Strava: Hiding Power Data, Managing Activity Privacy, and Key Considerations

How do I hide power on Strava?

To effectively hide power data on Strava, your primary methods involve either setting individual activity privacy to "Only You" after upload, or preventing power data from being recorded and uploaded by your device in the first place. Strava does not currently provide a granular setting to hide only power metrics while keeping other aspects of an activity public.

Understanding Data Privacy on Strava

Strava, a leading platform for athletes, records and displays a wealth of performance data, including power output for cycling activities. While sharing this data can be motivating and foster community, there are valid reasons why an athlete might choose to hide their power metrics. These can range from maintaining a strategic advantage over competitors by not revealing training intensity, to simply preferring to keep personal performance data private, or avoiding the mental pressure of constant comparison. Understanding Strava's privacy architecture is key to managing what data is visible to others.

Hiding Power Data for Individual Activities (Post-Upload)

The most common way to hide power data after it has been uploaded to Strava is to adjust the privacy settings for that specific activity. This action, however, will make the entire activity private, meaning all data associated with it (including pace, distance, heart rate, and maps) will also be hidden from public view.

To adjust privacy for an individual activity:

• Access the Activity: Navigate to the specific activity you wish to modify on either the Strava website or the mobile app.
• Edit Activity: Look for the "Edit Activity" option. On the website, it's typically represented by a wrench icon or "Edit" button. On the app, it's usually via a three-dot menu.
• Locate Privacy Controls: Within the edit screen, find the "Privacy Controls" or "Visibility" section.
• Select "Only You": Change the privacy setting from "Everyone" or "Followers" to "Only You."
• Save Changes: Confirm and save your modifications.

Once set to "Only You," the activity, and consequently all its associated data including power, will only be visible to you.

Preventing Power Data Uploads (Pre-Upload)

If you wish to prevent power data from appearing on Strava at all, the most effective method is to ensure it is not recorded or uploaded in the first place. This approach gives you complete control over your data before it ever reaches the platform.

Methods to prevent power data recording/upload:

• Disconnect Your Power Meter: On your GPS head unit (e.g., Garmin, Wahoo, Hammerhead), navigate to the sensor settings and disconnect or unpair your power meter. This will prevent the device from recording power data during your activity.
• Do Not Pair Power Meter: When setting up a new device or activity profile, simply choose not to pair your power meter sensor.
• Disable Power Recording in Device Settings: Some head units allow you to customize data fields and recording options. You might be able to deselect power as a metric to be recorded, even if the sensor is paired. Consult your device's manual for specific instructions.
• Third-Party Data Stripping Tools (Advanced): For highly technical users, there are community-developed tools or scripts that can strip specific data fields (like power) from .FIT or .GPX files before manual upload to Strava. This method requires a good understanding of data files and is not officially supported by Strava. Use with caution.

Adjusting Default Privacy Settings for Future Activities

To ensure all future activities automatically upload with your preferred privacy settings, you can configure Strava's default privacy controls. This is particularly useful if you consistently want to keep your activities private.

To set default activity privacy:

• Access Strava Settings: On the Strava website, hover over your profile picture in the top right corner and select "Settings." On the mobile app, go to your Profile, then tap the gear icon for Settings.
• Navigate to Privacy Controls: Select "Privacy Controls" from the left-hand menu on the website, or find the "Privacy Controls" section in the app.
• Set Default Activity Privacy: Under "Default Activity Privacy," choose "Only You."
• Save Changes: Ensure you save any modifications.

With this setting, all new activities you upload will default to "Only You," automatically hiding all data, including power, from public view. You can always manually change the privacy for individual activities later if you wish to make them public.

Understanding Strava's Data Display and Privacy Levels

Strava primarily operates with three main privacy levels for activities:

• Everyone: Your activity, including all its metrics like power, map, and other data, is visible to all Strava users and potentially the wider internet.
• Followers: Your activity data is visible only to users who follow you on Strava.
• Only You: Your activity data is completely private and visible only to you.

It's important to reiterate that Strava does not offer a specific toggle to hide only power data while allowing other metrics (like distance, time, and heart rate) to remain public. When you hide an activity, all its associated data becomes private.

Why You Might Want to Hide Power Data

Athletes choose to hide power data for various reasons, each rooted in personal preference or strategic considerations:

• Competitive Strategy: Not revealing training intensity or specific performance metrics to rivals or competitors before a race.
• Personal Privacy: Keeping detailed performance data private, similar to how one might keep other personal information confidential.
• Avoiding Comparison: Focusing on personal effort and internal metrics rather than getting caught up in comparisons with other athletes' power outputs.
• Data Overload: Simplifying the activity view for oneself or others, focusing on broader metrics like distance and time.
• Training Phases: During specific training blocks where power numbers might not reflect peak performance, an athlete might prefer to keep them private.

Important Considerations

• Irreversibility of Public Data: Once power data (or any activity data) has been made public on Strava, it can be widely viewed and potentially scraped. While you can later make an activity private, its initial public exposure cannot be fully undone.
• Impact on Leaderboards and Segments: Private activities do not count towards segment leaderboards or challenges. If you hide your power data by making an activity private, you will not appear on segment leaderboards for that activity.
• Third-Party App Integrations: Be mindful of other apps or services connected to your Strava account. If an activity is public on Strava, these connected apps might also access and display your data.
• Strava's Evolving Features: Strava regularly updates its platform. While granular power hiding is not currently a feature, it's always worth checking for new privacy options in future updates.

Conclusion

While Strava does not offer a direct, selective toggle to hide only power data, athletes have effective methods to control the visibility of this sensitive metric. The most straightforward approaches involve either making an entire activity private post-upload or, for more absolute control, preventing the power data from being recorded and uploaded by your device in the first place. By understanding and utilizing Strava's existing privacy controls, you can manage your data sharing preferences to align with your personal and strategic goals.