The Age Of Digital Logbooks

The Number 1 Tool In Your... Phone?

As you know, I am one of the planet’s and likely known galaxy’s biggest proponents of using a logbook to ensure you’re making progress and be able to identify factors that are slowing you down—logbooking creates a system to guarantee you are making progress.

We went over this in this post earlier this year, but now we’re looking at bringing us into the 21st Century.

The future is now, we can do everything from the tips of our fingers, which means we can use the same thing we use to run 90% of our lives to also utilize one of the most, if not the most, important tools we can use in the gym—the logbook.

Now, I will admit, I have been completely stubborn and was stubbornly attached to using physical pen and paper and my ego was attached to feeling old school and hardcore—lol. I also didn’t like most of the digital logbooks on the market, I felt they were all overly extra with too many stupid features rather than just a simple logbook.

Fortunately, I’ve found one I personally like and I must say, it has been mighty convenient and allows me to interpret my data better—MUCH more on this later in the post.

I’ve been using a digital logbook in conjunction with my paper one (I like to make notes on my lifts) and so far it’s made me feel stupid… stupid that I haven’t been doing it sooner.

In addition to all the things a physical logbook does for us, when we do this digitally we have a major, major bonus—we have real data we can plug into any Excel/Numbers/Etc. and get actual charted-out data we can interpret… and if that made you think “that is so stupid, I’m not a nerd”, many of these digital logbooks do it for you and even send out monthly reports.

A few that I have tried tried are:

• Strong

• Hevy

• TrainHeoric

• FitBod

• MyLiftLog

I liked some of those more than others, I’m not really into ones that make things more complicated than just being able to create a workout, add my own lifts, and then track the weight and reps. Some of these apps make it a pain in the ass to just log a simple workout so they sucked for me, but your mileage may vary.

TrainHeroic seemed like it could be a winner for me because it would also allow me to coach and create plans for clients, but I just didn’t fall in love with how it works so unfortunately I didn’t stick with it… which sucks because it would’ve been a great tool for my coaching business.

Funny enough, before I started my BowTiedOx account and all of this because I didn’t find a logbook app I liked I was actually learning how to code so I could build one myself (I did NOT have the tens of thousands of dollars it takes to pay someone to build a decent app on my military salary). Needless to say, that didn’t work out…

This is why the one I want to focus on today is the last one listed, MyLiftLog.

The creator of it actually reached out to me and sent me a version he built for me with my logo and everything to see if I was interested in using it (for you entrepreneurs take note, great pitch tactic right there). Honestly, I didn’t think I would be interested but I thought “What the hell” and checked it out… the outcome was… let’s just say this led to him writing this post with me because I really liked it, and the potential it has.

It’s not the sexiest app with a bunch of pretty graphics and diagrams, it is just a barebones logbook app, which is exactly what I want in a logbook app—simple!

While simple, the app actually has some cool (and funny) features like letting you know how much weight you lifted in the equivalent of Lizzo’s, let’s you track your volume over the course of weeks and months, sends a monthly report on your progress, and even has integrations with things like Whoop and Cronometer. All of this is cool but it doesn’t complicate the app.

Before I start on some incoherent rant, I’ll let him take over and talk about it then I’ll come back in the end for some pretty damn cool news.

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About MyLiftLog From The Creator

You’re already doing 99% of the work. You’re eating a balanced diet. You’re at the gym 3-5x a week. You’ve been following a workout program (or just about to start a new one that’s particularly “Dense”). You’re doing all the right lifts for the right volume.

But, what if I told you there was 1 thing that you’re not doing that would require 1% of your total effort and could 5-10x the other 99% of your effort that you’re already doing? Of course, you’d do it, right? Who wouldn’t?

Well, unfortunately, far too many people in the gym aren’t logging their lifts. Whether you like it or not, if you’re not using a logbook, you’re almost certainly leaving gains on the table.

Picture this, it’s Week 8 Day 1. You’re 50% through your new program. You feel stronger, you think. You look bigger, you think. Why don’t you know? You know how many calories you ate yesterday. You know the spread for the game this weekend. You know how many TDs Mahomes threw this year. You know exactly what percent your crypto meme/dog coins are up (down 98%, you were rugged) today. But you don’t know how much weight or how many reps you did last week?

There’s no excuse. In 2-3 seconds, you can log your weight and reps between sets with MyLiftLog and never have to guess again.

“2 seconds? 1% of my time? Really?” is what you’re probably thinking. You don’t believe me? Well, let’s break it down then. I’m a numbers guy. I like to see data. You do 8 exercises for 2 sets each. 16 sets total. 1 minute to complete each set and 3 minutes rest. That’s 8 minutes per exercise. 8 minutes x 8 exercises = 64 minutes. We’ll be conservative and assume you have the world’s largest thumbs and it takes you 4 seconds after each set (twice as long) to enter your weight and reps into MyLiftLog. 18 sets x 4 seconds = 72 seconds.

With just 72 seconds out of your day, and 1.8% of your time at the gym (less than 1% if you have regular-sized thumbs), you’ll all but guarantee that you’re overloading progressively. A lot of people say, “work smarter, not harder.” Well, we like to work smarter AND work harder around here… and to be honest, it’s hard to think of many other things in life that require such little effort that have such a high ROI (other than blocking Doctor Tro).

On top of progressive overload, which we know is a fundamental aspect of muscle growth, MyLiftLog will help you stay consistent when motivation is inevitably running low.

We’ve all been there. Your kid woke up 9x during the night. You got 5 hours of sleep. Work’s been rough lately. You lost control and ate way too much last night. You step on the scale and it hasn’t budged. You flex in the mirror and compare yourself to all the jacked bros you see on Twitter/X every single day and think, “Is this shit really worth it? That could never be me.”

These are the defining moments in life when momentum can switch directions and you can completely go off the rails and be like “Joe Logan McAverage” or you can be “Above Average Joe” (https://www.bowtiedox.io/p/going-from-zero-to-hero).

Stop and think about it. Quitting doesn’t even make sense! You’re worried that you’re not getting results so you’re going to do the 1 thing that will absolutely guarantee that you don’t get any results?

You remember you’ve got Incline Bench programmed again today. You remember all those “+5lbs” and “+1 rep(s)” you’ve stacked up over the last 8 weeks. You remember how heavy 185 x 8 felt when you started and how good it felt when you finally hit 225 for reps. You know that you’re on the right track because of all those small W’s in the logbook and you couldn’t possibly imagine giving up (yet again) because, at the end of the day, that’s all getting jacked really is… a series of small W’s over and over and over again. You’re so fired up now that you’re practically cursing the Incline Bench’s existence, “Just wait ‘til I get there today buddy. You’re done for”.

Okay, okay, don’t get me going. Let’s reel it back in. So, with 1% effort, and 72 seconds out of your day:

• You can 5-10x what you’re already doing

• You get to stack up small W’s each and every day

• You know that your strength is going up and to the right

Awesome. But, there’s another benefit to logging your lifts… and this might be the most important one of them all:

The logbook forces you to “mechanical failure” (https://www.bowtiedox.io/p/lifting-to-mechanical-failure)

Humans are naturally lazy. Without fail, 95% of people take the path of least resistance. It’s a hell of a lot easier to hit snooze than it is to get up and go to the gym. Then, once you do make it to the gym, it’s a hell of a lot easier to go through the motions and leave 5 RIR (reps in reserve) on every exercise than it is to push yourself to failure. You’ve seen the guys in the gym whose lifts all look like warm-ups. Don’t be that guy. Each set should be hard and uncomfortable and the sooner you accept this the better.

Let’s assume you start the new “Density” program later today. It’s Week 1 Day 1. You’ve got “Incline” programmed. You do 185 x 6 with 3 RIR. That felt pretty good. It’s been a while since you’ve been in the gym. “Don’t wanna be too sore tomorrow” you tell yourself. Plus you’ve never really gone to failure before so you don’t know what that feels like. You might have been able to do a few more. Who knows. You felt a little burn. That must mean muscle growth, right? A few days go by. Push day comes back around and you’ve got “Incline” programmed yet again. You see in MyLiftLog that you did 185 x 6 last week and you know that you have to get 7 this week or you’re going to die.

You do it. 185 x 7 with ~2 RIR. That felt really good. Damn. 1 week? I’m already getting stronger? Let’s go! Another week goes by. We’re inclining again. You know the drill, have to beat the logbook. This time you hit 185 x 8. Now we’re at 1 RIR. We’re close to the promised land. Arms were shaking hard on that last rep. Next week, you ask a guy you’ve seen in the gym the last few weeks for a spot. You hit 190 x 9 and he helps you a tad on the last rep. Boom, failure! “+5 lbs” and “+1 rep”. This is the stuff that legends are made of.

Now, ask yourself, would you have done that without the logbook? Maybe, maybe not. But again, we’re not here to guess. We’re here to be very deliberate in the gym and to get the most out of our time there.

Also, after you’ve been logging for a while, I think you’ll find that this sentiment of being deliberate trickles over into your life outside of the gym in very positive ways, but that’s a discussion for another time (https://www.bowtiedox.io/p/can-being-fit-make-you-more-money).

Okay, MyLiftLog looks legit but I can do all of those things we just talked about by hand in my notebook. Why should I use an app?

I’m not here to tell you that one is better than the other. They’re both tools that have their pros and cons. At the end of the day, the most important thing is that you’re logging.

I prefer to use an app, if you do too then why should you use MyLiftLog?

MyLiftLog was created for people who want simplicity. It’s 2024 and almost all of us have more than enough screen time in our lives. A problem that plagues many apps is that they try to do all the things and users end up only using 5% of its features. On average, MyLiftLog ’s users are on the app for < 2 minutes during their workouts.

There are no target muscle visuals. No tutorial vídeos. No bloat. Only the features you really want and need: building templates (you can share them with your friends/family), scheduling workouts in advance, keeping track of body weight changes, uploading progress pictures, tracking PRs, calculating 1 rep maxes and total volume, etc. all wrapped up into a minimalist interface.

If you’re an absolute beginner, then yeah you might find some of the other apps with those visuals and videos more helpful. But, if you know your way around the gym and have a basic understanding of what you’re doing, it doesn’t get any easier than MyLiftLog.

And maybe the best part of all is that you can follow me, the guy building it: Isaac (@isaac_saas) and have a say in new features and updates (go ahead and send one of the other apps a feature request and see how long it takes me to get back to you!).

To sum it all up, pick whichever tool works best for you and start logging!

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Ox Here Again

Because of all of this, especially the last part right there, I’m working directly with MyLiftLog to give you all a way to do and track workouts AND my programs directly from your phone.

Being as he is building more and more features out all the time, he’s going to be able to use mine and your feedback to build the ultimate logbook app for all of us to use to make our lives easier and muscles bigger. This is even going to play a huge role in the 1:1 Coaching I will be offering again at the goal start of the beginning of next month.

If you go to MyLiftLog you will be able to run my programs from there that are built out as templates—over time we will be adding every single program I have put out (not just PPL but all the other set-up guide programs).

Personally, my favorite part of the entire app is the Monthly Report, this is HUGE for ensuring you’re moving in the right direction and growing as muscle growth takes place over the course of months, not weeks.

My second favorite feature is the Set Tracker, which referring back to my last point allows you to see just how much volume is the sweet spot in terms of how much volume you need. You just set a target goal and see how that works then adjust up or down from there.

Really, there is just a bunch of cool stuff and tons of data you can get and use to better optimize and set your training up in a way where you’re getting the absolute best results you can.

Now the catch:

Of course, running an app costs money, but for those who want to try this and see if you like it, you get a trial for 10 workouts for free, by then you’ll know if it’s for you or not, which won’t hurt my feelings (can’t speak for Isaac… I joke, I joke). When you do like it, it’s cheap, the same price as this Substack exactly (only $5/month or $50/year).

Normally I do not like to try to sell anything or “shill” products, but this is something I confidently stand behind and am willing to look “salesy” for a moment to share with you. Most of you are going to really like this and get huge benefits from it.

With that said, let’s see if we can make even better gains using the thing we spend most of our days staring at anyway.

- BowTiedOx

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DISCLAIMER

This is not Legal, Medical, or Financial advice. Please consult a medical professional before starting any workout program, diet plan, or supplement protocol. These are opinions from a Cartoon Ox.