Can runners survive without Stryd?
As I lavish praise on the breakthrough of a power meter for runners, many are forced to ask:
How can runners survive without Stryd?
Some existing Stryd owners ask this question with 100% sincerity as they rely on running power for all of their workout recommendations and race planning.
Yet, some non-Stryd owners ask this question in absurdity as they scoff at the idea of needing another piece of technology to run.
Well, absent a running power meter or any kind of technology, runners have to rely on rate of perceived exertion (RPE) to modulate their effort.
And, since running is essentially the world's oldest sport, RPE is what runners have relied on since the dawn of man.
RPE does work.
You don't need a running power meter to tell you to run faster or slower.
i.e. You intuitively slow down on hills and speed up on downhills.
RPE works at the highest level of the sport too.
Some of the world's best runners can dial in their effort to near perfection without the help of any kind of technology whatsoever.
Their pacing is already perfect.
Yet, I would argue that most other runners do need help perfecting their pacing.
Your RPE is not perfect.
It can take decades of training with a top tier coach to achieve that.
There is no quick way to improve your RPE either.
That is where technologies like Stryd come in.
Stryd is one of the best tools to reliably improve your pacing on every run.
If you follow your running power and your fitness is up to snuff, you can pace just about any race to perfection, even on your first try.
So, what is the lesson here?
You can run without Stryd by relying on your RPE.
But, if you want to improve your pacing quickly, RPE is not the way to go.
You will want the help of a piece of technology: pace, heart rate, power, etc.
And, out of those options, I would argue that Stryd's running power is the way to go.
You can get Stryd here: https://store.stryd.com/
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