How Strava’s Fitness Score got me off track – Escape Collective

I roll into the driveway and slow to a stop. I’m sweating profusely, I’m tired – I’ve ridden for an hour or so, but I’ve ridden hard.

I save my ride on the Strava iPhone app and wait impatiently for it to load. I can’t wait to see the progress I’ve made. I open the car and get down. There it is: my “Fitness Score” has increased by two points. A small improvement, but satisfying and reassuring nonetheless.

Satisfaction is temporary. In just a few days, the two-point improvement is gone and my Fitness Score is back to where it was. And it continues to slide. A constant cold turns a few days off the bike into weeks without riding. All the achievements I have made in the past weeks are quickly erased, as if they never happened at all.

Having these workout notes at my fingertips — and looking at them after every ride — is both a blessing and a curse.

***

My reaction started out clear. There I was reading my stats after a ride one day when I stumbled upon the Fitness graph. Seeing that graph tilt up gave me a sense of satisfaction that I had been missing from cycling for a while. I have always been addicted.

The pattern is the same. Finish riding, immediately check my Fitness Score for any improvement. The growth feels great; the lack of improvement feels like the ride was almost useless. I realize now that I’ve been relying on a relatively static metric to give meaning to my riding.

So what exactly is Strava’s Fitness Score? “Although exercise is a complex concept, it can be simplified to accumulate training,” the explanatory page on the Strava website tells me. Basically, Strava uses heart rate or power-meter data to calculate the training impact of a given ride, then uses that and data from other rides to calculate your training intensity over time. If you’re familiar with the Chronic Training Load (CTL) used by platforms like TrainingPeaks, Strava’s Fitness Score is the same thing – a metric that shows the intensity and consistency of your ride.

Sadly, “stable” is not a word I would use to describe my riding over the past few years. Instead, my latest Fitness Score graph is more like a jagged mountain range than the steady trend I’d like to see.

Walking into the door in November 2022 ended my physical health, and forced me off the bike for over a month. In November 2023, chronic fatigue/fatigue prevented me from riding the way I wanted to for over four months. Recently, a hip injury and illness meant another few months of less riding.

It’s disappointing to see that the Fitness Score keeps dropping. Plus, when I look back at my numbers from five, eight, 11 years ago, I realize that I’ll probably never reach those heights again.

However, for whatever reason, I can’t stop checking the Fitness Score after every ride.

Maybe I can’t stop looking because those stupid details give a ride plan when I can’t ride the way I want. I may not have time to ride long hills like I used to, or even short rides as often as I like. But with Strava’ Fitness Score, even an hour’s ride gives me a chance to see progress; feeling like I’m accomplishing something. Assuming I ride hard enough.

But it’s a fool’s game. As far as cycling metrics go, Strava’s Fitness Score isn’t very informative. It might give me an idea of ​​how much I’ve been riding lately, and how hard it is, but it doesn’t tell me how strong I am. Not really. After all, for that Fitness Score to continue to increase – for the graph to continue to climb – I will need to ride more often, perhaps longer, and with increasing intensity. That is not true; to believe otherwise is to risk failure.

Finally, there is a big question I need to answer here. Instead of searching for the meaning of a meaningless number – and critically examining it after every trip – I need to find who I really am. search from my bike. If I feel like I’m riding hard, maybe I should just aim for the highest intensity I can for the day and ignore what the Fitness Score says about my increased training in recent weeks . Maybe I can go back to exploring, using tools like Wandrer to inspire me to find new paths? Maybe I need a proper fitness goal to work toward.

Or maybe I just need to enjoy getting out on the bike when I can, ride for a while, and come back with a clearer, happier head? Instead of relying on numbers, maybe I need to find satisfaction in just being possible riding the way I want – something that has been true for the past few years.

***

With my latest illness behind me and my hip feeling great, I’m out for an hour’s bike ride. Nothing fancy – out and back on the same bike path I ride all the time. But this time my opinion is different. I want to enjoy this one for what it is.

After an hour, I got back on the road and lingered. I save my ride on the Strava app and immediately turn off my phone. I don’t know if my Fitness Score has changed, or by how much, and I refuse to comment. It’s a strange feeling that doesn’t know; strange but liberating.

I may not have ridden hard and I haven’t trained, but that’s okay. The last hour gave me exactly what I needed – a little exercise, and a chance to clear my head. And I’m glad to find that sounds good enough. For the first time in a while, I don’t need numbers on the screen to tell me that my ride was worth it.

Did we do a good job with this story?

👍Yes
👎No

escapecollectiveFeelingspaywall