What is Strava?

Strava is a combination fitness tracker and social performance platform used by more than 100 million athletes around the world to log, analyze, and share workouts.  

One of the objectives of the 5k Training is to connect you with like minded individuals who share your passion for running, and the Strava app allows us to keep the focus on athletic endeavors and your activity feed will automatically share with those you connect with saving you a step in sharing your accomplishments. 

The free version of the app is sufficient for the 5k Training Program.

Setting Up Your Account

To get started on Strava, users must go through a brief but essential onboarding process that ensures accurate tracking and personalized recommendations:

1. Begin by visiting strava.com  in a web browser or downloading the official Strava mobile app from the App Store or Google Play.
2. Register for an account using your preferred method—email address, Google login, or Facebook credentials. If signing up on mobile, users can also enable biometric login (Face ID or fingerprint) for secure and quick access.
3. After registering, you’ll be prompted to complete your profile. This includes entering your full name, choosing your primary sport (running, cycling, hiking, etc.), adding body metrics like height and weight (used to estimate calories burned), and configuring privacy settings such as whether activities are public, private, or visible to followers only. We recommend visible to followers only.
4. If you don't have a GPS wearable device (things like an Apple Watch, Garmin, Coros, and some Fitbit devices) you can carry your phone and use the app to record your activity.  To do that, you'll need to enable location access for real-time GPS tracking. On iOS and Android devices, this means granting permission for the app to access location services "Always" or "While Using the App" to ensure full route capture during workouts.

Integrating Devices

Compatible Watches

What does it mean to be compatible with Strava? If your device can export or record activities in GPX, TCX, or FIT format, and these files contain actual workout data, your device is compatible with Strava. Some devices have an easier process uploading to Strava than others.

• Garmin: Syncs automatically via Garmin Connect, providing detailed performance data and advanced metrics like VO2 max and training effect.
• Wahoo: Supports cycling and running metrics, including power and cadence sensors.
• Polar: Offers detailed heart rate, sleep, and recovery insights, which flow into Strava via Polar Flow.
• COROS: Popular with trail runners and ultra-endurance athletes, COROS watches sync structured workouts and environmental context.
• Suunto & Bryton: Additional brands supported through direct or middleware integrations.

Create the Connection

Method 1: link to Strava from your device

1. Open the Device App: Launch the app for your GPS device (e.g., Garmin Connect, Fitbit app, Zepp) on your phone.
2. Go to Settings: Find the 'More' or Profile icon, then navigate to 'Settings' or 'Third-party account linking'.
3. Select Strava: Find and select 'Strava' from the list of connected apps or services.
4. Authorize Connection: Tap 'Agree' or 'Connect', then log in to your Strava account when prompted and authorize the connection.
5. Sync: Once linked, activities recorded on your device will automatically appear on Strava. 

1. Open Strava: Launch the Strava app on your phone.
2. Go to Settings: Tap your profile icon, then the gear icon (Settings).
3. Link Services: Select 'Link Other Services' or 'Applications, Services, and Devices'.
4. Connect Device: Choose your device (Fitbit, Garmin, etc.) and follow the prompts to log in and authorize. 

Strava and Apple Watch

The Strava Apple Watch app allows users to record runs, rides, and other outdoor workouts directly from their wrist, eliminating the need to carry a phone. The app supports key metrics like distance, time, pace, heart rate (if enabled), and GPS-based route tracking. After completing a workout, the data syncs with the user’s Strava profile automatically.

Alternatively, users who prefer Apple’s native Workout app can integrate their Apple Health account with Strava. This setup ensures that any workout recorded in Apple Health (such as indoor runs or elliptical sessions) is shared with Strava, even if the Strava app wasn’t used to initiate the activity. To enable this, users must authorize Strava to read workout data from Apple Health in the iOS Health settings.

Manual Entry

For users who use unsupported devices or have technical difficulty during a run, Strava allows manual activity logging:

• Tap the “+” icon in the Strava app or log in to your account on the website.
• Select Manual Activity and choose your workout type.
• Input the duration, distance, start time, and optionally add metrics like elevation, average heart rate, gear used, and effort level.
• Add a title, any notes, and whether the activity was a commute, training session, or race.
• Tap Save Activity to post it to your training log.

Manual entries still contribute to your fitness stats and can be included in weekly and monthly summaries, providing a complete picture of your routine, even if GPS wasn’t enabled.

What Metrics Are Tracked and Why

Each metric logged on Strava provides critical insights into user effort, physiological adaptation, and long-term training trends. These metrics not only inform individual goal setting and progress tracking but also serve as foundational signals for health and performance analytics at scale:

• Distance & Pace: These foundational metrics track how far and how fast a user moves. For runners and cyclists, changes in pace over time reflect endurance improvements and aerobic conditioning. This data can be aggregated to identify population-level training consistency or inactivity patterns.
• Elevation Gain: This metric quantifies the vertical climb during an activity and is particularly meaningful for trail runners, hikers, and cyclists tackling hilly routes. It offers insight into muscle load and cardiovascular intensity that flat-surface metrics may overlook. When tracked longitudinally, elevation trends can indicate user progression toward specific terrain-based goals.
• Heart Rate & Training Zones: Captured through chest straps or optical wrist sensors, heart rate data enables classification of training intensity using zones (e.g., recovery, aerobic, anaerobic thresholds). These zones inform training load, stress levels, and recovery needs.
• Cadence (Steps or Pedals): A high cadence typically correlates with efficient biomechanics and reduced injury risk. Runners aim for a cadence of 170–180 steps per minute, while cyclists optimize revolutions per minute (RPM) to match power output and terrain. Health and fitness platforms can use cadence data to screen for irregular movement patterns or inefficiencies.

Community & Social Motivation

• Followers: Your followers are your inner circle. You can set your activity privacy so only your followers can see you. 
• Kudos: You can give a quick thumbs-up on others’ workouts.
• Comments: Add comments to recognize a milestone, celebrate, or applaud getting out the door.
• Clubs: Join clubs based geography, brand affiliation, interests, or training goals. You will still only see activities from the people you follow (or whose privacy is set to everyone). Some clubs have club specific events, or share educational or promotional connect related to your interests.

Modifying an Activity

If you accidentally drive off without stopping your activity you can trim or crop it. Note that only activities with GPS data can be cropped, which will exclude some indoor activities. Additionally, data cannot be cropped from the middle of an activity, only the start and/or end. Examples of when to use the crop tool:

• Trim unwanted resting time from the start or end of an activity.
• Cut out parts of an activity recorded in a car or are motor-assisted at either the beginning or end of an activity.
• Delete GPS location errors at the start or end of a ride.

On the web, open the activity you'd like to crop and click on the ellipses icon. Select Crop from the menu.

• Use the sliders to specify the portion you would like to keep. You will keep what is shown in orange and remove anything that is shown in blue on the map.
• For small adjustments, you can use the Back and Forward buttons below each end of the slider. Note that you can zoom in much further on the map if you select the Satellite view. 
• When you have made your selection, select Crop.

On the mobile app, open the activity you'd like to crop and select the ellipses icon in the upper right-hand corner. Select Crop from the menu options.

• Use the sliders to specify the portion you would like to keep. You will keep what is shown in orange and remove anything shown in blue on iOS and in grey on Android.
• For small adjustments, use the arrow icons to adjust the start or end time one second at a time.
• When you have made your selection, click Save.

What if the Crop tool can't fix your problem?

• Bad data in the middle of your activity: If, for example, the part of your activity that is driven in the car is in the middle of your ride, you won't be able to use the crop tool to fix it. Unfortunately, the only way to remove the middle sections of an activity is to split the activity into two parts and then crop the section out. 
• The whole activity was driven in a car: We recommend changing the activity type to something besides a "ride" or a "run" if the whole activity is motor-assisted. If you change the activity type, the data will no longer be eligible for the activity-specific Segment Leaderboards. The most generic activity type for this is Workout. 
• If the Activity with the bad data or car-driven portion is not your own: Since you can only crop your own activities, if you come across someone else's bad data, you can flag the activity to remove all their times from the Segment Leaderboard.

Make a Mistake?

There is no way to "undo" cropping an activity but you can re-upload the original version of the activity. This will require that any existing versions of that activity get deleted so that the new version can be uploaded. Keep in mind this will remove all kudos, comments, and photos associated with the original activity.