Health and Fitness Tracking…are you Tracking Too Much?

How to Rein In Your Health and Fitness Tracking

Are You Tracking Too Much?

It’s easy to get caught up in your health and fitness tracking data. You can track all your workouts on one application and track your food and calories on another. A third app can help you stay on top of your health numbers while a fourth can connect you to others in your fitness community. All this information is a good thing, isn’t it?

Believe it or not, there can be a downside to tracking too much information. Let’s take a quick look at what it might be, and then we’ll discuss how to make sure you’re tracking what you need.

The Downside to Tracking Too Much Information

Some information you track is well… frankly, it’s unnecessary. Unless it supports you in achieving your goals, it may just be getting in your way. For example, if your goal is simply to exercise more often, tracking your caloric intake may not provide you any useful information.

Too much information can actually hinder your success as it can confuse the issue. You may start paying more attention to your caloric intake, your average heart rate or your weight loss instead of focusing on your simple goal to exercise more often.

Tips to Rein It In

1. Pay attention to your goals

What is it you want to achieve right now? What is your main goal? Let’s say your goal is to exercise more often (and it should be noted that simple goals are easier to achieve than complex ones). If this is your goal, then there are really only two key points to pay attention to in your health and fitness tracking: when you exercise and how often you exercise.

2. Look at what you’re really tracking

What information are you presently tracking? You may be tracking more than you need, and you may be tracking the wrong information. Look at your goals. If your goal is to lose weight, what is your plan to accomplish that?

Another example could be that you are counting calories. If you’re doing that, then counting calories is really the only information that you need to know. You need to know what you’re consuming and what you’re burning. You don’t need to track your heart rate, your sleep, or your pace. You just need to know calories in and calories out. Any additional information may be fun and interesting, but it may not be necessarily or useful.

3. Create a Plan

Pull back a bit and start tracking only the information you really need to know. Spend a month just tracking that information, and then assess your progress. Has the pared-down simpler approach helped you to stay focused?

The great thing about goals is that once you’ve achieved success, you can add a new goal to your lifestyle. Your goal to exercise more might change to a goal to run faster or to train for an event. You can then identify the key pieces of information you need to track for your new goal and stay on a smooth path to success. It’s a process!

Helping You Live Healthier in a Major Way!

Cheryl A Major, CNWC