Hi! In this article I’ll show you how you can automate the creation of a weight chart based on the notes in a folder — using the Templater plugin and charts-obsidian.
🚀 What we’ll do
- Automatically gather data from a folder with a YAML field
Weight: 72 - Generate a Markdown table with dates and weights
- Create a chart based on this data
- All of it — with one click via a template
🤔 Why we use Templater instead of “Templates”
| What you need to do | Use |
|---|---|
| Just substitute a date, title, link | Templates (built-in) |
| Insert a fixed text template | Templates (built-in) |
| Use logic (if/else, loops, sorting) | ✅ Templater |
| Pull YAML fields from other files | ✅ Templater |
| Automatically build tables from folders | ✅ Templater |
Insert the current date in YYYY-MM-DD format | Either one |
| Run JavaScript code | ✅ Templater |
| Automatically run a template when a file opens | ✅ Templater |
If you use
if,for,tp.fileortp.web— it’s Templater.
If you just insert
{{date}},it’s the built-in Templates.
🧩 Installing the Templater plugin
- Open
Settings → Community plugins - Click
Browseand find Templater - Install and activate
📍 Then go to Settings → Templater:
-
📁 Specify the Template folder location (e.g.
.templates) -
✅ Enable Trigger Templater on file open if you want it to run automatically when a file opens
📸
🧠 What is Templater?
Templater is a powerful templating language that lets you:
- Insert variables (date, file name, YAML data)
- Run JavaScript right in the template
- Automate routine tasks
✨ An example of a simple template:
📸
---
Created: 2025-05-14 12:27
Modified: 14.05.2025 01:29
---
# Templater📸 After applying the template:
📦 The project structure for the weights example
📸 The weights folder should be like this:
📸 Each note should have a YAML block with the weight:
🛠 The template: an automatic table + chart
Create a template at .templates/weight_chart.md and paste this code into it:
| Month | Weight |
|-------|--------|
^weight
```chart
type: line
id: weight
x: Month
y: Weight
---
## ✅ How to insert the template
1. Open the note where you want to see the chart
2. Insert the template:
- `Ctrl + P → Templater: Insert Template`
- Or set up a hotkey (e.g. `Ctrl+Alt+W`)
>[!quote] 📸
>
>![[Pasted image 20250508165511.png]]
---
## 🔄 How to update the chart
>[!example] Added a new note with a weight?
>
> The table and chart **won't update automatically**.
>[!todo] To update it:
>
>- [ ] Just insert the template again — it **rescans the folder and redraws** the chart
>- [ ] I recommend setting up a hotkey to do this **in one press**
---
## 💡 Possibilities for expansion
You can:
- Automate inserting the template when a file opens (via `Trigger Templater`)
- Substitute the current month/year
- Add other fields, like `Fat`, `Measurements`, `Mood` — anything you have in your YAML
---
## 🖼 The final result
>[!quote] ![[йуйцуйуйц.png]]
>
---
## 🧷 Conclusion
Templater is a genuinely powerful tool. It helps you get rid of the routine, especially if you:
- Keep trackers
- Fill in templates by hand
- Work with repeating formats