The Basics, Perfectly Polished
Some months ago my physician told me I needed to be much more aggressive about preserving and increasing muscle mass to make the aging process truly the golden years. Uhm, it sounded polite but in fact wasn’t a suggestion. Instead of lifting a few weights after a swim I decided to get (mildly) aggressive and organized. A terrific kid at the front desk at my gym who is obviously a seasoned weight lifter already (though still an early 20something) suggested a pattern to me AND said he considered it very important to keep a lifting journal—to be able to see where to begin each exercise and to monitor progress as the times come to increase weight and reps. Even though I’m never going to make a polo pop as he does I saw no reason to ignore quality advice. Up to that point everything was easy. Finding the right app has been much more complex than I could’ve imagined. Seriously. None allowed me to name the exercise machines and free weight routines what I wanted to call them, what they call themselves. The only options were from hit and miss pulldown menus. That will seem insignificant to some who read this review. Besides what I’ve said the seven or eight others I tried required much more information than I wanted to worry with. I mean, a lot. And the requirement to pay (more than pocket change) before even trying it out was typical. This app is free. There’s no way to pay anything even if a user wanted to. Oh! I had a really basic question and emailed support. Within a few hours the developer himself emailed me back with quick and easy steps to do what I was trying to do but couldn’t. The solution was elementary, but he nonetheless treated my inquiry as worth a thorough, prompt, and courteous response. I’m really happy with it. There are no bells and whistles by design (although I still get a digital confetti shower when I complete sets as indicated in the template I designed—a nice little boost). If you want a simple and dependable tool that allows you to record exercise, reps, and sets in a helpful format (with a little confetti thrown in) and if free doesn’t put you off, I recommend it. (I’m taking the app to my next physical to show my doc exactly what I’ve been up to. Brownie points don’t hurt when you request a prescription refill on a Friday afternoon at 4!)
Show more
