Health Tips
Colorado / My Physical Activity / Monitoring My Progress
Monitoring My Progress
Monitoring your progress, whether through keeping a detailed food and activity record, or simply checking off each time you achieve your goal, has been shown to be a very powerful tool for helping people make long-term health behavior changes. This section provides resources for self-monitoring tools:
Connection to Health Tracking sheet (PDF)
This self-monitoring worksheet was developed by our Connection to Health team. The goal of the Connection tool is to help you track your progress for any goal(s) you choose to make. Click here to download.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Physical Activity Staying on Track:
Keeping a record is an important part of the program and will help you succeed. Each log sheet includes a motivational or instructional tip. These log sheets will help you accurately monitor your progress in strength training. (Click here for downloadable log sheet.)
Free online resources
- SuperTracker: My foods. My fitness. My health.
An online tool from USDA for recording intake and activity. A free and very comprehensive website!
supertracker.usda.gov - MyFitnessPal Has an exercise tracker with the ability to calculate the number of calories you burned during physical activity. It is also available as a free app for your smart phone!
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/ - Map My Walk, Map My Run, & Map My Ride Great free websites that can map your route, track your activity, log your food, and share it all with your friends! And these are also free apps for your smart phone!
http://www.mapmywalk.com/
http://www.mapmyrun.com/
http://www.mapmyride.com/ - 5K Runner: 0 to 5K run training Run or walk a 5K race in just nine weeks. The app features virtual coaches, music and graphs to record and track progress. Price: $2.99.
- Pocket Yoga Yoga instructors lead through three different variations of yoga, three difficulty levels and three durations. Also look for the dictionary of yoga poses and terms. Price: $2.99.
- Daily Workouts Easy to follow and good for beginners. Price: Free.
- Step Counters
These handy devices are relatively inexpensive and easy to wear. They track the number of steps that you take in a day and the goal is to accumulate at least 10,000 steps each day. They range in price from around $20 to $60. Some popular step counters include:- Omron HJ-321 Tri-Axis Pedometer
- Fitbit One Tracker
- Yamax Digiwalker CW-701 Pedometer
- New-Lifestyles NL-2000i Pedometer
- Omron HJ-720 ITC Pedometer
- Technology to Monitor Physical Activity
The use of technology to monitor and motivate people to exercise is exploding! Mostly worn on your wrist, these devices utilize accelerometer technology that is able to track all movement. Following are three of the most popular devices currently on the market:- Fitbit Flex
A three dimensional device that can track steps, distance, calories burned, stairs climbed and sleep. Can sync wirelessly with your smart phone and syncs with other fitness/health apps. Cost: $99.94 with optional $49 to download data off the website - Nike+ Fuel Band
Similar to the Fitbit, this is a three dimensional device that can track steps, distance, calories burned, and goals and has a social media component. It also doubles as a watch. Can sync wirelessly with your smart phone and has a USB port that can download information to your computer. Cost: $149.00 - Jawbone Up
Tracks steps, distance, calories burned, sleep and mood. Can sync wirelessly with your smart phone and has a USB port that can download information to your computer. Contains a motor that vibrates if sedentary for too long. Syncs with other fitness/health apps. Cost: $129.99
- Fitbit Flex
Smart Phone and Tablet Apps
A review of popular apps revealed several options. This is not an endorsement of any product or service. Favorable reviews were noted to include: