Buy Walking VideosExercise and Electricity Generation
This article talks about what I have been saying for years. If only we had exercise equipment that captured it, we could save a little bit of power with our workouts.
Right now, most exercise machines burn more electricity than they generate. Treadmills are the biggest culprits, but exercise bikes and elliptical trainers are often powered only by human motion. If only there were a company that made exercise equipment that was meant to generate and store electricity, we could feel a little bit better about the time we spend at the gym.
Via: Is exercise the next new source of renewable energy? – That’s Fit
For more information about exercise and electricity generation, see these past entries:
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March 20th, 2007 at 11:00 am
I would love a bicycle generator
March 22nd, 2007 at 11:52 am
Funny, I have this thought almost every morning as I go to the gym. Perhaps, someday…
July 12th, 2007 at 12:21 pm
The Govenator of California has a new tax break for buying solar equipment to put on residential and commercial property . I wonder he could push for this sort of industry with another insentive. That would be right up Arnolds alley, fitness and good for the enviornment.
November 28th, 2007 at 5:13 am
The Electric Gym Network is working on this solution right now.
December 9th, 2007 at 5:59 am
This is an idea whose time has come!!!! I am eager to help out, here in the state of Michigan, which is in need of something new and exciting and positive that we citizens can do to counteract the damage done by our love affair with the automobile! Please put me on the list to receive info. I have already contacted our local power company and our state legislator— everyone seems eager to work on this! Thanks! Carolyn Peterson
June 26th, 2008 at 4:05 pm
Actually i am only 15 years of ages and got this idea myself one morning when i woke up i thought it was unique until i found this but it doesnt prove it has been achieved yet i am working on making this myself to make a life buisness when im older look out for the name in the next 5 year RYAN JONES
August 18th, 2008 at 3:42 pm
I saw a recent documentary about a new kind of pump built for an arid African village without a good water supply.
The pump was human powered-in the form of a children’s play-ground-style mini-merry-go-round. You get a bunch of energetic kids to play on it, (or adults to just turn it), it gets going around & the water starts flowing.
And it is easier to KEEP going than to start.
A similar design for electricity-generation might help,IMO.
January 16th, 2009 at 8:47 pm
If you can set up a personal electricity-generating windmill and sell the surplus back to the local power company thru the power grid, why cant you do the same thing with a treadmill or an eliptical? I mean, plug the thing into the wall outlet, start pedaling/stepping, and watch your power meter go in reverse. Why not?!
January 24th, 2009 at 8:39 am
In addition to generating electricity from exercise equipments, how about inventing vibrating floors to generate electricity from the daily activity/movement of family members in their home.
February 14th, 2009 at 2:32 pm
Hey, that’s a smart idea, Ashbex! Reminds me of the talk about harnessing power from the tides. Why not have floating devices that harness the up-and-down movement of being on the water? It seems the holdup is storage, then? I want to generate electricity while exercising. Science Daily just published an article (Feb 14) about hamsters generating energy on treadmills using “nanogenerators.”
March 6th, 2009 at 1:26 pm
Why not put prisoners into a big wheel and walk them to generate electricity. Feeding them basic rations, bread and water. This could work.
April 27th, 2009 at 11:18 am
been thinking about this for a few years and glad to see others have as well (OSU gym; C2K program; The Green MicroGym). Merry-Go-Round idea in African village is terrific! Reverse metering has arrived, but technology problems of losing 90% of energy generated from bikes, treadmills, rowers, etc. still needs to be solved, mainly dissipation & uncaptured heat. I’m keeping an eye out and experimenting, though.
August 12th, 2009 at 12:54 am
Had this same idea after seeing a little wind up torch yesterday and like others above, am half glad that other people also see the potential. Like the OP I’d wager that most of the generated power would be lost in driving each device, but if you could build a suite of fitness machines and give away free/low cost fitness programs to patrons in return for onselling the electricity they generate I think it would be an extremely profitable business. Anyone in Brisbane Australia (or nearby) who wants to delve into this idea more should contact me ^_^
December 28th, 2009 at 9:00 am
It’s very possible for fitness centers to generate enough power to be self sufficient. With the onset of LED lighting, electronic ballast and induction lighting we are just around the corner from form of perpetual-motion. I would welcome any information in this derection
January 13th, 2010 at 4:07 pm
Where’s Gilligan and the Professor when you need them? They’ve been doing this for years!
March 3rd, 2010 at 5:21 am
Well, someday we will eventually have to use all the techniques we can get to create energy so im not surprise. It would be kind of funny someone getting up and having to ride a bycicle for 5 minutes in order to prepare the breakfast.Hmmm, interesting, exercise before breakfast. Im sure for some people that have MacD. membership cards wouldn’t be a problem. Anyway, I for one am up for this sort of technique. Exercise two hours and get energy for 12…that wouldn’t be bad at all. At least if any sort of aliens would attck our planet we would be so fit they wouldn’t stand a chance. Great post Laura, will definitly social bookmark it. Cheers
April 17th, 2010 at 12:51 pm
Yes! America has vast untapped reserves of human FAT. All of that fat could be transformed into electricity as calories burned. Currently working on the design of a few new exercise machines to generate power in my garage in my free time. If I reached my goal 1kw+ machine what should I do next? I am not a businessman. How do I use my design to benefit humans and the proliferation of the human potential? I would like to see people building these things in their garage and getting connected to the grid. But also would be awesome to see a full on gym with my machines in it. making power.
January 5th, 2011 at 5:40 am
Recently, I have purchased an energy meter made by Blue Planet and have been fascinated by how much energy is consumed by certain electronics and in their various states (i.e. off, standby, on – suspend, idle, full, peak).
Although the numbers shown in the image at the top vary depending on energy rating (my alarm clock runs at 5W, my LCD TV at 46W (my first generation HD TV CRT — yes, they do (did) exist — runs at about 255W and 47W in standby/off! – needless to say, it is plugged into a power bar and turned off and is only on 1/2 hr per week), I’m of the opinion that saving energy is easier than either producing more. If possible, I would like to produce energy through working out as it seems a great waste of energy in so many ways.
I would encourage everyone to purchase one of these devices. They pay for themselves, sometimes in the first month!
January 28th, 2011 at 5:33 am
i attended a fitness center in traverse city. they had a couple of CYCLONE 2 rowing ergometers. my workouts on one were up to 30 minutes and beyond; my longest useage was 40 minutes. the LCD monitor readouts varied–of course–as the duration of the workouts increased. eventually, i’d generate 45,000 watts after 40 minutes. using the information gleaned here, i’d say these totals deserve to be recognized as significant. my question is this: might that energy be converted to electricity and sold to a local provider to add to a local grid? after reading some of the anove articles, it would appear others have had similar notions.
February 1st, 2011 at 10:24 am
is it poosible to generate enough electricity too establish a viable income. i have used a rowing ergometer for some years now. i recenly generated over 46.000 watts in a 40-minute session using a cyclone 2 rowing ergometer. since there are 8 watts/vote, that’s almost 6,000 volts, yes? so much for the energy problems. if i could establish a reliable income…..
May 1st, 2011 at 1:20 pm
there has to be a way but if my understanding is correct 46 watts comes only close to lighting a bulb. I guess you’ll need to keep rowing 🙂
April 2nd, 2012 at 9:09 am
i’ve established read-outs greater than 46,000 watts of a rowing ergometer at a local fitness facility. these readings are greater than any i’ve seen before. in addition, i bet greater levels are possible. i’m hoping to increase the level of my benifit-income by re-selling thispower to my local provider. am i on to something here? might this be amethod i could use to increase my income?