Strava has been around since 2008 and is the favorite fitness-tracking app for many professional and everyday athletes. There are plenty of reasons to integrate Strava into your workout programs.
Whether you just started using Strava or made it a part of your workouts a long time ago, these tips will help you make the most out of the app. And the best part is that you don’t even need a Strava Premium subscription to access them.
1. Keep Track of Your Progress
Recording and keeping track of your physical activity is one of the main reasons why people use Strava. While Strava will show your workouts on the app’s feed, there’s a better way to check them out.
Tap on your profile icon and select one of the sports available. There, you can check out your weekly or yearly progress.
2. Join a Strava Challenge
If you’re running low on motivation, a great way to keep going is to join a Strava challenge. To check out which challenges are available to you, tap onGroupsand selectChallengesfrom the top of the screen. you may filter the challenges by sport, distance, or elevation gain.
Once you’ve completed the challenge, you’ll get a digital badge that will be displayed on your profile. Also, there are challenges that will give you the chance of winning clothing, gear, or gift packs once you complete them.
You should know that most of the challenges will take into account only GPS data. Any indoor activity that you manually input into Strava will be void, so people can’t fraudulently complete the challenges.
3. Name Your Activity
Strava will add default names for your activities, depending on the selected sport. Now, your profile might be a bit boring if every one of your activities is called “Evening run.”
If you want to keep track of your activities or workouts, you should add a custom title. To do so, when you finish recording the activity, use theTitle your activityfield to name it something more descriptive.
Alternatively, you can rename your activities after saving them. Open one of your activities, tap thethree doticon in the top-right corner, and selectEdit activity. Once you’ve renamed the activity, tapSave.
4. Add Photos and Videos of Your Workouts
Chances are you’ll find something worth taking a picture or video of while recording your activity. Whether it’s the view, you and your friends, or the cake after the run, you can add it to your feed to let everyone know what they’re missing out. All you have to do is pressAdd Photos/Videosonce you’ve completed your Strava run.
If you forgot to add the photos, select the activity and tap thethree-doticon, thenEdit activity. There, tap onAdd Photos/Videos.
According to Strava, there’s no limit on how many photos or videos you may add to your activity. However, you can only view 6 photos on Strava for mobile and 12 on Strava for the web. Also, there’s a 30-second limit for videos.
5. Protect Your Privacy
While it’s great to share your Strava activities with like-minded people, there are a fewpieces of information that you should keep private. For example, you should have Strava hide the start and end point of your run or ride if you start the workout right outside your home.
To do so, tap on theSettingsicon and head toPrivacy controls. There, selectMap Visibility > Hide the start and end points of activities no matter where they happen. Use the slider to hide the start and end points by an approximate distance. Then, tap onSave.
Additionally, go back to thePrivacy controlpage and select who can see your activities, profile page, group activities, and more. you’re able to make the activities visible for everyone, for your followers, or keep them private.
6. Stay Safe With Strava’s Beacon Feature
If you’re going on a solo hike or planning a ride and the weather isn’t that nice, you should stay safe with Strava’s Beacon. This feature uses your phone’s GPS to identify your location and send it to your selected contacts. While they will not see data such as elevation gain, speed, or distance, they can check if you’re still moving and call the emergency services if necessary.
To enable the feature, go to Strava’s Settings menu and selectBeacon. Then, enable the toggle next toBeacon for mobile.
7. Monitor Your Gear
If you often switch your gear, you should add it to your Strava account. For example, if you have more than one bike, you can keep track of your bikes' individual mileage and service them at the correct intervals.
To add your gear, tap on your profile icon and head toGear. There, tap on theAdd Gearbutton and input your bike, shoes, or whatever equipment you’re using.
However, don’t go into too much detail about your equipment, as you might become a target for local thieves. Especially if you’ve spent a lot of money on it. Something as simple as “blue bike” will give you enough information to keep it running smoothly.
8. Connect Your Wearables
There are plenty of devices such as smartwatches, GPS watches, or cycling computers that you can connect to your Strava account. This way, you can sync your activities without having to carry your bulky phone.
To connect your device, open theSettingsmenu and selectLink other services. Then, tap onConnect a device to Strava. If you’re able to’t find your device type on the list, tap onSee more devicesat the bottom of the screen.
9. Follow a Professional Athlete
If you’re into running, riding, hiking, swimming, or other sports that are available on Strava, chances are you look up to several professional athletes. Now, if you’re in luck, some of them have Strava, so you can follow their activity and workout routine. Of course, don’t expect them to give away their best secrets, but following a pro is agreat way to stay motivated.
Get the Most Out of the Strava App and Service
Strava has plenty of features to help you keep track of your activities, share them with your friends, and even stay safe while working out. There’s no doubt that using an activity monitoring app makes it easier for you to stay motivated and reach your goals.
