Disclaimer: The WEAV
Run app is currently free but I will be receiving a lifetime subscription in
January 2018 as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a
BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write
race reviews!

As I have mentioned previously, I am a runner that is all
about her music while running. The more upbeat the better to help keep me
going. Over the years I’ve tried all kinds of tricks to keep my pace pumping
with the help of tunes.  Things like
downloading special BPM (beats per min) mixes on iTunes to carefully
cultivating special running playlists with music that I *think consists of a
certain BPM. Sometimes I’m successfully, sometimes I come to a lull when a slow
song creeps in and no matter what, it takes a lot of time to do.

So I was super stoked when I was introduced to the Weav Run
app. It takes all of the work out of it for you and calculates your perfect run
soundtrack. Basically, what Weav does is commissions dance remixes and using
stems (individual instrument files) plus their special they adapt a song’s
tempo to match a specific cadence anywhere between 100 – 240 beats per minute.
And because they are using the individual song stems, the music always sounds
great, and not just like a chipmunks version of a song.

So How Does it Work?

When I ran up this hill, I heard the music tempo slow

Pretty darn great so far. I’ve used Weav for several runs
now on the Detect My Tempo setting where you just let the app track you and
adjust your music accordingly. This way, I am getting some good stats on my
base running BPM so when race day comes, I will be able to set a slightly
faster tempo on the I Know My Tempo setting so I can try to match a slightly
more aggressive tempo and hopefully push a bit faster on race day.

It was super simple to set up for the first run and walks
you through the Calibration mode. It is very user friendly and provides a ton
of data. You can even link it to your Apple Health data. (BTW, sorry Android
uses, but the app is only for iOS at the moment).

I can attest that the tempo in the Detect My Tempo mode is
pretty legit. On my regular lunch-time running route, there is a crazy steep
hill. About half-way up it, I could hear the music starting to slow down –
actual audio proof that I was slowing and it made me want to work even harder
to keep the beat up. Maybe it’s just me, but there’s something there inside me
that was all like NO!! CAN’T LET THE MUSIC KNOW I’M STRUGGLING!!

I’ve been pretty successful in keeping my runs steadily in
the 190 steps/min range and the more I use the app, the more consistent I feel
about my running.

Some Other Insights

So far I really like Weav and will continue to use it esp
for really dialing in my goal race pace. I’ve talked to several people both
online and in person about this app and here are the answers to the most common
questions that have come up.

Just a few of the current tracks
  • ·    Does if use your music? – No, like I mentioned
    above, the way the app works is by breaking down songs so they can be sped up
    or slowed down and still sound great, so you only get the songs that come with
    the app. Right now, that is 25 songs, but according to the folks at Weav, they
    have about 30-35 new tracks that they are in the process of licensing and will
    be dropping soon.
  • ·    What songs does it have? – Like I said, it only
    has 25 tracks, but they are enjoyable. A few popular ones, like the Imagine
    Dragons song, Believer and OMI’s Cheerleader plus some throwback songs like RUN
    DMC’s It’s Tricky (hell yeah) and OutKast’s Ms. Jackson. Overall, the music was
    pretty enjoyable and even for the songs I’d never heard of, I didn’t not like
    them and tbh, they tended to blend into the background with the focus being on
    the beat, which it should be.
  • ·    Can you use it on the treadmill? – Yes! They
    just recently released an Indoor Mode, however, I can’t tell you too much about
    it cause I don’t have access to a treadmill (Outdoor Runner, yo). As far as I
    can tell, it looks pretty similar to the Outdoor Mode for the I Know My Tempo
    mode (you dial up your Tempo and it maintains the beat). You can enter put in
    your time and milage and it will calculate a pace for you.
  • ·    Can you sync it with other apps? – Right now you
    can sync it with Strava and with Apple Health. I don’t use Strava (I’m a
    RunKeeper Girl myself) and when I mentioned this to Weav Help, they said they
    would look into a possible RunKeeper integration for the future (side note:
    Weav Help was super responsive, they want their users to love their app and it
    shows).

·    What else is on the horizon for Weav? – As I
mentioned, they are working on an Android roll out, but this might take a bit
to happen and they are focusing on perfecting the iOS version before expanding
too much. Also, there is an Interval mode that is coming soon that will feature
9 different interval programs all driven by the music.

What Else?

Weav has been a really great company to get to know. They
are super responsive on both social media and if you submit any feedback. They
will also on occasion organize fun events like the current 30 Day Weav Run
Streak and group meet ups via Facebook in NYC. You can follow them socially
here-

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/weavmusic

Twitter – https://twitter.com/WeavRun

Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/weavrun

 

Weav just released a new upgrade that makes it compatible
with Apple Watch, which I use, but haven’t had a chance to try it out yet – the
upgrade come out late last night, but I hope to try it on my next run. I did a
quick trial (while in bed, lol) and everything seemed to look good.

Also, currently the Weav app is free to download and use,
but they will be going to a subscription service in early 2018, so heads up on
that.

Intrigued? Download it today and find out for yourself your
person BPM pacing – https://itunes.apple.com/app/apple-store/id1128018936?mt=8