We’ve reached the point of having to patch the software of your shoes
cross-posted from: https://mstdn.social/users/tekkie/statuses/112037167186333009
Image description: Installation progress bar running for software upgrade of the Under Armour running shoes
(Originally published earlier today on mstdn.social)
At a guess, that's because the shoes keep track of your cadence. GPS in your watch or phone is tracking where you are and at what time so that they can get a velocity, your watch is monitoring your heart rate, (badly; a chest strap is more accurate), but you really need something in your shoes to detect cadence. My HR monitor supposedly tracks cadence, but it's not very accurate.
On a bicycle, cadence is usually tracked by a magnet attached to your crank arm, with a sensor on the chainstay detecting how frequently the magnet passes by.
