Why Did the Strava App Disappear on My Apple Watch Series 3?

The Strava app mysteriously disappeared from my Apple Watch this month (October 2024). After doing some research online, I found out that the Strava app now requires Watch OS 9.0 or greater. Unfortunately, the Apple Watch Series 3 only goes up to OS 8.x. In short, no more Strava app for the Apple Watch Series 3, which is a major bummer! Or so I thought.

Strava does give some ways to sync data between the Apple Watch’s Workout app and Strava, but I discovered that the Apple Workout app automatically syncs with my iPhone’s Fitness app and basically records all of the same stuff as Strava, including a map of your walk or run!

My Solution

So, now I just use my Apple Watch’s native Workout app to track my runs! Just like with Strava, you just choose what type of activity you’re going to do:

On my phone they automatically appear in the native Fitness app! See screenshots below:

I’ve been using it for a while and it’s great! There aren’t really any features that I miss compared to Strava.

There’s even built-in social sharing features, similar to Strava!

The only downside is that Apple doesn’t provide a native desktop app or web app to view your workouts. You can only view them on your iOS device or Apple TV. There are some third-party services that can read your data, but I have not tried them yet. Buthhonestly, I rarely look at my workouts on my desktop computer.

If you’re OK with that limitation, you might be able to ditch Strava and just use these free Apple apps and services!

The Original Article

Below is the original article describing how the Strava app used to work on my Apple Watch Series 3.

Like many runners, I used the Strava iPhone app to track my runs. But, I was tired of having to carry my iPhone with me; I had it in an arm band and it was difficult to remove, making checking my pace almost impossible without stopping. So, when the iPhone Series 3 came out with built-in GPS, I thought the time was right to finally get one and ditch the phone on my runs!

I wanted to find the answer to a simple question, “does Strava work on Apple Watch Series 3?”  I went online and found some conflicting information about whether the Apple Watch really worked with Strava. Yes, there was a Strava App for Apple Watch, but some commenters said it didn’t work or was completely useless. I was hesitant to buy one without knowing for sure.

The Verdict: It Works, After a Buggy Start

Well, I took a chance and purchased the Apple Watch (with no LTE) and tried it myself. It has a bare minimum number of features, but it does do the fundamental task of tracking your run, pace, and route, and syncing that to your iPhone afterwards without having to carry your phone with you.

Although you won’t see a map of your route on your phone, you will see it in the Strava iPhone app or website after you sync.

The Good

To start a run with your watch, open the Strava app and select what type of workout you want to do.  The choices as of now are:

• Outdoor Run
• Outdoor Ride
• Outdoor Walk
• Indoor Run
• Hike
• Nordic Ski
• Indoor Ride
• Workout

Simply tap the icon and it starts tracking you!  Quick and easy.

At any time during your run you can look at your watch to get your current pace. At mile intervals, it will verbally announce the pace of your last mile, as well as your overall time.  So far so good!

At the end of your run, it will show your total distance, time, and pace.

You have a choice to save or delete your workout.  If your phone is nearby, it will sync your workout to your phone when you save it, just as if you had carried it with you!  That is what I wanted!!!

Discrepancy in Running Pace – A Big Problem That Is Fixed Now

The biggest problem I’ve had with Strava on the Apple Watch is that it sometimes after I sync my run to my phone, the iPhone app reports a much faster pace than my watch did.

The errors could be large. For example, while running, Strava told me I ran my first mile at just over a 10-minute pace, but after syncing with my phone, Strava says it was 9:36 minutes.

I found this article which gives two causes and fixes for this problem.

The first scenario happens if you start the Strava app on your watch while you’re near your phone, and you don’t bring your phone with you.  Basically, the app uses the phone’s GPS position for a while, then realizes the watch is disconnected and things get messed up. The solution is to make sure you’re far from your phone when you start the app. Now that I know the cause, it’s easy to avoid.

But that didn’t solve the problem completely for me.

The second suggestion is to “start an activity outside and wait for about 30 seconds before saving and discarding it – then start a new recording”, according to the article.

A lot of folks on the Strava forum had this problem. I’d estimate this discrepancy happened to me about 30% of the time.  Sometimes the watch is spot-on with the iPhone app.

These problems happened with Watch OS 4.2.3. I’m now on 7.3.3 and I haven’t noticed these issues anymore! I consider it fixed!

My Apple Watch Wish List

The Apple Watch Strava app does not show any kind of map of your route while you run. Afterward, it does show a summary, but once you save it, I haven’t found a way to get your splits on your watch after you finish your run (you can get them on the iPhone app). It would be nice to have these things.

Also, if you save your run while not in range of your iPhone, you’ll have to sync it manually later. So, it’s best to NOT save your workout until your iPhone is nearby.

It Works Now

Being able to see my pace has been a game-changer for me and has made me improve my pace from about 10 min/mile to the low 9’s. I also really like the voice announcements at every mile. For recreational workout use, I’m really glad I got it.

What do you think of the Apple Watch with Strava?  Please leave any questions below. – Brian