Although running is an individual sport, do you sometimes wish you had the camaraderie of a team? Michael Horvath, today’s guest, founded Strava, an online community for runners and other athletes.
Through tracking, Strava is able to help you connect to other athletes and also compiles some interesting data, such as what time of day people tend to run and which cities have the most active or fastest residents.
Michael got his start with rowing, then moved onto triathlon and running after he got out of college. He founded Strava (which, by the way, means “strive” in Swedish) in 2009 and now it is an international success.
Some of the topics we’ll explore with Michael today include:
- Michael’s journey to where he is now, both personally and professionally.
- Which cities have the residents that run the fastest.
- Why being on a team can be motivating to runners and other athletes.
- All about Strava: What it’s all about and why it’s important.
- Why it’s so important to put your family first.
- Michael’s favorite book, favorite pre-workout meal and the best advice he’s ever received.
Questions Michael is asked:
2:30: Can you share your initial fitness background with us?
4:45: Did you always know that you were a “team person”?
5:25: What is it about a team that a runner can find so motivating?
6:45: Explain what Strava is and what it’s all about.
9:20: Can you connect your watch, Garmin, Tomtom or other device directly to Strava?
13:35: How did the Strava idea develop?
17:00: Do you have any stats or numbers that you’ve collected over the years?
20:15: Can you share about your journey with Strava and how your wife’s health problems impacted that?
23:20: Did your wife’s cancer change your perspective, or did you always have a “family first” mindset?
26:10: Do you have advice for a business-owner who puts work in front of family?
28:50: What does being the president of Strava entail?
30:50: Where do you see Strava going in the future?
33:40: What if people want to disconnect from their devices? Can Strava adapt to that?
35:50: Does Strava hire mostly athletes? What it is about them that makes you want to bring them onto the Strava team?
[bctt tweet=”I Run for Life, Not Just for Today. Why do you run?” username=”Runners_Connect”]
Quotes from Michael:
“Rowing gave me a team to belong to and a team to contribute to.”
“People crave interaction of a meaningful kind.”
“Strava is an online community for athletes — people who run, ride or a number of different activities. You track your workout with our app or with a GPS device and upload it to Strava, and you have experienced activity with other people. There’s a social element.”
“Strava allows you to plan better, to work out better, and to enjoy what you have achieved.”
“Strava tells the story of your workout.”
“We thought Strava would be smaller. We knew it would be well-received… and we love seeing that growth.”
“We tend to move away from what we think is the right balance point by degrees.”
“I had a shocking development and had to transition very quickly, but the advice I’d give to someone who isn’t living a life that fits with their values is to set the date in the future by which point you will have made a change.”
“Helping the athletes build community can help them unlock their potential and become conduits to create gains in the world.”
“What makes Strava stand out is that we really want to find the thing that motivates you every day.”
“When we designed Strava, we wanted it to be additive to the way you already were an athlete. We didn’t want to distract you and make you do something different.”
“Run for life, not just for today.”
[bctt tweet=”Run for life, not just for today. Another great interview from @Runners_Connect with @Strava” via=”no”]
We really hope you’ve enjoyed this episode of Run to the Top. Please consider giving us a review on iTunes by clicking THIS link. You can follow this YouTube Video of a Demonstration of How to Leave a Review. Thank you in advance.
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Links and Resources
Last episode with Chris McDougall
Thank you so much for tuning in. Remember you can always email me tina@runnersconnect.net if you have any suggestions, feedback, or guests you would like to hear from.
Can I ask you a HUGE favor please? Would you be able to review the podcast on iTunes to help Run to the Top move up the rankings…..so we can bring on more of those running celebrities and influencers?
It can be confusing. Here is a video for the computer https://www.youtube.com/embed/XdWeIF6gu3Y?vq=hd1080
As for the iPhone…..
- Go onto the podcast app
- Search for the Runners Connect podcast in the search bar (bottom right)
- Select the podcast
- There will be 3 tabs, the middle one says Reviews, click that
- It will say “Write a Review”
Thank you SO much!
Next week, we will be talking to Jason Karp, author of The Inner Runner. You need to tune in to hear about it, so we hope to see you soon!
this needs to link once it’s up.
