how running apps have changed the way we run

“But what is this uninteresting sport?” Forced to put on sneakers in full confinement because “it was the only sport allowed”, Paul, in his twenties, sees buried memories from his college years come to the surface. The first voluntary jogging of his life almost became the last, “and then my brother told me about Strava”. The second outing turns into love at first sight: “I saw my effort materialize, I could compare it to what others were doing. It acted as an incredible motivation booster.” Four years later, he covers almost 150 km per week.

Like him, millions of French people have changed the way they run thanks to running apps. From going around the block to stay in line at the Paris marathon, Sunday April 7, where Strava claims to measure the performance of 55% of the 50,000 registered. Two decades ago, you had to be both highly motivated and knowledgeable in math to reference your data. “I modeled my route to the nearest meter on mapping software then I timed myself”says Guillaume Adam, 2h23 in the marathon at 33 years old.

“I reported all of that in an Excel table to have my time per kilometer.”

Guillaume Adam, running enthusiast

at franceinfo

Then Nike launched the FuelBand, a connected bracelet “fairly rudimentary”according to Nicolas, a pioneer of running.

Strava better by measuring it

That’s all in the past. Welcome to the era of the “quantified self”, where everything is measured. “We can say that an app like Strava is now part of the equipment, just like shoes”, summarizes Grégory Vermeersch, boss of the French branch of the market-leading company, which claims 6 million users in France (and 120 million worldwide). A process described to perfection by Nir Eyal, pope of “behavioral design”, or the influence of design to modify human habits.

In a blog post in 2014, he wrote: “Designers should be able to fill in the blank in the following sentence: ‘every time the user ___, they use my app’. The blank word is the internal trigger that makes us use this product for this action.” If you have the reflex to look for the Strava, Runkeeper (owned by Asics), Kiprun (Décathlon), Nike Run Club or Runtastic (Adidas) application in your phone when you think of the word “run”, you are a connected runner of the 21st century, according to this marketing specialist.

This modern jogger is one of the subjects of study by Bastien Soulé, professor at the University of Lyon 1, within the Laboratory on Vulnerabilities and Innovation in Sport. “You can use these apps in a multitude of ways”he explains.

“Some look for a detailed analysis of their performance, others are satisfied with their time per kilometer. Finally, others use it as a logbook of their sporting activity.”

Bastien Soulé, researcher

at franceinfo

With a significant nuance on the persistence of the use of the application after having installed it. When asked, Strava did not wish to provide figures on the abandonment rate, “but these apps mainly affect regular athletes”. Which represents, for running, between 5 and 10 million French people, according to estimates from the French Athletics Federation.

Make friends along the way

If the very nature of the activity has not changed – it is still about using your legs to go as far and as quickly as possible – it has evolved. “We could almost say that, thanks to apps, running is no longer an individual sport”sells Grégory Vermeersch, from Strava France. “I find there the benevolent side of early Facebook”illustrates Gaétan Gohin.

“All we have to share is our passion for sport and encouragement.”

Gaétan Gohin, running enthusiast

at franceinfo

The equivalent of “like” on Strava is called “kudos” and Dutch researchers have shown that this virtual encouragement encourages people to put on sneakers more often.

By sharing your favorite routes, you are not immune to finding training buddies. “A few weeks after the Boulogne-Billancourt half-marathon, I was at the market and someone tapped me on the shoulder: ‘Is that you Gaétan? Congratulations on your race. I finished a few meters behind you!’ Now I run two or three times a week with this guy.”

The shallot race for segments

If Strava is not a social network that “try to capture people’s attention”according to Grégory Vermeersch, the site participates in a gamification running, with its “segments”, sections of road where runners compete for speed or attendance records, its challenges (running 10, 20 or 100 km over a month) and even its influencers.

The best known of them, “Green Cap”, Alexandre Boucheix in civilian life, accepts this title reluctantly. “I am well aware of ithe admits. When I created a section in the Bois de Vincennes, the ‘V de Gravelle’, you had to pass through a bush to make the small difference in altitude, nothing extraordinary, 23 m on one side and 27 m on the other . Now, because of the passage, access has been greatly expanded. Dozens of people run there at all hours of the day and night.” But unlike mushroom corners, “the principle of social running is to share your good spots.”

Strava can also count on luxury leaders, champions like Mehdi Frère, who came second in the Paris half-marathon, or Jimmy Gressier, finalist at the last World Championships in the 10,000m, to inspire its members.

“Not far from my home, at the Parc de Sceaux, there is a segment which is held by Mehdi Frère. I pass there often, I achieved the 13th time, and I am very proud of it. I have spoke to my children”smiles Gaétan Gohin.

Are these connected runners crazy? “I created a Strava account for my outings with my children who follow me on the bike, so as not to lower my average per km”whispers a user, not necessarily proud of this tip. “During confinement, friends created a second Strava account to be able to exceed the one kilometer radius limit without being reported because of the app’s mapping”, slips another. An anecdote which recalls the blunder of French soldiers who revealed the location of a military base in Mali by recording their jogging around their barracks.

The best way to run

What if these applications, a source of pride for runners, accentuated bigorexia, addiction to sport, to the point of causing injuries? There is as yet no scientific study that conclusively establishes a cause and effect link. Several researchers, however, assure that the tendency of apps to highlight the mileage volume pushes the user to make unnecessary efforts. On its subscribers version, Strava also warns: “This feature does not replace advice from a coach. (…) These data do not represent the only indicator of your physical condition. Listen to your body, don’t put yourself in danger.”

“The use we make of these apps can lead to turning them against ourselvessummarizes Florence Morisseau, teacher and physiotherapist at La Clinique du Runner. One in two people who start running are injured within six weeks of starting again. Very often, the runner wants to go too fast, too high, too hard, to keep the line or prepare for a race, which is not necessarily linked to being on an application. With one nuance:

“When you see someone in your feed who runs 70 km per week, you don’t realize that they didn’t get there overnight.”

Florence Morisseau

at franceinfo

Hence the existence of a real demand for coaches, outside the restrictive framework of the athletics club. Décathlon, via Kiprun, provided champion advice for ten weeks to its users who were preparing for the 42.195 km in Paris. “We have over 8,000 preparation plans planned for this marathon alone, illustrates Damien Mulliez, Kiprun Pacer product manager. The majority of our users are practitioners who wish to be supported in a comprehensive manner: in addition to the calculation of the VMA (maximum aerobic speed, a key indicator for endurance sports)we offer advice on stretching, nutrition, mental and physical preparation.” With an additional carrot: the training hours spent on the application allow points to be generated in the user’s loyalty account, with a view to a future purchase.

Even more sophisticated, the paid service Run-Motion, directed by Guillaume Adam, claims 2,000 participants departing from the Champs-Elysées. “Today, we can offer very detailed personalized programs, our app even has a functionality to adapt to menstrual cycles”supports the one who claims 88% success for his flock, yet with ambitious objectives. The other solution is to ask your favorite influencer. “There are 14-year-old kids who ask my opinion before embarking on ultra-trail runningwonders Alexandre Boucheix. I always give first advice from an old fart, I recommend taking good medical care and doing a heart test.”

What if the next step was the substitution of other social networks? Goodbye LinkedIn? Gaétan Gohin says he has already recruited someone based on their history Strava, “seriously, who runs diligently early in the morning, late in the evening, goes on long runs during the holidays, that’s an indicator.” Goodbye Tinder? “My marriage proposal is recorded on Strava”, smiled “Green cap”. You really won’t run the same way anymore.