The Future is Now

Running & Technology

“Technology can’t replace t he outdoors and fresh air, or being surrounded by friends. It can’t replace the nerves you might have on a starting line, or the adrenaline that comes from being on a track with another human being.”— Evan Wallman, Founder, Toronto Trail Runners

FOCUS ON TECHNIQUE, R AT H E R T H A N PERFORMANCE

“Part of why I run is to get away from screens,” says Evan Wallman, as he climbs the dirt trails under the green canopy of the lower Don Parklands. The founder of Toronto Trail Runners tells me he uses his Suunto spartan trainer watch to monitor his heart rate and speed, but that’s as far as tech intersects with his running.

“Technology can’t replace the outdoors and fresh air, or being surrounded by friends. It can’t replace the nerves you might have on a starting line, or the adrenaline that comes from being on a track with another human being,” adds Evan, who doesn’t use Strava or MapMyRun.

I can relate to Evan. After obsessing over sleep and fitness data while training for a triathlon, I developed a mild version of orthosomnia: the state of being so preoccupied with the data from your activity tracker that it harms your ability to rest. I stopped using the watch after that.

But are Evan and I missing out on what technology has to offer to running?