Tutorial: Remove an exercise log

In this tutorial, you’ll learn how to remove an exercise log using the DELETE method to remove entries that are no longer needed. By eliminating logs of ineffective exercises, you can maintain a clear picture of what’s actually helping a user’s recovery.

Expect this tutorial to take about 10 minutes to complete.

Before you start

Make sure you’ve completed the Getting Started guide on the development system you’ll use for the tutorial.

Remove an exercise log

Deleting an exercise log requires using the DELETE method to remove a user exercise log resource from the service. This is useful when you want to remove entries that weren’t effective.

This example removes the Glute Bridges exercise log, ID 2, which wasn’t effective for Sarah Johnson.

Make sure your local service is running, or start it by using this command in the terminal:

 cd <your-github-workspace>/SciaticaSisters-API/api
 json-server -w sciatica-sisters-db-source.json

Postman request

Open Postman and create a new request:
1. Click New > HTTP or the + icon in the header.
2. Set the request method to DELETE using the corresponding dropdown menu.
3. In the request URL field, enter:
```
{base_url}/userExerciseLogs/2
```
Click Send to make the request.
The system returns an empty object, confirming the deletion was successful.
```
 {}
```

cURL request

Open your terminal and run this command:

curl -X DELETE {base_url}/userExerciseLogs/2

The system returns an empty object, confirming the deletion was successful.
```
 {}
```

Check your results

Postman verification

Create a new request in Postman.
Set the request method to GET.
In the request URL field, enter:
```
{base_url}/userExerciseLogs?userId=1
```
Click Send.
You should see that the Glute Bridges exercise log, ID 2, no longer appears in the list. You should only see the remaining exercise logs returned for Sarah Johnson.

Using cURL

Run this command:

curl -X GET "{base_url}/userExerciseLogs?userId=1"

You should see that the Glute Bridges exercise log, ID 2, no longer appears in the list. You should only see the remaining exercise logs returned for Sarah Johnson.

Common errors and troubleshooting

404 not found error

If you receive this error, the exercise log ID you’re trying to delete doesn’t exist. Check for the correct log ID by calling GET on /userExerciseLogs first to see all available logs.

Wrong log deleted

Double-check the ID in your DELETE request URL. If you accidentally delete the wrong log, you’ll need to recreate it using the POST method, as deletions can’t be undone.

Log still appears after deletion

If the log still appears when you retrieve the list, your GET request may be returning cached data. Try adding a timestamp query parameter like ?_t=123456 to force a fresh request.

What you learned

After completing this tutorial, you now know how to remove an exercise log using the DELETE method with Postman or cURL. This is useful for removing exercises that didn’t help or for cleaning up incorrect entries. You’re maintaining a focused, accurate record of a user’s healing journey.

Next steps

Log your first activity to start tracking exercises.
Compare exercises to see which activities are effective.
Update a user’s pain level when pain changes.

Get exercise log by ID
Put exercise log by ID

Security note

In a production environment, this operation would require proper authentication to ensure only authorized users can change patient data. See Authentication for details.