Walking journals not only help track progress by logging measurements like time and distance, they also offer insight into factors that are harder to quantify — such as your mood, physical condition, or uncontrollable variables you encounter on a given day.

Detail your daily experience with both concrete and intangible data so you can assess where you’ve been, where you are, and where you want to be.

• Monitor how far you walk each day and how long it takes. Make sure, however, to note what affects your outcome — like road construction or traffic that detoured your route or slowed your pace — or the weather (unusually warm or cold; rainy). By monitoring seemingly trivial elements you can better assess your overall improvement.

• Record how you feel and what you’re thinking. Perhaps you had a rough day, or you’re hungry, tired, or sore. Maybe you had a particularly good day that added bounce to your step. Attitudes often bow to the influence of experience, so acknowledge both the emotional and physical fuses that light your mood… then accommodate or adjust.