when you have multiple weeks’ worth of information consolidated into one place. Because most lifters organize their training around the seven-day calendar week, I suggest setting it up so that each slot is only used once per week.

From there I track information such as estimated one rep max (E1RM), total poundage lifted, total reps performed, total sets performed, average intensity, and highest intensity. I also track the exercise variation performed and the protocol for the day.

1RM Accuracy

Regarding an E1RM, it's necessary to know this in order to calculate percentages if you don't have a previous and accurate 1RM to go by. There are many 1RM calculators online to determine this, but they aren't always accurate. Two lifters with the same 1RM aren't guaranteed to be able to perform the same number of reps with 85 percent of their max. An individual isn't even guaranteed to perform the same number of squats at 85 percent of his max squat as he can bench at 85 percent of his max bench.

Mike Tuchscherer offers an excellent solution to determining an E1RM that takes individual circumstances into account. The rate of perceived effort (RPE) mentioned in the article is as follows:

• 10 RPE: Couldn't have performed an additional rep
• 9 RPE: Could have performed one more rep
• 8 RPE: Could have performed at least two more reps; bar speed isn't fast any longer
• 7 RPE: Bar speed is fast if maximal force is applied

Adapting an RPE-based training system isn't necessary in order to utilize the E1RM calculator, although you should have an idea of how many more reps would be possible if you're putting a high level of effort into the set. Once you have determined your percentages, you're set. From here, we take the reps performed and the effort applied and find the intersection and the resulting percentage. Then we take the weight lifted divided by the percentage and this gives us our E1RM.

For example, Joe works up on the bench press and hits 300 lbs for four reps. After racking the bar, he thinks “Yea, I could have done one more.” With his RPE chart, he sees that four reps and a 9RPE (can also be viewed as a 5RM weight) intersect at 87 percent. Three hundred pounds divided by 87 percent equals 344.8 or rounded to an E1RM of 345.

Other Tracking

In addition to the stats for each exercise, I also track time spent training, total poundage lifted for the day, total reps, total sets, and the number of lifts by intensity for the workout. I choose to count 70–79 percent, 80–89 percent, and 90–100 percent. For those who train with the conjugate method, you likely would want to use different ranges to include the lighter percentages that dynamic effort work is generally performed at. All these daily values can easily be summed into a weekly overview just as all the lower body slot data can be summed into a weekly lower body overview. The same goes for upper body slots.

Regarding tracking poundage, the number of lifts, and the number of sets performed, I don't count my warm-up sets into these values because I don't feel that the lighter percentage weights contribute anything to the training effect beyond preparing me to lift a heavier weight in the next set. You may choose to count everything from an empty barbell on upward or choose to count only after you reach a certain percentage or certain amount of effort. With whatever method you choose for determining your starting point, stay consistent with it.

Spreadsheet Made Simple

So that looks like a whole lot of math, huh? Well you’re right, but it doesn’t have to be time spent hunched over a calculator checking and double checking everything. A well-designed spreadsheet as well as the appropriate formulas and the cut and paste function make this very simple. Now, my journal only takes a few more minutes out of my day than when I used to write everything down on paper afterward, yet it provides much more valuable information.

So just what is the value of this? While no one statistic by itself (with the exception of an E1RM) is all that valuable, they can give a clearer picture of your training rather than simply relying on memory when combined. Have your lifts stalled and you're going nowhere? Look back at your training and compare it to a time when your lifts were going up. What were the volumes between these two different periods of time? What kind of intensities were you working at? What exercise variations were you using? These are all questions that can be answered by a thorough training journal.

Prilipen's Chart

Most powerlifters have heard of Prilipen’s chart. For those who haven't, it was a chart designed by A.S. Prilepin that assigned an ideal range of reps to perform per set and an optimal range and number per workout based on a certain percentage range. This chart was designed through research with Olympic lifters and with some deviation at the 90–100 percent range. Powerlifters have also found this to be effective for their training. If detailed training stats are kept, an easy and quick comparison can be made between Prilipen's Chart and your own training. It might be possible to notice long-term trends. Rather than rely on Prilipen's chart, you can now begin to create your own chart of ideal number of reps at each intensity zone.

While this serves as a fantastic tool, it requires the user to be able to optimally use it. I have come to find that reviewing my journal and determining what is effective and what isn’t as effective works best if I keep a tight rein on the variables involved. We don't become stronger in a vacuum, and many factors outside the gym as well as those in our control can influence the process of getting stronger. However, strict control should be maintained over the factors we can control. If you were to modify five different variables and got significantly stronger over a certain period of time, which variables led to you getting stronger? Was it just one? Or three? Or maybe all of them? What variables should you change for the next cycle and what ones should you keep the same? These questions can be much easier to answer when you're modifying one variable at a time and realizing the effect of that one variable. Training variables could be the subject of another entire article, so I'll simply leave it at the fewer variables in your training, the more likely you are to identify effective and ineffective variables in your training.

Besides the above listed sections in my journal, I also dedicate sections to goals (performance and effort goals), personal records, future plans and ideas, test day statistics, and the all-encompassing miscellaneous section. I do use a computer for spreadsheet functions and typing the information in, but I personally prefer a hard copy of all this information. Some people would much rather consult a computer or smart phone than a stack of papers. Determine what works best for you and use that method.

Realistically, I realize journaling isn’t going to instantly add pounds to my lifts, but I feel it's another stone overturned in an effort to push the body to its highest capabilities. While getting stronger is the strength athlete’s purpose rather than compiling statistics, understanding what exactly lead to the increases in strength can help ensure future increases in strength. This is where I feel this style of journaling definitely helps. Give it a try for a couple of months and you may very well have the same opinion. Until next time, may your PRs come quickly and steadily.

An example of eight weeks of my training.

References

• Simmons L (2001) HIT...or Miss?
• Tuchscherer M (n.d.) Customizing Your RPE Chart.