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Run fast enough and Strava will give you free sneakers
Strava is one of the few fitness apps that hasn't been bought by a sportswear company. Maybe that's why it's happy handing out footwear to anyone who can complete its "Back Half Challenge." The competition runs between October 9th and December 6th and is open to anyone looking to run a marathon. But if you think that simply covering 26 miles, 385 yards is enough to get a free pair of New Balance sneakers, you'd better sit down.
Strava's safety 'Beacon' shows friends where you're training
Strava has added a safety feature to its running and cycling app that we're surprised isn't more common. "Beacon" lets up to three friends see exactly where you're biking or running, even if they don't have the app installed. On top of showing a map, It will them know if you've stopped for a long period, if your battery is low or if you're out of network range.
Garmin's latest running watch tracks your suffering
Garmin's latest running watch can track multiple sports, measure your heart rate and even give you a "suffer score," but the price might make you gasp. The Forerunner 735XT now occupies the top of the company's run tracker lineup next to the two-year-old 920XT with the same $450 price. For that substantial sum, you do get a lot: it packs the company's Elevate heart rate monitor and is the first sports tracker with Strava's Suffer Score. That app measures your heart rate compared to a baseline, so casual or serious athletes can see how much they're pushing it.
Peloton's spin-class bike now works with Strava
Peloton, the high-end connected bike that lets you follow along with indoor cycling classes, has announced that it'll let you sync your stats on Strava. Riders can join the Peloton Club on the service where they can track workout data like cadence, power output, speed and heart rate. They can also, of course, share that information with friends and family to keep themselves motivated, as you do. Strava Premium Members also get something out of this: exclusive access to a selection of Peloton's best workout videos that'll drop later in the spring.
Hexoskin's fitness clothes now work with third-party apps
In late 2014, I tested out Hexoskin's first smart shirt, a vest that promised to monitor your vital statistics while you exercised. After a year in the lab, the company has rolled up to CES with a second-generation version of the wearable that comes with a couple notable changes. The first is that the battery life has been extended, with the firm promise that it'll last up to 30 hours on a single charge. After that, the most notable tweak has been to include Bluetooth Smart in the hardware, enabling it to connect to any compatible GPS, smartwatch or bike computer. In addition, the data that you create while out and about can now be exported to third-party fitness apps like Strava, Runkeeper and Endomondo.
IRL: Tracking bike rides with the Garmin Edge 510
I'm all about minimizing the amount of stuff I need to carry with me, which is why smartphones have been great -- they can double as a camera and even a portable gaming handheld. But when it comes to riding my bike, I still prefer a dedicated device. This is why I picked up a Garmin Edge 510, and now I don't think I'd ever go back to using a smartphone to track my workouts.
Strava begins selling your data points, and no, you can't opt-out [Updated]
Strava (free) is an extremely popular running and biking app on iPhone, and has long been at or near the top of the fitness app charts. Along with its apps on other platforms including Android and even personal GPS devices, the company has pooled a whole lot of data about your running and cycling habits, which it recently used to create a stunning map of exercise routes around the world. Now the company is using that data as a product of its own, called Strava Metro. Strava calls Strava Metro a "data service," and it's pitching its massive wealth of user patterns to transportation agencies, city governments, and corporations in a subscription-based format. The data itself, Strava notes, is scrubbed of all identifiable user information, meaning that a company or government entity wouldn't be able to tell exactly where you have been going, just the trends that you and millions of other Strava users produce. The data is being sold in a rather unique way, right down to each individual Strava member. According to the official Metro FAQ, the fees are based on how many Strava users are present within the geographical area in question. The data on each individual Strava member in an area runs a rate of US$0.80 for a twelve-month time span. Multiply that by thousands of users in an area and you come out to the total cost. The company's privacy policy is very clear about how it treats your personal information, and the company only uses what you explicitly allow them to. When it comes to your data points, it's unclear whether that is considered to be "personal information." The policy mentions your ability to share specific routes with Strava, but doesn't state whether a data service like Metro -- which deals with anonymized information -- is something that can be specifically opted-out from. We've contacted Strava for clarification and will update as soon as we hear back on this. Update: Strava replied to my request and noted that there's no way to opt out of having your data included in Metro. So whether you like it or not, you're worth about $0.80 per year. Update 2 [5/28/14]: Several days after this article was originally published I was contacted by a member of the Strava PR team to clarify that you can indeed keep your data from showing up in metro. He explains: "We take member privacy very seriously and we do let our members opt-out of having their data included in Strava Metro. Any activity on Strava that is marked as private by the member is not included in the Strava Metro dataset. Further, privacy zones created by the member are respected - data from within them is also not included in Strava Metro."
Cyclist GPS data could help cities plan safer routes
Strava has been using GPS coordinates to monitor progress for cyclists and runners for quite some time, and now it's looking to lend a hand to local governments. With its new effort, Strava Metro, the fitness-tracking outfit serves up data on 90 million bike routes and 24 million runs (at launch) to help planners examine how the two segments use public roads. Oregon's Department of Transportation has already signed on as the first customer, using the info for a year -- a deal that carried a $20,000 price tag. What's more, London, Glasgow, Orlando (Florida, US) and Alpine Shire (Victoria, Australia) have also opted in. "Right now, there's no data. We don't know where people ride bikes," Portland State University professor Jennifer Dill told the Wall Street Journal. "Just knowing where the cyclists are is a start." Urban planners in cities have long had access to metrics around automobile traffic, but tracking patterns for bike and runners hasn't been available up to this point.
Here are all the places you go running and biking with your iPhone
Strava is one of the most popular exercise apps on the iPhone, so after years of users recording their own running and biking habits, the company has a whole lot of data on its hands. Using nearly 20 million recorded exercise routes from its software across iOS, Garmin GPS devices, and Android, the company has created a gorgeous heat map of the world, showing exactly where people love to burn calories with their smartphones in their pockets. The map can be broken down into running and biking routes, with various color and opacity options, but its probably most valuable when used as a tool to find great exercise spots in your area. You can zoom in all the way to street level, which is invaluable if you're just not sure where to go with with your bike or running shoes.
NikeFuel integration is coming to MyFitnessPal, RunKeeper and Strava
Nike's line of FuelBand wearables has been a popular choice for those looking to keep tabs on daily activity, but Fuel tallies haven't meant much outside of the company's own apps. Now, with the launch of the Nike+ Fuel Lab in San Francisco, the athletic outfit is looking to expand through partnerships and collaboration. Through the initiative, the Fuel platform will soon team up with "industry-leading companies" that include the likes of MyFitnessPal, RunKeeper and Strava. According to Nike, this means that over 100 million new participants will have access to its "common universal currency to monitor and evaluate" all kinds of activity. "The demand for simpler data-powered experiences is soaring, and all-day sensing is more available on mobile and wearable devices than ever before," said Nike VP of Digital Sport Stefan Olander. "Nike is committed to broadening the use of NikeFuel through collaborations with industry leaders to create smarter products and services." Unfortunately, there's no word on when the integration will begin just yet.
Strava Run fitness app taps iPhone 5s motion co-processor for longer battery life
If you were placing bets on when the first app using the iPhone 5S' M7 motion co-processor would arrive, it's time to cash in. Strava Run, the fitness application that lets you score your suffering (no, really), was recently updated to include auto-pause that relies on Apple's new silicon, allowing a time-out on your activity when it senses you aren't moving. The application also uses less juice now, which should make your iPhone a little more prepared for a marathon. You, on the other hand, may need to recharge somewhere during those 26.2 miles.
Wahoo Fitness PROTKT: Bike mount and protective case in one
While I'm currently trying to do my best imitation of a slug, I used to be a very active bike rider. How active? Like 2,500 miles (4023 km) per year. This was back in the days before iPhones, and I used to mount a Garmin eTrex GPS on my handlebars as a bike computer and throw my cell phone into my bike bag. Wahoo Fitness has come up with a brilliant solution for mounting an iPhone 5 on your handlebars for fitness tracking, providing entertainment on the road, and protecting your device from falls and weather. The PROTKT mount for iPhone 5 (US$69.95) is a different solution than the previously-reviewed RFLKT ($129.99) that is a separate display unit that uses your iPhone to do all of the heavy computing. Let's take a look! Opening the PROTKT box, you're confronted with a bunch of components. The most obvious is the iPhone 5 case, which is built like a tank. If you're a professional bike racer, you're not going to like the PROTKT because it's not very aerodynamically designed. On the other hand, you probably shave your legs, arms and head, so maybe that lack of friction will make up for the boxiness of the PROTKT case. Like any good tank, the PROTKT case is sealed up tight and hard to get into. I actually had to check out the instructions online to figure out how to open the case, and even there it took a good tug to get the top to pop off (it's held down with some rubberized strips that run along the sides of the case for "grippiness"). Once that's done, the iPhone slide simply slides into the case, and the top is replaced. If you're used to a slim, unprotected, and lightweight iPhone 5, then you're not going to want to keep the PROTKT on your iPhone 5 when you're off of the bike. It's thick and heavy! With the PROTKT on it, the total weight of the iPhone 5 and case goes up to 7.6 ounces (215 grams) from the normal featherlight 3.95 ounces (112 grams). It also gains thickness by going from .30 inches (7.6 mm) to .787 inches (20 mm). But all that extra bulk is protection, and that's what you need if you're a dedicated cyclist who rides regardless of weather. Now how do you get the case onto your bike? That's where the other components come into play. There's an "x-mount" adapter that snaps into place on the back of the case that connects with a simple quarter-turn clockwise to the handlebar mount. If you need to remove the encased iPhone for any reason during your ride -- say, to take a picture of that bear that just wandered onto the road -- you just give it a quarter-turn counterclockwide to pop it off. The rest of the time, it's glued to your bike. The handlebar mount will also work as a stem mount if you want your handlebars free of clutter. It comes in two pieces -- a curved rubber piece to protect your bike from scratches and the hard polycarbonate mount -- and is held into place with wire ties. I personally like the idea of using regular wire ties to attach the mount, since they can be purchased in a lot of places in case you want to snip the existing ties and move the mount to another bike. So, now you have the PROTKT on your bike, you're in your shorts and jersey, your SPD-equipped bike shoes are on, and your water bottle is full. How do you track your cycling performance? With the free Wahoo Fitness app for cycling. The app also works when running or working out, and it can receive data from other Wahoo Fitness sensors. Want to track your heart rate during your ride? There's a Heart Rate Strap ($69.99) for that. Perhaps you want to track your speed and cadence? Use the Speed and Cadence Sensor ($59.99). Hell, the Apollo astronauts weren't this well instrumented! The app provides a way to share your collected data with a large number of other fitness apps and sites, including Runkeeper, MapMyFitness, Strava, Nike+, Training Peaks, 2Peak, Ride With GPS and others. For the serious -- or even occasional -- cyclist who wants to collect riding statistics and keep his or her iPhone 5 safe, there's really no other solution that comes close. Wahoo Fitness has created an amazing ecosystem of connected fitness products that work well with the iPhone, and PROTKT is another example of the company's commitment to its customers. Now we're going to make one cyclist very, very happy by giving away our review PROTKT. Here are the rules for the giveaway: Open to legal US residents of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia and Canada (excluding Quebec) who are 18 and older. To enter, fill out the form below completely and click or tap the Submit button. The entry must be made before August 27, 2013 11:59PM Eastern Daylight Time. You may enter only once. One winner will be selected and will receive a Wahoo Fitness PROTKT bicycle mount and case valued at $69.99 Click Here for complete Official Rules. Loading...
Path opens up its API to a baker's dozen of partners
The Path (free, with many in-app purchases for stickers and whatnot) social network has opened the doors to 13 new API partners that will now sport a "Share on Path" button in their apps. Path's integration initially started with Nike, giving users a way to share their runs and fitness levels through Path. VP of Business Development for Path Matt Van Horn told our sister site, TechCrunch, that the company curated the list of partners to fit its goal of being a more personal and almost private social network. The company found that users felt more comfortable sharing the Nike fitness information with their smaller friend group on Path than they did sharing the same data on Facebook or Twitter. The range of new partners is quite broad, including social video network Viddy, collage app Pic Stitch and personal fitness app Strava. The Bible app was added after Path found that a number of users were copying and sharing verses with their Path friends; now it takes just a simple tap on the app's share sheet. Other photography apps that now feature Path API integration include Over, PicMix, Papelook, Otaku, Mill Colour, Manga Camera and PicFrame. WordPress bloggers will also find that it's now easy to share their most recent posts on Path, thanks to API integration in the popular blogging app.
