Strength training program tracker: what to look for, and how Method does it
A logger records sets. A program tracker holds the plan, schedules it, logs against it, and keeps the two connected. This page lists the capabilities that matter and states exactly what Method does and does not do for each.
ExplainerUpdated 4 min readMarkdown version
What a program tracker has to do
Most workout apps are loggers. They are good at recording sets and fast at doing it. Following a program through them means holding the plan somewhere else, often a spreadsheet, and typing it in each session. A tracker built for programs has a different job. Five capabilities separate it from a logger.
| Capability | What it means | Method |
|---|---|---|
| Hold the whole plan | Blocks, weeks, sessions, exercises, sets, all editable as a structure | Yes, on the web and iPhone |
| Schedule to dates | Each session lands on a day, visible in a calendar | Yes |
| Show the prescription while training | Reps, effort, rest in view for every set | Yes, on iPhone |
| Keep planned and completed separate | History shows what was planned and what was done | Yes, via a stored snapshot per workout |
| Tie history and export to the program | Program, week, and day on every record and every exported row | Yes, in history and in the CSV |
Holding the plan
A Method program is blocks of weeks of sessions. A session holds strength exercises and cardio activities. A strength exercise has its sets, and every set carries a type (warm-up, working, backoff, drop, failure, custom), a rep target (exact, range, or AMRAP), an intensity target in RIR or RPE with decimals, rest seconds, tempo, notes, and optionally a load instruction relative to the previous set, the last working set, or the top set. Exercises can be tagged into supersets.
The editor is built for revising a plan, not just entering one. Duplicate a week and choose how many copies. Reorder days and apply the order to other weeks. Bulk edit a field across any scope from one session to every week, filtered to, say, the last set of each exercise. Swap an exercise across the whole program. Save sessions to a Library and import them anywhere.
The caps are 52 weeks per program, 20 sessions per week, 100 exercises per session, 50 sets per exercise. Free accounts hold 6 weeks of programming in total; Pro is unlimited.
Scheduling
Sessions sit on dates. The iPhone calendar shows the week, with completed days marked and upcoming sessions in place. Sessions can be started from the calendar or from the Library. Method sends a reminder 60 minutes before a scheduled session if you turn that notification on.
Training from the prescription
On iPhone, each set shows its target. With suggested loads on, a weight is proposed from your last eligible set for the exercise, with the arithmetic shown. Completing a set starts the rest timer for the rest written on that set, in the Dynamic Island and on the Lock Screen. Notes can be added per set, per exercise for the program, and per exercise for you across all programs. Sessions can be reordered mid-workout and exercises swapped.
The app works offline. Sets are saved locally and synced when you are back online, and a workout that changed on another device in the meantime is kept as a separate record rather than overwritten.
Planned versus completed
Every completed workout stores the prescription it was started from. That single decision makes the rest of the system honest. History can show a session as partial when an exercise fell short. A moved session is shown as moved. An ad hoc workout is never dressed up as a planned one. Program counts show planned to date, completed, skipped, and upcoming, and Method does not compute an adherence percentage.
History tied to the program
Every record carries its program, week, and day. Exercise history shows past sets with their context. Analytics reads estimated 1RM per exercise with one point per training day, records over the last 90 days, muscle coverage from effective sets, and activity over 26 weeks. Method Pro exports the history as CSV with one row per set, including program title, week, and day, and produces PDFs of the history summary, any program, and analytics. See exporting your training data.
What Method does not do
It does not generate or periodise programs. It has no percent-of-1RM prescription; relative load instructions reference another set in the session. It has no program marketplace and no import from other trackers. Logging is iPhone only. There is no Android app. Those are the edges, stated so you can decide with them in view.
Common questions
- What is the difference between a workout logger and a program tracker?
- A logger records what you did. A program tracker also holds what you planned, schedules it to dates, shows the prescription while you train, and keeps planned and completed connected in history. Method is the second kind; the iPhone app logs, the web app plans.
- Can Method track a periodised program?
- Yes, if you write it. Programs have blocks, weeks, and sessions, with per-set reps, RIR or RPE, rest, tempo, and relative load instructions. Method does not periodise for you and has no percent-of-1RM prescription.
- Does Method track cardio in the same program?
- Yes. A session can hold strength exercises and cardio activities side by side. Cardio carries a distance or duration target and can include intervals.
- Can I follow a program from a book or a coach in Method?
- Yes. From a book, you enter it yourself in the web editor. From a coach, either you enter it or your coach publishes it to your calendar from a Method Coach Workspace. There is no program marketplace or import from other apps today.
Try Method
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Related reading
How to program workouts in advance and log against the plan
Programming in advance means deciding the work before the day arrives so the gym is execution, not decision-making. This guide covers what to write down, how far ahead to plan, and how Method keeps the plan and the log connected.
Estimated 1RM: the formula, why reps in reserve belong in it, and how Method calculates yours
An estimated 1RM turns any hard set into a single comparable number. This guide gives the formula, shows why reps in reserve must be counted, explains which sets to exclude, and walks through how Method computes one point per training day.
Exporting your training data from Method: CSV and PDF, exactly what is in each
Your training log is yours. This page lists the exact CSV columns Method writes, the three PDF documents it produces, where each export lives, and the limits on range and size.
Method vs Strong: a workout tracker comparison for program-first training
Strong is a long-running, simple gym logger with a full Apple Watch app and CSV export. Method is a planner and logger built around multi-week programs. This page sets out the differences plainly.
Method writes and maintains this page. Every statement about Method is checked against the shipped product. If something here is out of date, email contact@methodapp.net. For general references, link to the Method homepage.