Tracking Talk - Macros, Fitness, and KPIs

[unclebuff702]

I'll preface this by saying I'm kind of a tech nerd, but the options that exist are overwhelming!

What do you use to track your health? Your macros? Your workouts? And what metrics and KPIs are you actually tracking?

I currently have an Amazfit Trex Pro 3 and the Fitbit Air. I have a bit of OCD related health anxiety so I switched from the watch to the Fitbit Air for the lack of screens and notifications on my wrist, but the Google Health app has shitty macro tracking so I'm still using the Zepp (Amazfit) app to track my CICO etc. Using the Strong app to track weightlifting progress, but Google Health to track my HR / SpO2 / sleep both during workouts and constantly throughout the day. I track BP mid morning and prior to bed manually and just write it down in a note book. I'm about to start tracking blood glucose and will likely do the same as I do with BP, but the Zepp app has places for me to log digitally in my phone...

I use Pep-pedia app to track my inventory and protocols on my research, but it has nothing for suppliments or HRT, and shotzy to track my Tirz and view estimated blood serum levels of the GLP.

I feed all this info into Gemini once weekly and have it make me a pretty sick tracking dashboard in HTML so I can view in browser and compare time over time trends.

Now I find I have paralysis by analysis, trying to decide to stick with Fitbit or just wear the Amazfit watch. Important to note, money I don't blow on research chemicals I usually blow on luxury timepieces so I do enjoy rocking my fancy pants watches.

What are you using to track your health and fitness, if at all, and what metrics do you actually track over time?

I should also note that I am one of those anti-apple guys so Apple watch is a no go

 

[TacoLifter420]

I track basic sleep and health stats with my Samsung watch and their health app.

I track food,calories and macros with the same health app.

Ill adjust training intensity based on sleep and HRV figures from the night before.

I manually track BP once a week in the same place.

I use gpt to review the data and give me key points to research further. You can't trust AI, without independently verifying important stuff. It tends to go off the rails.

Great idea starting this thread. Im interested in what others are doing too.

 

[HereKittyKitty]

I'm terribly boring. I track sleep and HR via Samsung Health. Peps I track inventory on paper (started a ridiculous spreadsheet but I work in them all day and couldn't stomach any more .XLSX in my days). Dosing using the calendar on my phone. Food, hydration, supplements, activity, and weight I track using Bariatric.

I am building my own app. LOL

 

[Foggy-Hollow]

I wear a Garmin 265 24/7. It tracks HRV, sleep, any workouts I trigger to start/stop. It will yell at me if I am too stressed in the evening.

I track BP when I know I’m having issues. Simple phone app.

I track running mileage - these days it’s time on feet not literal miles, as I am heavy and slow. Usually a sheet of paper on the wall.

When I track food I watch electrolytes especially heart-related. Macros help me keep my appetite in check, 40-30-30 was eye opening (carbs 40%). And water. I use Lose it due to what particular micronutrients they cover.

KEY indicators I’ll have to narrow it to HRV. It tells me when I’m stressed for too long or going to get sick soon.

If I have a race I’m targeting mileage is put into a visual, for motivation. More of an x-factor, I’ve made all these workouts, I can do today too.

Weight lifting is Google Sheets. My phone is on me at the gym. Inconsistent but can see that my bench is pretty consistent at 6x 70lbs and as a F49 I’m happy. If I want a program I can preload it on a computer and it’s easy to access at the gym.

Really it depends on your goals. KPIs should point toward predicting goal success or how to adjust to get you there.

For fitness tracker I adore Garmin. They’ve been a leader in that space for decades, they were one of the prime GPS navigators before smart phones. My first was a 305 triathlon watch (circa 2006) that I killed by swimming with it on in a race … yes really. It was only water resistant to wash your hands, not water proof. Their products wear like iron and they’ve had to diversify markets to keep growing because they are their own worst enemy.

They’re starting to lock features behind higher models which I find annoying on principle. I used to be able to turn on afib alert but I that went away from the 265. News to give incentive to upgrade I guess.

Since I am around fellow techies, AMOLED screens are beautiful. You can download a myriad of screens, some with many data fields. Some are free some are a few bucks.

Garmin Connect has my data from (guessing) 2006 and on. I can lement at how fast I was in 2010-2011.

There’s also a site RunningAhead which is a throwback to 1995 software (in a loving sense) but robust and also hangs on to data forever.

I applied for a position with Garmin and I fan-girled the screening interview too hard. It’s one of the very few times I didn’t get a call back lol. So I know I can go on too much.

Their workouts cover a myriad of activities, it predicts what weightlifting I’m doing pretty well.

 

[Foggy-Hollow]

unclebuff702 said:


And what metrics and KPIs are you actually tracking?

Click to expand...

You’re making me think about trying to pull all or some data together in a more comprehensive way since I’m unintentionally scattered. I really like this idea, instead of treating workouts, fueling, etc as separate topics.

Thanks for inspiring thought!

 

[unclebuff702]

TacoLifter420 said:


I track basic sleep and health stats with my Samsung watch and their health app.

I track food,calories and macros with the same health app.

Ill adjust training intensity based on sleep and HRV figures from the night before.

I manually track BP once a week in the same place.

I use gpt to review the data and give me key points to research further. You can't trust AI, without independently verifying important stuff. It tends to go off the rails.

Great idea starting this thread. Im interested in what others are doing too.

Click to expand...

I've never used anything Samsung, I might have to check it out! Spot on about AI, I've had some wild AI hallucinations in the past. It's gotten better since I've built a custom NotebookLLM with all my data aggregation happening in a drive repo.

I still will ask it wild crap to test and will always cross reference it's recommendations with another LLM and my own research.

 

[unclebuff702]

Foggy-Hollow said:


I wear a Garmin 265 24/7. It tracks HRV, sleep, any workouts I trigger to start/stop. It will yell at me if I am too stressed in the evening.

I track BP when I know I’m having issues. Simple phone app.

I track running mileage - these days it’s time on feet not literal miles, as I am heavy and slow. Usually a sheet of paper on the wall.

When I track food I watch electrolytes especially heart-related. Macros help me keep my appetite in check, 40-30-30 was eye opening (carbs 40%). And water. I use Lose it due to what particular micronutrients they cover.

KEY indicators I’ll have to narrow it to HRV. It tells me when I’m stressed for too long or going to get sick soon.

If I have a race I’m targeting mileage is put into a visual, for motivation. More of an x-factor, I’ve made all these workouts, I can do today too.

Weight lifting is Google Sheets. My phone is on me at the gym. Inconsistent but can see that my bench is pretty consistent at 6x 70lbs and as a F49 I’m happy. If I want a program I can preload it on a computer and it’s easy to access at the gym.

Really it depends on your goals. KPIs should point toward predicting goal success or how to adjust to get you there.

For fitness tracker I adore Garmin. They’ve been a leader in that space for decades, they were one of the prime GPS navigators before smart phones. My first was a 305 triathlon watch (circa 2006) that I killed by swimming with it on in a race … yes really. It was only water resistant to wash your hands, not water proof. Their products wear like iron and they’ve had to diversify markets to keep growing because they are their own worst enemy.

They’re starting to lock features behind higher models which I find annoying on principle. I used to be able to turn on afib alert but I that went away from the 265. News to give incentive to upgrade I guess.

Since I am around fellow techies, AMOLED screens are beautiful. You can download a myriad of screens, some with many data fields. Some are free some are a few bucks.

Garmin Connect has my data from (guessing) 2006 and on. I can lement at how fast I was in 2010-2011.

There’s also a site RunningAhead which is a throwback to 1995 software (in a loving sense) but robust and also hangs on to data forever.

I applied for a position with Garmin and I fan-girled the screening interview too hard. It’s one of the very few times I didn’t get a call back lol. So I know I can go on too much.

Their workouts cover a myriad of activities, it predicts what weightlifting I’m doing pretty well.

Click to expand...

I used to LOVE Garmin! The Tactics Bravo 3 was my first real smart watch lol. The prices kept creeping up and at the time I had an issue with something in the Garmin Connect app, can't remember what the issue was tho.

I used to track strength training in Google Sheets too, but I love the strong app (free version) to just be easier lol.

 

[islandtime50]

I've had Garmins for years. Can't say I am totally in love between the prices, the new pay wall, several watches have died, and getting any kind of touch screen causes havoc at work (things get turned on, settings get changed, the watch had no idea what to do with tree climbing), I have definitely ripped up so many bands, and all you have to do is lean on something the wrong way to get abnormal heart rate warnings.

I have used myfitnesspal on and off for years. This will sound really lame but I have actually found the best food macro system to be the coloured container system that you get with BeachBodi. It's just easier and worked really well for me.

I have been in and out of love with both of them. I have shelved the watch for months and definitely not always tracked food over the years (getting to be decades).