2.0 POWER METER

£199.00 www.newrunninggear.com

Having morphed from a chest strap into a tiny footpod, visually Stryd’s second generation running power meter is unrecognisable from the groundbreaking first. Yet, while the design and placement has changed drastically, little has altered with Stryd’s functionality.

Using with a compatible Garmin, you download the Stryd IQ App, pair the pod and open the programme on your watch. Stryd’s Garmin app is easy to navigate and detailed; yet sadly you can’t view heart rate mid-run as this is only viewable in Garmin Connect afterwards. On a Suunto Spartan, there are no apps where you can use Stryd in Suunto’s own run mode, while Stryd’s app is worth having just because it tells you the pod’s remaining battery life.

The change from a chest strap into a tiny footpod now means the power reading is only left-sided, yet Stryd claim accuracy isn’t affected. As there are no comparison products, it’s difficult to gauge accuracy other than to compare it with heart rate and Stryd’s chest-strap power meter. Running at the same perceived effort (based on pace) the wattage reading was slightly higher on the footpod, but there were no significant differences. Running in Zone 2 gave a power output that would coincide with Zone 3 based on our experience of power/heart rate zones while cycling, which made the data tricky to interpret.

So Stryd is still a fascinating concept, and the other metrics such as leg spring stiffness and form power are equally useful, but we feel it’s currently best served as an extra tool rather than something that’s used religiously like a cycling power meter. Head to 220tri.com for a longer review.