For the past year, I have actively avoided getting Strava. The excuses ranged from not owning a phone with a battery capable of lasting the ride/run to simply being too forgetful to turn it on. I believe I even claimed I was getting it when I bought my new road bike (didn’t happen)! You want to know the truth – I was worried I was not fast enough! I though by setting up an account where people could see how fast I ran that decent or climbed that hill I would HAVE to be fast or else face being the bottom of a very long list.
About a month ago I caved! As many of you know, I have signed up for a few big challenges, and I wanted a way to monitor my progress and track all of my mileage. So reluctantly I signed up…
I think it took about two runs before I started to notice Stavitis was taking hold. From there symptoms quickly worsened, I purchased the TomTom Runner GPS Watch from Front Runner in Sheffield to make sure my runs could be tracked with maximum accuracy and minimum disturbance. Most recently I acquired a minor injury gaining a medal position… worryingly it was not the run itself that caused affliction the but rather falling off my chair in a victorious spin when uploading the results to my computer.
As you can see, things have gone too far! With the aim of raising awareness of this new found issue, I have compiled a list of symptoms.
15 signs you have Stravitis
More commonly know a Strava Addict
1) You are overcome with a feeling of slight panic when your phone/watch takes longer than 3 minutes to locate your GPS position at the start of a run.
2) Normally you are a sociable person. However if you see a friend out running/riding the only word you are going to be saying is “Strava” – you will not let chatting slow you down!
3) The first thing you do when you finish your ride/run is whip out your phone or watch to stop the clock.
4) You have considered setting up a new segment named “Hardest Hill EVER” that ends half way to down your drive guaranteeing you a permanent KOM/QOM.
5) Your arch enemy is someone you have never met. They only exist on a screen, but they bring out the most competitive side of you!
6) You spend the majority of your ride thinking of what to call it.
7) You understand that true devastation is getting to the end of a route having pushed yourself to your absolute max. Then pulling out your phone/watch to see you forgot to turn the Strava on.
8) Sorting out kit/showering/fixing any injuries/trips to A&E all come second to syncing your run/ride to your profile.
9) You get a KOM/QOM and spend the rest of the day acting like you are pretty much famous.
10) You find you are better at stats and calculations now than you ever were at school. You have even worked out the percentage time increase you would have had given the unfavourable direction of the prevailing wind.
11) You have fallen over/off your bike checking pace/time updates mid ride or run.
12) Strava impacts your relationship – either you are both on Strava constantly fighting for the fastest time or your other half is not and your relationship is in jeopardy due to their lack of praise on your KOM/QOM (or more unlikely the amount you talk about it)!
13) You use the phrase: ‘if it’s not on Strava it didn’t happen’.
14) You vet your friends before riding or running with them – you are not letting anyone hinder your performance. Ideally, this means going out by yourself so that nobody slows you down/steals the crown!
15) You refreshed Strava while reading this list.
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