It shows me trends and the big picture: When I walk out of class or get the automated email, I know how many splat points I got or what my peak heart rate was. But I can’t really spot trends. With my tracker, I can look at how my fitness has improved each year, which coaches push me the hardest and even which time of day I’m most ready to work.

It keeps me accountable: The tracker allows me to easily look up a time or achievement I’d like to beat. I also schedule out all my workouts in the tracker and know it’ll be a bad feeling if I have to go in there and erase the record because I didn’t show up that day.

It gives context to my workouts: I often write down notes about that day’s workout. Was I performing on a full night’s sleep? Dealing with nagging knee soreness? Working out at an unfamiliar station because I got there late? The notes help me connect the dots between my performance and real life.

It highlights my PRs and milestones: The official app highlights my PRs too, but this one only records the ones that I participate in. I can also easily look to see how long it took me to go from class 200 to 300 and whether it was shorter or longer than the time it took me to go from 100 to 200. I can also easily see how many classes I’ve been to in the current month, year or even all-time without waiting for that annoying day lag that comes with the app.

I get an extra high from the workout after I get home: Give me all the dopamine! Logging the workout when I sit down at my desk for the day extends the feeling I have when I’m walking to my car in the parking lot. Scrolling past all those wins is a reminder that all the hard work each morning is paying off.