My Love Affair with Strava

It started innocently enough. My road bike lacks a bike computer so I used Strava to track distance.
Then I noticed the average speed feature.
Then I started paying attention to segments, Soon I was delaying my rides to have enough battery on my phone to preserve the ride. Rides were planned around doing the unriden segments. 

Then my Garmin 10 died and my replacement 910 uploads automatically to Strava, and it tracks run and swim.

Then I stopped biking and swimming and only was running. And perhaps I had a bit more time to pay attention to Strava and I think I have become a little obsessed.

Now, all runs that do not already have a segment get one. All segments that I do not have the CR for I obsess over. Any new segment that I can get to, is attempted. All runs are planned around potential QOM/ CR.

And the result?? I am running faster. I am paying attention to kilometre by kilometre splits. The numbers are there for me to easily pay attention to. I realize that at the end of a run I have to face either good numbers I can be proud of or numbers I should have a good explanation about. I enjoy thinking about what to call each run, if it will have an excuses for my slowness, or something neat to say about what I saw on my run.

The following of other people  I find not at all competitive but  motivating. If everybody else can get out for a run, there is no reason why I can't. It is cool to note everybody's routes. Fun to see what peoples training distances compared to distances racing.

Sure sometimes it is really depressing, ie. every damn segment on the Muskoka bike course but honestly next to a power meter I see no greater training tool right now.