Monitoring your actual rate of progress is one of the most effective ways to make sure that a high level of intensity is being maintained during your workouts.  Recording strength increases from workout to workout, week to week, will provide an accurate record.

Accurately measuring strength increases, which are directly related to fast muscle gains, will help you determine whether you are training hard enough.  Measuring your strength increases is by far the most convenient and accurate way to determine your rate of progress.  You should strive to maximize and measure strength increases. Doing so, will indirectly maximize the rate of increases in your muscle mass.

In practice, all this involves is keeping accurate records. However, you don’t need anything fancy.  Any simple notebook will do just fine. Just make note of the date, list your exercises, followed by a record of the weight used  and the number of reps performed. You can also add extra comments about your overall performance, and motivation. Maintaining a training log is the most effective way to measure your progress. Don’t underestimate it’s power.