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Quite enjoy using it TBH. I used to pay attention to KOMs (well the two I had), but now I just use it as a tool for motivation. I can use it to track my rehab, set goals to keep me on track each week, and see what mates are doing elsewhere in the UK/EU. When I'm feeling lazy seeing their riding pics gets me out there.
I can use it for route planning in unfamiliar places by looking at where the locals are hanging out.
I can share my stats with Veloviewer and the Elevate plug-in to see if i am on target with my goals helping to make sure I'm fit enoughish for the next target activity of the summer.
I think a lot of people found inspiration seeing g what others were doing/coping during Covid and the lockdowns. Prior to that you didn't really see walks, yoga or weight training, but now all three are common place
I still use it, only ever had a free account, some mates had the premium account but now they run free accounts, they said premium didn't really give them anything worth paying for, I suppose they just paid out of guilt of using strava for free .
I've got to say ever since the free version got down graded I've not really bothered trying for PR anymore...tbh I only really liked racing my mates and then checking the times when I got home...now they've taken that away I'm not fussed.....but to me it was the best thing about strava...now I upload just to log the miles that's it
If I was to pay for strava...I rate it £10 a year....its definitely not worth anymore than that. For something I look at for about 2mins a week if that
I used it for a bit a few years back. Sacked it off and never used it again. In fact I don’t use anything, just ride my bikes 🤣.
Paid for & used it for years. Like watching my progress (or lack thereof) and others rides.
Had been considering knocking it down to the free version but it now includes Fatmap so will probably keep it.
For the first time in many years I have been off the bike since the end of February with an injury, no riding but I have been able to do flat and steady walks (which is better than doing nothing).
The whole injury has made me feel low in mood. I use Strava to log rides and distances which is useful, but at the same time I have been looking at other peoples rides and activities etc and it really started to make me feel worse.
I know what people will say, 'well stop looking then'. So I am thinking of going back to just using Garmin Connect, just for me, if that makes sense.
I have just been reading about FOMO. I have heard of it, but I didnt really know much about it. What a world we all live in!
cancelled my sub last month...
Apparently i didn't cancel my sub last month as last night it came out..
cancelled the paypal recurring fee, and ran through strava and it i swear it asked me about 5 times if i was sure i wanted to cancel.....
I have just been reading about FOMO. I have heard of it, but I didnt really know much about it. What a world we all live in!
Yeah, it's a very real issue. Hard to get that balanced between being inspired and getting depressed. During Covid "lockdown" I was very wary of posting too much of my activity given what I could do and what many of my city-dwelling friends could do.
I use it, mainly as a record/diary... it also helped me notice that I was slipping into a depression over several months as my activities got fewer and fewer; sounds silly maybe, but without that record I don't think I would have taken as much notice so quickly.
I follow a small number of people I know personally, most of whom live well away from me, so it's nice to see them out and active.
I did try the paid version a while back when I had 2 months free; the only bit I really miss is matched rides - just to see how I'm doing on my various regular routes. But I certainly don't miss it enough to pay for it! (And I know the answer is I'm slower and less fit - various mental/physical health issues last year, an operation at the start of this year, and doing a Masters course March to Sept this year while also working 5.5 day weeks, are all conspiring to keep me off the bike.)
will go over the heads of most folks
Or under. Either way, a claim to fame in my world. You must be on the leader board... (I'd frankly be happy with top quarter .)
Yeah, it’s a very real issue. Hard to get that balanced between being inspired and getting depressed.
Just been reading up on FOMO whilst waiting for the washing machine to stop rock and roll) fascinating stuff. It sounds like I might want to step back from it all or turn it off. A digital detox! LOL
I record ALL my gym and weight lifting sessions just to polute the feed 😂
I actually don't mind seeing people's zwift rides, walks, weight training and whatnot, not really sure why it bothers people so much.
I actually don’t mind seeing people’s zwift rides, walks, weight training and whatnot, not really sure why it bothers people so much.
I think it probably bothers/upsets people who don't do those sports.
Personally if I see someone's posted a screenshot from strong with a 30rep latt raise finisher, it get's just the same level of kudos and audible ooooofffft as someone getting a 5hour 100miler.
Whereas I'm sure others look at it and eye-roll.
I think maybe if you log onto strava 2 or 3 times a day, then you only have a couple of activities to scroll through it is fine. For those of us who just want to log on a couple of times a week to see if somebody has done anything more interesting than their normal routine, then it feels like we are swamped with junk.
I wouldn't even mind as much if I had the option to make gym sessions, commutes and virtual rides just a one line entry, instead of everything filling up half the viewable screen. Just give us some options to tweak it into something we like instead of assuming everyone shares the same vision.
Me, I gave it up a long time ago. I had it for a few months but realised I was fixated on the stats and stopped enjoying the countryside or anything else.
Now I just ride and use a Garmin but not bothered about the interactivity/competition of Strava (I've done enough races to know how slow I am)
Came here to mention https://www.activityfix.com/ which has already come up - mainly as a way of being the citizen you'd like to be. I have no problem seeing hikes or other kinds of activity, I just hate seeing everybody's commutes and yoga. (I have activityfix largely set up to completely hide bending/stretching, and to automatically detect commutes / short local razzes and just hide them). Everybody else complains less, maybe I can plug the benefits of AF to them...
i use it. Just the free version.
As others have said, its a diary of activities and is a good way to see if i go faster on the odd segment. I like to know i am progressing or getting fitter. But it doesnt rule the way i ride or run.
I dont follow many people and cut a few due to 'activity' uploads. it baffles me why someone would go out of their way to start their device to record a splash in a swimming pool or a 10 minute walk. but hey... we are all different?!
A good way to combine love of segments and leaderboards with declining fitness AND actually getting out and enjoying the countryside is to use the heatmap and focus on always riding new stuff.
The nett result is enjoying your rides more in a sort of starry eyed 'wow, look at the new trail/road/scenery I've discovered' whilst also standing more chance of an ego-boosting top ten on some obscure segment that only 8 other people have ridden 😆
Would be cool if Strava had some sort of challenge or achievement for 'most new stuff ridden' or something. Filling out the heatmap is about the only metric of my riding which is improving these days! 😎
it baffles me why someone would go out of their way to start their device to record a splash in a swimming pool or a 10 minute walk
Am pretty sure some smart watches will record and upload any activity they pick up? I see my old bosses walk to the shop and back most lunchtimes 🙄
Would be cool if Strava had some sort of challenge or achievement for ‘most new stuff ridden’ or something. Filling out the heatmap is about the only metric of my riding which is improving these days!
I am vaguely heading towards this these days too. Adding stuff to my personal heatmap is quite satisfying and also motivates to take my running shoes on holiday or hire a bike when away or enter a trail race that uses some private land and stuff like that.
VeloViewer is an interesting add-on for those more keen on exploring than racing. Be aware though that the Explorer Square thing can get very addictive.
TBH if VeloViewer would take a feed direct from Garmin rather than Strava, I'd likely drop Strava altogether.
Local legend? Insulting consolation prize!
I think the local legend thing and the personal heatmap are in the right ballpark, but perhaps not quite executed right, they should work together.
Say you came to my village and wanted to ride your bike on the road, there's no one with a better heat map than mine for you. There should be an option to pick a location, tick some boxes to say you want quiet roads that are hilly and for it to recommend a load of rides to you, then let you say, "That guy is really cool, show me where else he rides!" Then if you say you want 20 hilly miles if auto-creates some options from my heat map.
Strava know all the stuff it needs to know to serve up great rides for you wherever you go, but it's just not really there.
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use the heatmap and focus on always riding new stuff.
There's another strava add on that keeps track of that sort of thing and adds info in the comments about how much new stuff you've covered on a ride
I had the premium sub (by accident, forgot to remove card details after trial) back in about 2015/16ish, the extra features were a bit useless back then, but the core bits of strava; sharing rides/runs with friends giving kudos to mates keeping a basic life of my activity that is valuable to me still.
Leaderboards/KOM stuff really doesn't matter to me TBH (I don't think it atters to most reasonably well adjusted people), they're welcome to have that 'friendly competition' feature but the social side of Strava and using it a bit like a "Ride journal" is the core part for me and they've not made that sub-only yet so I'll keep my money still cheers.
I do chuck a tenner at veloviewer each year for the linked stats bits that it manages by pulling all the data off Strava.
One thing I will say is, I've not recorded a ride with the phone app in years, It was perfectly good when I last used it but being able to record more data and use various other sensors was part of the reason I ended up going down the rabbit hole of GPS computers/watches. The fact that they have the app and it allows 'newbies' as well as those with all the gear to record and share stuff is another positive IMO...