Strava has released its Year In Sport: The Trend Report, highlighting global trends among active people across all generations. It reveals that Generation Z’s behaviors and habits differ from other generations, but they also have different motivators, barriers and interests when it comes to staying active.
For the report, Strava conducted a global survey of 6,990 active people, drawn from both the global Strava community of over 120 million athletes and a random sample of active people on and off the Strava platform. The results, combined with Strava’s 2023 activity data, provide new and unique insights into the trends shaping the world of exercise and exploration and hint at what we can expect this year.
Reason #1 for sport: Social connections
Across all generations, Strava athletes say social connection is their number one reason for exercising with others. More than half of Strava athletes say they are most motivated by friends or family members who exercise – and 77 percent of Gen Z athletes say they feel more connected to others when they see their friends’ or family members’ activities on Strava. At the bottom of the list of motivators? Celebrities and influencers – even for Gen Z and Millennials.
Generation Z is also the most social: 29 percent more likely than Millennials to train with other people at least sometimes. This could be due in part to healthy competition, as Generation Z is 31 percent less likely than Millennials and Generation X to exercise primarily for health reasons but most likely to exercise for athletic performance reasons.
Biggest obstacle: Work
Regarding the obstacles to exercising and maintaining a regular routine, over two-thirds of athletes across all generations cited lack of time due to work demands as the biggest obstacle. However, work demands didn’t stop Gen Z from achieving their fitness goals – 39 percent of Gen Z Strava athletes have started a new job in 2023, and 30 percent have relocated. However, they were 32 percent more likely than other generations to say they were fitter than the previous year.
“We know that Gen Z’s behavior reflects their values and the impact of living in an increasingly digital world, which for this group means they are ultimately focused on activism, community and connection,” said Zipporah Allen, Chief Business Officer at Strava. “Over the past year, we’ve seen Gen Z as the primary source of community growth through new clubs on Strava. They have also contributed to the rise of sports like running, although they have the biggest barriers to staying consistent. This shows that exercise is a core value for this generation, so they are already turning to Strava as a key platform to stay motivated and connected.”
Other key motivators and barriers
- Pets get us out the door: 76 percent of Strava athletes with pets say their furry companions help them get out the door when they otherwise wouldn’t – and that exercising with their pet is more fun.
- Safety and domestic responsibilities can be a barrier to exercise: Men are 13 percent more likely than women on Strava to say that household chores are a barrier. Women are 9 percent more likely than men to say there is a lack of safe places to exercise.
- Climate change is affecting our exercise habits: 75 percent of athletes on Strava said that extreme heat will affect their training plans in 2023 – and poor air quality will affect 27 percent.
- Playlists are a proven training partner, but they might lack variety: 43 percent of Generation X athletes on Strava say they’ve been listening to the same training music for years.
You can download the full report here.
