diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index fb1d41c..8184cf2 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -1,4 +1,5 @@
 checkpoints*
 plots*
 *.csv
-output/
\ No newline at end of file
+output/
+.requirements_installed
diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index 90bb694..1b2d059 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -34,7 +34,10 @@ compress: plots/progress_136013_sm.png
 plots/progress_136013_sm.png: plots/progress_136013.png
 	@convert -resize 33% plots/progress_136013.png plots/progress_136013_sm.png
 
-install:
+install: .requirements_installed
+
+.requirements_installed: requirements.txt
 	pip install -r requirements.txt
+	@echo "installed requirements" > .requirements_installed
 
 .PHONY: data train eval lint check clean all
\ No newline at end of file