Strava subscription for five years
This month will mark my 5-year subscription to Strava. As a person who doesn't really love subscriptions, I tried to keep the number as low as possible. If I pay, the service must be essential or strongly recommended.
I will continue the subscription and I am going to discuss how the service benefits me.
What have Strava changed over five years?
They keep improving the app by introducing the following features, like dark mode, recommended personalized routes, Athlete Intelligence which is a kind of AI feedback, performance predictions of longer runs like marathon, Flyover replaying my activities with a bird view animated point of view.
That said, I can’t find any alternatives for Strava because it’s an app for my following purposes of running.
Exploring cities and natures: With the help of public heatmap (like the more people going through means the safer) and explicit green areas (parks and woods) compared to other map applications like Google Maps, I can prefer escaping crowded areas and ensure safety especially when running on the streets.
Reviewing my habit: Besides showing me how long I ran over a week, month and even a year, I can easily review my memories with photos and videos, as well as Flyover and my personal heatmap to remind me of how I feel satisfied during my run — not only that I can achieve faster and longer but running itself can be more meaningful when I explore various areas.
Other apps may also have similar features like planning routes, but do not do well on reviewing my memories. Some may be focused on data instead. I think Strava is doing well on looking back to the past and looking forward to the future.
My wishes
Strava has the offline support for the map, but the internet is still required for other functions. Cache is at least so I can look at my data anytime.
In short, I recommend Strava because it encourages not only to do exercises more frequently but also discover a lot of fun in terms of exploration of places. It works with watches like Garmin as well.
