The Worst Notification In Running. And Everything Else Strava Gets Right.

There’s one notification I dread more than any other.

Not a bill. Not a work thing. The one that says another runner has just taken your segment crown.

I once switched leads on the same segment with another runner about 10 times. The final time, I put on my racing shoes, took that segment more seriously than a race, and gave it an absolute full send at 5AM. I probably ran quicker through that segment than I had in my race the week before.

It was totally worth it. That segment never switched hands again.

I’m telling you that story because most runners completely misjudge this app. Strava gets treated like a photo album with GPS.

Used properly, it’s the closest thing to free coaching in running. Here’s how I actually use it.

Back in the day we wrote our training in physical logbooks. Every run, by hand, often with the distance estimated. Those were the days.

Now your whole running history sits in one place, synced from your watch before you’ve taken your shoes off. And most runners never use the half of it.

When I first moved to London, my home parkrun was Tooting, and I spent week after week trying to crack 17 minutes there. It took ages. Every single one of those attempts is still sitting in my log, and I can go back and read that whole stretch of my running life like a book.

That’s what this section is really about. Treat Strava as a diary, not just a feed, and add the notes your future self will want:

→ How you felt, in one honest line. Legs good, legs gone, whatever’s true

→ Detailed splits on the sessions that mattered

→ What shoes you ran in

Because one day you’ll want to know exactly what your training looked like the season you ran your best. Instead of guessing, you’ll read it.

We live in a day and age where elite runners share almost everything. Years ago that training was kept secret. Now it’s sitting on your feed, and who you follow changes what running looks like to you every single day.

→ Runners stronger than you. Watching them show up day in and day out makes your own training feel more doable. And when they smash a race, you’ve already seen the work it took, so it makes sense instead of looking like magic

→ Accounts that actually teach you something. There’s always more to learn in this sport. Even Kipchoge himself is constantly learning

→ And a few runners at the level you’re aiming for. Not to copy their week, but to see honestly what that level costs

Your feed either pulls you forward or it winds you up. You choose who’s on it.

We all have a competitive side. Segments give that side of you something to do between races.

Have a look at the routes you already run and see what segments sit on them. Then lace up one day and go chase them. Nothing wrong with segment hunting, and these days you can chase local legend status too, which goes to whoever runs a segment the most times, not the fastest.

Fair warning from my own story at the top: it escalates. One day you’re jogging your usual loop, the next you’re in racing shoes at 5AM defending a crown like it’s a national title.

And honestly? That’s free speedwork you didn’t have to talk yourself into.

This one saves you every time you travel.

Strava analyses the most commonly run routes anywhere in the world, so you can land in a city you’ve never run in and follow the lines the local runners actually use. I’ve been leaning on it myself this month, back home in South Africa on roads I haven’t run in years.

→ Build a route to the exact distance you need

→ Check the elevation before you commit, not halfway up it

→ Sync it to your watch and just run

It works for racing too. Look at the route properly beforehand and you’ll know where the course gets hard, instead of finding out mid-race.

Now the honest bit, because this tool has teeth.

If you catch yourself running your easy days faster because of how the pace will look on the feed, Strava has stopped working for you and you’ve started working for it.

The easier you run your recovery runs, the fresher and faster you are on your hard days. That’s the whole engine of improvement.

Post the run. Own the pace. Be the best possible you, not a version of somebody else’s feed.

So that’s how I use it. It’s my diary, it’s my map when I travel, and it’s where my competitive streak goes to stay busy between races. And it’s the one app I keep an honest eye on, for exactly the trap above.

The tool is brilliant. Just remember it records your running. It doesn’t define it.

And yes, you know how the saying goes. If it’s not on Strava, it doesn’t count. 😉

Two things this week.

First, go back through your own Strava to your best block of training. Have a proper look at what you were actually doing. I promise it’ll surprise you.

Then come tell me in the Hub: what’s the segment you’d defend at 5 AM? There’s a poll waiting, and I’m reading every reply this week.

Boom Shakalaka! 🔥

Coach Nick