Stereotypes with Stereos

By Alan

Most people who think about those who like technology usually picture the stereotypical image: someone who avoids the sun, skips physical fitness as boring, and stays on the couch playing on the computer rather than doing anything else. However, it's pretty obvious to anyone who might have ventured into a fitness center, gym, or even a YMCA, that technology plays a pretty significant part in modern physical activity.

Technology has played an primary role in organized physical fitness ever since 1952, when Dr. Robert A. Bruce, took the treadmill and stuck it under a human for stress testing of the heart and lungs. If you think about it, exercise equipment has to be able to last through thousands of repetitions, look cool, provide good behavior, all while not killing the person using the thing. Exercise provides stimulation to the heart, lungs, muscles, nerves, and even digestion. And while exercise is definitely beneficial to the brain, the act of exercising is not necessarily all that stimulating. When you run outside, at least you have the scenery changing, but running on the treadmill is... well... boring. The only scenery change will be the next sweaty person on the mill next to you, who is also disappointed in the brain stimulation going on.

Fitness clubs are well aware of this, since music is usually pumped into the room, and TVs are showing various interesting channels (even if the choices include the Food Network). Advances in electronics have also been targeting this area of boredom. Fitness machines have mounts for flat screen TVs, computer monitors, and plug-ins for stereo headsets. Newer advances put sustainable technology in lifecycles and treadmills so that the electronics are actually powered by the user. You want to watch Dessert Cooking on the Food Network? Well, get peddling.

My wife likes to run (well, technically she likes the feeling of accomplishment and how it feels after the run). We purchased a treadmill pre-kids, when we had money, and the prospect of owning dangerous moving surfaces wasn't a problem. We could have paid for one of the fancy treadmills with a TV mount, but we opted to go with the standard version that just had the important functional basics. But now we had to deal with the boredom that occurs when running in place for a long time, similar to that of a hamster on its wheel. Options: put a computer nearby (to listen to online media), or a TV on a shelf. We opted for the TV since running while watching movies seems to delay the feeling of boredom long enough to get a few miles in.

Skip forward several years. My wife likes to run first thing in the morning. However, she does not enjoy running when it's 20-30 degrees out... in the dark. So during the winter months she has to run on the treadmill. We still have a TV in the room, however, you have to turn up the volume in order to hear over the pounding feet and shooshing sounds of the belt. Which threatens to wake the little ones, and it's very important to make sure to let sleeping children lie.

There are wired headphones that might solve the problem, but having attached wires isn't a good idea on the treadmill. So, why not go wireless? There are a number of wireless headphones for TV watching, but few are designed to be run in. MP3 players abound, but they don't really let you tie into the TV audio.

Fortunately, some MP3 players have FM radios built in. By using an FM transmitter, an ultraportable FM radio can just ride along on the runner, with no problems of getting hung up on dangling cables. But I hit a snag. Most FM transmitters are geared towards being used in a car. Those few that are explicitly aimed at permanent house installations, and are priced like home theater components.

Luckily, I found a solution to that problem. By hooking up an FM transmitter to a 12V power supply, connecting the audio to the TV (well, technically to the TiVo), and wearing an MP3 player with an FM radio, there is a cool wireless solution, better than most health clubs.

So, say what you want about geeks and exercise: technology shows up, and we're there.

Well, that problem is solved. I'm going back to the couch.