The Oura Ring is getting Strava integration - The Verge
Oura and Strava are partnering to enable their users to better integrate activity data, like adding Strava workouts to the Oura app or uploading Oura data to Strava feeds.
Consolidating all your fitness data into one place can be a royal pain, and for many athletes, Strava is the obvious choice as it integrates with nearly every fitness platform. Today, Oura announced it’s joining the club by introducing Strava integration for the Oura Ring.
The integration goes both ways. Oura Ring users will be able to import Strava activities into the Oura app, ensuring that data will be incorporated into their Readiness and Activity Scores. Those scores are meant to tell Oura users how well they’ve recovered from strenuous activity and gauge whether they’re meeting their exercise goals. Meanwhile, users can also decide to share certain Oura activities directly to their public or private Strava feeds, as well as their Activity and Readiness Scores.
The appeal here is that it means Oura users don’t have to wear the ring for an activity to count toward their recovery metrics. That doesn’t matter much for activities like running or hiking, but rings can be uncomfortable when lifting weights. That might not seem like much, but it’s one of the few drawbacks of a smart ring in terms of comfort compared to a wrist-based tracker.
Users will be able to share Oura information in Strava feeds and view Strava workouts within the Oura app.
Image: Oura, Strava
According to Oura’s press release, this is the company’s first integration with a third-party service outside of Apple HealthKit and Google Fit. Anyone with an existing Strava account can simply sync within the Oura app. If you don’t have a Strava account, you’ll have to create one by downloading the Android or iOS app.
The integration is notable as it involves two of the most well-known players in the connected fitness space right now. Not only is the Oura Ring popular with celebrities and professional athletes, but it’s one of the few consumer smart rings available and a pioneer in the recovery tracking space. It’s also broken into the haute couture sphere with a recent, pricey collaboration with Gucci. Meanwhile, as mentioned, Strava often serves as a de facto hub for fitness information — particularly among those who use a wide array of devices to track their training efforts. It’s unlikely to make waves or threaten other wearable makers, but it does help establish the Oura Ring as a more mainstream tracker than it was previously.
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