Most definitely! A nuanced take on how online life affects real-life. I actually wrote a post a few weeks back on my own Substack that references a similar topic. I called it "Running For Kudos: The Double Edged Sword of Strava's influence." I share a few tips about healthy social media use and dive into a 2022 study that examines the psychosocial effect of Strava on runners. It was really fascinating to see how different types of athletes approach social sport networks like Strava and how it can be used both for good and bad.
Hey Brittany, thanks for your comment. Would you mind posting a link to your article here? I tried Substack search, but it did't work. I would love to find out more about this study. I didn't back my piece with research data, it was more of a yearlong field study haha!
Couldn’t be more on point. I resigned from Strava years ago and never looked back. It was a liberating feeling to feed my ambitious soul from within rather than by those silly kudos, thumbs up and hearts. I even ran a 35k mountain trail race naked (without my watch) and had a blast. I also particularly liked your thought-provoking question at the
I just started on sub stack because I've been conflicted about IG for months now. This article pretty much explained everything I felt but couldn't put into words. I havent decided on the direction I'm taking but you raised good points to further ponder on. Thank you!
Thanks for this, I'm wrestling with similar ideas. I really like the emphasis on cultivating intrinsic motivations.
Your point about vulnerability made me think also about honesty and authenticity. I think we can reclaim that in these digital spaces, but it requires acknowledging the struggle, not hiding it.
Thank you. I am glad that the anti-social media become a topic more and more. To leaving social media platforms: I think that's absolutely the case with X. You can't counter the filth that the algorithms throw at you from interested parties. Facebook and Instagram are hardly any better. I only really use Facebook for two or three groups now. I can't say anything about TikTok. I've always liked Strava because of the groups and comments from people you know in real life. But photos are also rather rare in that group or more for posts about hikes. But my achievements are enough for me personally. I'm more of an intrinsicist, but I can see directly from a colleague how quickly you can become a Strava addict. The German newspaper taz recently had a very poignant article about this. In addition to this comparative aspect, there are now also political reasons that speak against Strava. Recently, I read an article by DC Rainmaker about Strava that made me really angry and made me think about leaving. Accounts are blocked and even deleted if people have been running in North Korea, either in real or only virtually. Which country will be next?
There's a lot I agree with here and some I disagree with. I think the part that clicks the most with me is "The Sponsored Dream: When Influence Eclipses Performance" and how amateur runners are taking on the same behaviors that pro runners do - coupon codes, youtube channels, etc. It's almost a "cargo cult" thing in some cases - this pro runner I like is cool and promotes brand coupon codes, I want to be cool, if I promote brand coupon codes then I'll be cool too. There are Youtube channels I enjoy a lot but it seems like some people are just filming their workouts because David Roche does, and that's not interesting to me.
The one defense of Strava I'll make is that I post every activity there, good bad or ugly. I only post on IG when I have a good looking photo - I post every single run on Strava no matter what, even if I'm feeling fat and slow, and I think a lot of people do, because it's our training log. Strava is the only social network where I see that honesty and weakness, and I appreciate that.
Hey Alex, thanks for your feedback! About Strava... I agree with you that of all Social Media, Strava is still one of the least degenerated. I use it the same way as you: as a training log. Every run goes up there, the bad ones, the boring ones, the fails, all of that, too. But you can still see some runners trying to abuse the platform and embellish things to make themselves look better. This includes excesses like Strava Jockeys (https://therunningchannel.com/the-rise-of-the-strava-jockey-runners-paying-others-to-run-for-them/) or uploading fake activities. As is so often the case, the problem is not the tool, but the people using it.
Just this week I was invited to record a podcast about mental health and running and this came up.
At the end (the actual end of life!) we will remember the experiences and the feelings, most likely not those Strava stats and social media posting, so, let’s go back to basics, let’s be curious to find the true value of running for each of us, let’s make sure the motivation is genuine and enjoy every step of the way!
For every run I set a purpose: celebrate, find calm and balance, manage anger, test my limits, have fun and joy. That becomes my motivation every step of the training, every day of my life.
During the first consultation with my possible athletes that is one of the key question which leads to a possible collaboration. I really believe that without intrinsic motivation there is no REAL progress, so in running so in life.
Solid. Succinct. I've caught my own motivations moving in and out of external, and it is an honest-to-goodness effort to notice the drift and re-center.
Hallo Chris, danke für den Kommentar. Interessant hierzu ist ein Beitrag in der neuen Runners World über die Glaubhaftigkeit der Uhren beim Laufen etc. Ich bin nicht bei FB oder Tik Tok oder X, nur bei Instagram und whatsapp und Strava. Ich finde es bei Strava eher interessant zu sehen, WO andere laufen, also in welchen Ländern unter welchen Bedingungen. Und das müssen dann auch nicht unbedingt die schnellsten sein. Bin ja auch nicht die schnellste! :-) ! Das Bild von Toto finde ich sehr schön!
Liebe Grüsse nach GAP, hoffe, ihr habt Euch gut eingelebt!
Danke liebe Gabi! Ich hab TikTok und X im Beitrag mal ausgelassen da ich dort auch nicht bin. Ich hab ehrlich gesagt keine Ahnung wie dort Lauf-Inhalte geteilt werden, aber ich vermute, dass der Subtext ein ähnlicher ist wie auf instagram und (teilweise auch) Strava. Und ja, all diese Plattformen haben immer auch ihre guten Seiten. Das wirklich Interessante, das Spannende, das Lustige, das Herzliche... Leider geht das oft ein wenig unter der "Schneller-Höher-Weiter-Cooler"-Last unter. Aber hey, ich wollte das einfach mal ansprechen und aufschreiben. Freue mich, über die viele Resonanz!
Thank you so much for your feedback! So happy you can relate. Substack is a great place for writers and for runners (and for writing runners, for that matter), great you are here!
Most definitely! A nuanced take on how online life affects real-life. I actually wrote a post a few weeks back on my own Substack that references a similar topic. I called it "Running For Kudos: The Double Edged Sword of Strava's influence." I share a few tips about healthy social media use and dive into a 2022 study that examines the psychosocial effect of Strava on runners. It was really fascinating to see how different types of athletes approach social sport networks like Strava and how it can be used both for good and bad.
Hey Brittany, thanks for your comment. Would you mind posting a link to your article here? I tried Substack search, but it did't work. I would love to find out more about this study. I didn't back my piece with research data, it was more of a yearlong field study haha!
Of course. Didn’t want to be presumptive and post without a request for it. Here it is! https://open.substack.com/pub/triplethreatlife/p/running-for-kudos-the-double-edged?r=3v2po1&utm_medium=ios
thank you, will have a look.
Couldn’t be more on point. I resigned from Strava years ago and never looked back. It was a liberating feeling to feed my ambitious soul from within rather than by those silly kudos, thumbs up and hearts. I even ran a 35k mountain trail race naked (without my watch) and had a blast. I also particularly liked your thought-provoking question at the
end, re: social media platforms. 👀
I just started on sub stack because I've been conflicted about IG for months now. This article pretty much explained everything I felt but couldn't put into words. I havent decided on the direction I'm taking but you raised good points to further ponder on. Thank you!
Welcome! And thanks for your kind words. I am glad you can relate to my article.
Thanks for this, I'm wrestling with similar ideas. I really like the emphasis on cultivating intrinsic motivations.
Your point about vulnerability made me think also about honesty and authenticity. I think we can reclaim that in these digital spaces, but it requires acknowledging the struggle, not hiding it.
thanks for your feedback. I am very convinced all of us share similar thoughts and feelings regarding running. why not openly share them!
Thank you. I am glad that the anti-social media become a topic more and more. To leaving social media platforms: I think that's absolutely the case with X. You can't counter the filth that the algorithms throw at you from interested parties. Facebook and Instagram are hardly any better. I only really use Facebook for two or three groups now. I can't say anything about TikTok. I've always liked Strava because of the groups and comments from people you know in real life. But photos are also rather rare in that group or more for posts about hikes. But my achievements are enough for me personally. I'm more of an intrinsicist, but I can see directly from a colleague how quickly you can become a Strava addict. The German newspaper taz recently had a very poignant article about this. In addition to this comparative aspect, there are now also political reasons that speak against Strava. Recently, I read an article by DC Rainmaker about Strava that made me really angry and made me think about leaving. Accounts are blocked and even deleted if people have been running in North Korea, either in real or only virtually. Which country will be next?
DC Rainmaker on Strava bans: https://www.dcrainmaker.com/2025/03/strava-bans-user-for-running-in-north-korea.html
taz article: https://taz.de/Sportsucht-bei-Strava/!6069583/
Thanks for your indepth feedback and linking the two articles. The North Korea issue is wild!
What a read!
Thank you so much, glad you liked the article.
There's a lot I agree with here and some I disagree with. I think the part that clicks the most with me is "The Sponsored Dream: When Influence Eclipses Performance" and how amateur runners are taking on the same behaviors that pro runners do - coupon codes, youtube channels, etc. It's almost a "cargo cult" thing in some cases - this pro runner I like is cool and promotes brand coupon codes, I want to be cool, if I promote brand coupon codes then I'll be cool too. There are Youtube channels I enjoy a lot but it seems like some people are just filming their workouts because David Roche does, and that's not interesting to me.
The one defense of Strava I'll make is that I post every activity there, good bad or ugly. I only post on IG when I have a good looking photo - I post every single run on Strava no matter what, even if I'm feeling fat and slow, and I think a lot of people do, because it's our training log. Strava is the only social network where I see that honesty and weakness, and I appreciate that.
Hey Alex, thanks for your feedback! About Strava... I agree with you that of all Social Media, Strava is still one of the least degenerated. I use it the same way as you: as a training log. Every run goes up there, the bad ones, the boring ones, the fails, all of that, too. But you can still see some runners trying to abuse the platform and embellish things to make themselves look better. This includes excesses like Strava Jockeys (https://therunningchannel.com/the-rise-of-the-strava-jockey-runners-paying-others-to-run-for-them/) or uploading fake activities. As is so often the case, the problem is not the tool, but the people using it.
All my slow runs are stroller jogs, ok? Plus I have a cold and am behind on sleep. And it’s windy.
The wind is particularly in charge for any underperformed run. We all know this.
Just this week I was invited to record a podcast about mental health and running and this came up.
At the end (the actual end of life!) we will remember the experiences and the feelings, most likely not those Strava stats and social media posting, so, let’s go back to basics, let’s be curious to find the true value of running for each of us, let’s make sure the motivation is genuine and enjoy every step of the way!
For every run I set a purpose: celebrate, find calm and balance, manage anger, test my limits, have fun and joy. That becomes my motivation every step of the training, every day of my life.
Awesome! And none of this is dependent on being displayed to others. It's something you deal only with yourself and that's the beautiful part.
I completely agree with all your words.
Especially with “examining your motivations”.
During the first consultation with my possible athletes that is one of the key question which leads to a possible collaboration. I really believe that without intrinsic motivation there is no REAL progress, so in running so in life.
That's a good point to talk about before starting a cooperation. It clarifies the expectation from both sides and validates working together.
Solid. Succinct. I've caught my own motivations moving in and out of external, and it is an honest-to-goodness effort to notice the drift and re-center.
Drift and re-center.... I love that!
Hallo Chris, danke für den Kommentar. Interessant hierzu ist ein Beitrag in der neuen Runners World über die Glaubhaftigkeit der Uhren beim Laufen etc. Ich bin nicht bei FB oder Tik Tok oder X, nur bei Instagram und whatsapp und Strava. Ich finde es bei Strava eher interessant zu sehen, WO andere laufen, also in welchen Ländern unter welchen Bedingungen. Und das müssen dann auch nicht unbedingt die schnellsten sein. Bin ja auch nicht die schnellste! :-) ! Das Bild von Toto finde ich sehr schön!
Liebe Grüsse nach GAP, hoffe, ihr habt Euch gut eingelebt!
Gabi
Danke liebe Gabi! Ich hab TikTok und X im Beitrag mal ausgelassen da ich dort auch nicht bin. Ich hab ehrlich gesagt keine Ahnung wie dort Lauf-Inhalte geteilt werden, aber ich vermute, dass der Subtext ein ähnlicher ist wie auf instagram und (teilweise auch) Strava. Und ja, all diese Plattformen haben immer auch ihre guten Seiten. Das wirklich Interessante, das Spannende, das Lustige, das Herzliche... Leider geht das oft ein wenig unter der "Schneller-Höher-Weiter-Cooler"-Last unter. Aber hey, ich wollte das einfach mal ansprechen und aufschreiben. Freue mich, über die viele Resonanz!
Thank you so much for your feedback! So happy you can relate. Substack is a great place for writers and for runners (and for writing runners, for that matter), great you are here!