Why track your workouts at all
Muscle and strength grow when you ask a little more of your body over time: one more rep, a bit more weight, an extra set. That is progressive overload, and you cannot do it reliably from memory. Did you get 8 reps at 60 kg (135 lb) last Monday, or 7? A workout log answers that in a second.
A paper workout journal does the job too. An app adds speed, search, charts and maths: it can turn your sets into an estimated one-rep max, spot a new personal record and, in some apps, tell you the next target. The point is the same either way: write down every working set.
The six things a workout tracker must do
1. Fast set logging
You log between sets, breathing hard, often with chalk or sweat on your hands. Logging a set should take one or two taps with the weight and reps already filled in. If an app makes you type every number, you will stop using it within a month.
2. Last session on the screen
The single most useful thing a gym tracker app can show is what you did last time on this exercise, next to the set you are about to do. That is the number you are trying to beat. Hiding it two screens away defeats the purpose.
3. Help with progression
Knowing what to lift next is the hard part of training. At minimum the app should make your history easy to read. Better apps apply a rule, such as adding weight when you hit the top of your rep range, or run a program like 5/3/1 that has its own progression built in. If you would rather plan the week yourself first, start with the workout planner.
4. Progress charts
Charts tell you whether your training is working. The most useful is estimated 1RM per exercise over time, since it combines weight and reps into one number. You can check any set by hand with our 1RM calculator.
5. A rest timer
Rest affects performance. Heavy compound sets often need 2 to 3 minutes, isolation work 60 to 90 seconds. A timer that starts by itself after you log a set keeps you honest without another tap.
6. An exercise library
You need clear instructions and the muscles each exercise trains, both for form and for finding a swap when the machine is taken. Our own exercise library shows the kind of detail worth looking for.
Workout tracker checklist
Run through this during your first week with any app. If it fails the first two points, keep looking, however good the rest is.
| Check | Pass if... | How to test it |
|---|---|---|
| Logging speed | A set takes 1 to 2 taps | Log a full workout and count the taps per set |
| Last session visible | Last weight and reps sit next to today's set | Start the same routine twice in a week |
| Progression | History is clear, or the app suggests a target | Look at what it shows before your second session |
| Charts | Estimated 1RM or best set per exercise over time | Open the chart for your main lift after 3 to 4 sessions |
| Rest timer | Starts after a set, adjustable per exercise | Log a set and see what happens |
| Exercise library | Instructions and muscles worked; custom exercises allowed | Search for an exercise you do and one you do not know |
| Plans | You can build your split or follow a ready-made one | Set up your real week, for example upper lower |
| Data export | You can export your history to a file | Find the export option in settings |
| Free version | Core logging works without paying | Check what is limited: routines, history, charts |
How the main apps handle it
A short, neutral overview from each app's own website or App Store listing, checked in October 2026. We only list features the apps describe themselves; check the store for the current version.
| App | Logging and last session | Progression and charts | Rest timer and tools |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hevy | Routines; last session's weights and reps shown for every exercise | Graphs and PRs per exercise, sets per muscle group per week; Hevy Trainer in Pro | Automatic rest timer, Apple Watch logging |
| Strong | Routines and workouts, Apple Watch logging with or without iPhone | Volume and 1RM graphs, PRs; advanced charts in PRO | Auto countdown timer, plate and warm-up calculators |
| Boostcamp | Logging inside a chosen program | Program progression; Auto Progression in Pro | Rest timer, plate calculator, RPE tracking |
| JEFIT | Log from phone or watch, form instructions and notes | 1RM estimates, charts, Adaptive Plan | Large exercise database |
| Fitbod | Logs the workouts it generates for you | Recommendations update as you log | Built around your equipment settings |
For a deeper look at two of the most popular loggers, read Hevy vs Strong, or go straight to our pages on a Hevy alternative and a Strong app alternative. If you want workouts planned for you instead, see our Fitbod alternative page, and for a wider overview of app types, the best workout app guide.
How Gripp tracks your workouts
Gripp is the iPhone app this site belongs to. It is coming soon and not available yet. Here is how it covers the checklist.
- Logging and last session: every set's reps and weight, with last time's numbers turned into today's target: "last time 7 reps at 105 kg (231 lb), today go for 8."
- Progression: double progression is built in. Hit the top of the rep range in every set and the weight goes up next session.
- Charts: estimated 1RM per exercise over time.
- Rest: a rest countdown appears after each logged set.
- Exercise library: exercise pages with a muscle map.
- Plan: a weekly schedule, for example 3 gym days and 1 run, such as a push pull legs week or a full body plan.
- Extra: a strength rating per muscle group against people of your age and bodyweight, in the spirit of our bench press standards.
Gripp also has an AI coach that reads your log. Ask why your bench has stalled or how to fit a short week, and it answers from your actual training; if it suggests a plan change, you approve it or not. It does not replace a physio when something hurts.
What Gripp does not track: calories, and there is no social feed.
Gripp is coming soon to iPhone
A workout tracker that tells you what to lift next. Join the waitlist to hear when it launches.
Join the waitlist