I debated between posting a holiday-inspired recipe or a fitness-inspired gift idea this week. So you’re gonna get both! Today I bring you the best fitness journals according to moi. Later this week, watch for my favorite way to get my sugar on this time of year (yes, it pairs nicely with wine – pfft! – what doesn’t?).

Now I realize many people may prefer tracking their workouts and eating habits online or on an app, which I indeed do myself from time to time. But some of us ol’ fashioned geezers still enjoy writing things down in order to revel in their completeness (or mope at their undoneness). And if you have any health enthusiasts in your life, giving them the gift of a fitness journal will make them feel you understand them. You support them. You GET IT. Never mind the fact that you may be thinking, “you are a control freak and I don’t understand you or get you but here’s your silly journal.”

So whether you are thinking of yourself or someone else while reading this post, these trackers are the perfect tools if you’re…

• A Journal Lover: Let no move or munchy go unrecorded with the Fitbook. Track your measurements and daily diet, write down your goals and plot out strength, cardio and yoga sessions. Jot down your relections on how you did each day (“This day must @#$! die!”). They have books for every phase you’re in – the mama to-be, the teenager, even the fast-track-to-weight-loss motivated. This is the book I get my clients most often.

 

• Busy Minded But Health-Conscious: Record daily and weekly fitness goals as well as track hydration, diet and even vitamin and mineral intake with the Bodyminder Workout and Exercise Journal.  This one works best for me because it’s simple and takes less than 5 minutes to fill out, yet it keeps all my stats and progress in check. I have about a dozen of these filled out and stacked together and sometimes I look back and marvel at how much of a badass I really was when I didn’t think I was.

 

• A Task Master: Write your weekly fitness goal on top of the Fit Me notepad page and fill in your planned daily exercise. Later, jot down details about what you did and ate throughout the day so you can see if you strayed. Super simple and super convenient. This is perfect for the no-nonsense get ‘er done individual.

 

A Free Spirit: If you’d rather approach fitness like you approach a blind wine tasting, check out the blank notebooks with various fun fitness covers at cafepress.com. You’re guaranteed to find one that matches your personality and your style. Plus if you go wine tasting instead of working out, you can make up your own check-off box later as though you really intended for it to happen that way.