How and Why We Track
Tracking is a critical part of how Calibrate works because we believe that what you measure, you can change. Your weight and your food, sleep, exercise, and emotional health exist in an interconnected system that defines your metabolic health, and at Calibrate our goal is to get these elements in balance.
What you track becomes the data that your Medical Team uses to adjust your medication and it’s what you and your coach use to refine and personalize your goals.
Let’s look, now, at what these metrics are.
What You’ll Measure
All your current trackers are located in the Home tab under “Today’’s Progress.” To view your data over time, navigate to the Home screen of the Calibrate app, select the tracking metric you’d like to view, tap View Graph in the upper left corner, and choose your desired time frame from the dropdown.
Know that your data and information are private, and protected. Your numbers are uploaded to our secure healthcare platform, where they can only be viewed by your Calibrate doctor and your accountability coach for the purpose of your health and your Calibrate plan.
Weight:
Tracking weight daily is a proven tool to support weight loss. (Don’t forget, it’s fine if you see day-to-day fluctuations; what matters most is the general trend.)
By now, you should have your connected scale set up with a baseline weight. Keep weighing yourself every morning so that your weight data will automatically populate in your Calibrate app (if that’s not happening, visit the Calibrate Orientation Hub for instructions or message the Support Center in the app.). And if you want to read more about why we ascribe to daily weighing and how you can approach this process, click to the Healthy Way to Weigh Yourself Guide.
Energy:
This metric helps you and your team get a sense of how you’re feeling on a day-to-day basis.
The point here isn’t to get an exact reading of exactly how you feel at every moment. Rather, it’s to deliver a bird’s eye view of how you felt for most of the day, so that as more days go by, you can see how your energy levels are affected by the changes you’re making.
On the app you’ll be asked to choose among Very High 😊, High 🙂, Neutral 😐, Low 🙁, and Very Low 😞. The first few times you try this, the rating you choose might feel arbitrary—like you could also make a case for a different one.
But as you do it more, you can start to use past days as reference points and you’ll start to get a real sense of what each rating means for you. For example, maybe Very High 😊 is big tiger energy, High 🙂 is a spring in your step, Neutral 😐 is even-keeled, Low 🙁 is can-do-but-would-prefer-not-to, and Very Low 😞 is mental health day vibes. That’s it. You’re on your way!
Sleep:
When you don’t get enough sleep (which Calibrate defines as 7-9 hours per night), your body produces excess cortisol, which can make it tough to lose weight.
While sleep tracking is optional, it’s a huge value-add for very little effort. Instructions for linking wearable devices can be found in the Calibrate Orientation Hub. If a wearable isn’t a good option for you, you can enter hours of sleep manually in your app.
Steps:
If you’ve already connected your activity tracker to the Calibrate app, your steps will automatically appear on the Home screen of the app.
Tracking steps is optional, but studies have shown that this kind of tracking, particularly when combined with other support measures, leads to significantly increased activity, weight loss, and improved metabolic health.
Red Foods:
The term “red foods” is Calibrate shorthand for foods that raise your blood sugar, and tracking them is a great window into how your eating is affecting your metabolic health. Unlike the other trackers, which are present from day one, this metric appears at the start of your Level 1 Food class.
Mind Over Measure
We can’t say it enough: Success at Calibrate comes from progress, not perfection—and progress isn’t always linear. What matters about tracking is that you and your coach can use that data, over time, to see where you’re doing well, where you need some more support, and how different pillars might be affecting each other. Take credit for your successes and don’t let a winding road get you down; the point is that you have the data to help you understand where you’re at—that’s the win!