“For over a year now I have been a Strava mule,” US-based creator Veljko admitted in a TikTok with more than 1.1 million views. The video was posted in August and has opened the floodgates for the discussion around how far people are willing to go to fake their fitness routines for the sake of social media.
For those unfamiliar, Strava is a social networking app that tracks physical exercise, from running to cycling and swimming, and it has more than 125 million users. On the app, people document their workouts, can give “kudos” (the app’s version of likes), join clubs, complete challenges, and follow friends, influencers and athletes.
In the video, Veljko explained: “The majority of the clients are just one-off ‘mule-ing’ experiences, they just want the glory for one day, one Instagram Story.” One of his clients is a man who will likely run a marathon in two hours and 30 minutes, but is paying Veljko to run slowly for his Strava so that when he does complete the marathon, his friends will be shocked by his fast time. As a Strava “mule”, the creator either uses a separate phone or logs into a client’s account to document the run.
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Social media is a highlights reel, but pretending to exercise is a new low – it also doesn’t make sense. As running and fitness coach Victoria Catalina said about influencers hiring people to complete runs for them: “You’re going to be invited to an event [and] when you’re at those events and they ask you to run, you’re gonna be huffing and puffing in the back and people are going to be like, ‘what the hell?’”
Now, it’s not only that people are hiring Strava “mules” to keep up their fitness routines online. At the end of July, Irish creator Sophie Bublé shared she met an influencer at a Dublin event who pretends to go running and said she drives between the filming locations of her “runs”. The video has 1.1 million views and TikTok sleuths quickly tried to figure out who the culprit is.
@velljko It’s time to be honest with you and tell you that I have been a Strava mule/surrogate for over a year now. I figured I needed to come clean eventually. #strava #runtok #runningcommunity #runninghumor
Understandably, there’s pressure for fitness or running creators to make daily content about their workouts – just see Savannah Sachdev, who has been running for more than 1,100 consecutive days. Her followers will likely be disappointed the day she breaks her impressive streak. While a fashion creator is expected to share regular outfit ideas or styling tutorials, the same goes for a fitness creator. It’s hard to stop.
However, if the story isn’t real, it loses its power. In a year when running content is so valued, brands should ensure any talent they are working with has a genuine passion. Especially when Strava mules are increasingly sharing their stories and going viral too.
By Caroline Edwards, news and features writer of CORQ.
