How to use Notion for programming and tracking workouts
December 2021 update → I have recently launched a new, improved, advanced version of this workout management system in Notion. You can find it here.
Training programming can be a daunting process, although worth it if you want to maximize results from your training sessions, in whatever sport you are involved. Training periodization is the art (and science) of manipulating training variables (mainly volume and intensity in the strength and conditioning world) in order to maximize the outcome from training sessions and achieve an athlete's goals. It is not necessary to periodize your training cycles and have such a well-defined structure in place if you are a recreational, non-competing lifter or athlete. But it can definitely benefit you if you use periodization appropriately, or simply follow a training plan sometimes. This post is mainly concerned with training periodization for resistance training with weights.
Notion is the (free for personal use) "all in one workspace" that helps you to get organized, write, create, share, collaborate. It is one of the trendiest apps for productivity out there at the moment. In fact, I have originally written this post in Notion, and I also use it to study.
This post is exactly about the intersection of those two elements mentioned above. How to use Notion for crafting, organizing, tracking, and sharing training programs.
The Perfect Display of Training Sessions
When it comes to designing a set of training programs for the whole macrocycle (which for me is one year at the moment), I find that having a calendar view is crucial due to the numerous workouts included in the periodization plan. However, a calendar view seems impossible to obtain in Excel (which is probably the most used software for periodizing), or at least very inappropriate for the type of software.
So, what would be ideal, to me, is to have a calendar view (similar to the one on Google Calendar) that also allows displaying a page with the training session on each day. This would bring a whole new level of clarity and tidiness, not only for the coach preparing the periodization plan but also for the athlete, who could ideally access it directly and have all the essential information in a single page for each training session.
Notion offers all of this. Calendar view, where you can add as many pages as you want for each day. Tables that allow to orderly display the single training session with its exercises, sets, reps, rest, weight used, and anything else you want. The possibility to create templates so that you do not need to create new tables for each training session from scratch. The chance to share the pages, or the whole periodization calendar so that the trainee can access it easily.
This may sound quite confusing and all over the place, especially if you have never used or seen Notion before. So, let me concretely walk you through the way I am currently using Notion for (resistance training) training periodization.
The Set-Up
This post is not about how to create a training periodization plan, so the underlying assumption here is that the periodization plan is already there, ready to be organized properly and shared later on (sharing is just an option; you may simply use Notion to have the entire plan laid out in front of you in an incredibly clear fashion - which decreases the chance of mistakes or misunderstandings down the road).
The first entry into the periodization calendar in Notion is a page I've set up called 'Training', in which I store all the information related to training programs, and anything related to fitness. On that page, there is a database (i.e., another independent page) titled 'Training - Periodization Calendar'.
Now, the Periodization Calendar database is the key player here. It is a database and it is displayed, in this case, as a calendar. But it can also be displayed in other ways (such as a table, list, kanban board). However, to me, only the calendar view is relevant for displaying the periodization plan.
In the Periodization calendar, I have created a template (reusable page) for training sessions. It is a table with some essential info for workouts (name of exercises, sets, repetitions, rest time, weight used, notes). The beauty of this template is that it can be used every time I create a new training session, and the only thing I have to do is add the data.
The way I like to enter the data at the moment is on a weekly basis. Every weekend, I go through the training sessions of the following week, create a page for each session, and add all the information needed for each training session. This may seem a repetitive and tedious task, but, in fact, I have found that it helps me to get in the 'training' mindset and depict a clear picture as to what the training days will look like during the following week. Which I reckon to be very useful in that it fosters thinking about how to approach each workout in the best way possible.
However, this may not be the best approach when it comes to preparing periodization plans for sports teams or even different trainees. In that case, as a matter of fact, laying out the whole macrocycle (including single sessions) may be more suitable to avoid possible confusion.
But is it worth it to go through the data entry process if you already have the training plans and sessions in a dedicated file, say, in Excel?
Well, what I have noticed so far are 3 main benefits to having all the information centralized in Notion:
Mental Clarity, which I have already mentioned above and believe to be potentially applicable to athletes as well, although this is just a personal anecdote. Both athletes and coaches can easily see each training session and its components, making it easy to enter in the "training" mindset and eradicate misunderstandings.
Visual Clarity. The calendar view in Notion is aesthetically pleasing and very effective at displaying the training sessions, which are single pages divided by day.
It centralizes all the necessary information and acts as a hub. This prevents many mistakes or loss of data stemming from disorganization and decentralization. What's more, the collaborative nature of Notion makes it easy to work on the creation of training programs together with other trainers (if you are part of a team).
Drawbacks
Apart from programming and displaying the training periodization plan, this system also allows for tracking the weight used on each training session via a dedicated column in the table, or at least this is what I have decided to use it for as well. Tracking the weight used for each exercise is very relevant especially if you train for hypertrophy or strength, as it allows for comparison over time and the assessment of adaptation and progressive overload, key components of resistance training.
The weight tracking aspect, one could argue, is the main pitfall of programming in Notion. The reason being that there is no way (as far as I know at the moment) to automatically compare the weight lifted on an exercise over time in order to track automatically personal records. Instead, the comparison can only be done manually by going through the training sessions and checking the weight used for the exercise under scrutiny.
Personally, this is not a big problem, as I am willing to go through the previous week's workout and see the weight lifted for each exercise. In addition, if you want to let a software automatically track the weight used for every exercise and let you know when a new personal record is achieved, then Gravitus is a great app for that (also free).
A useful feature for personal trainers
Finally, Notion allows for sharing. And also people who do not have a Notion account can access the shared pages (in this case you should share to the web). And it also allows for exporting in PDF format. This makes it very easy to be on the same page with the client, who can have all the vital information condensed in each training session page, which probably can save a lot of back and forth interactions between the personal trainer and trainee on doubts and questions.
Final Summary
To sum up, this article has looked at the way Notion can be used for training programming, periodization, or simply tracking your progress if you are a passionate lifter.
The main point is that the calendar view that Notion provides for databases is so far the most powerful method I have found to display training sessions in a visually effective and practically efficient manner. What is more, the possibility to share Notion pages makes it possible for trainers to have a clear and centralized communication channel with their athletes.
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