Thanks to patent-pending technology developed by Ridgefield-based The Green Revolution Inc., power that once vanished into the ether along with your respiration is helping to power a gym making the daily burn a little bit greener.
If plans hold, gyms across the land could become mini-generators.
Jay Whelan the creator CEO of The Green Revolution Inc. came up with the idea two years ago after attending physical therapy. He couldn”™t abide the fact he was using up all this energy and it was going nowhere.
The technology sends human energy from cycling workouts directly into the power grid.
“I felt like I needed to create something with all the energy I was expending,” said Whelan. “I thought, why not clean renewable energy; it ought to be done.”
Whelan and an engineer friend developed the product in their garages and began doing focus groups with health club owners.
“From what we had a year and a half ago to what we have today has been a tremendous evolution,” said Whelan.
Jim Johnstone, owner of the Ridgefield Fitness Club, was one of the first of the company”™s loyal supporters, lending cycling instructors from his programs to develop feedback and fine tune the project. Â
 “It goes right into the grid,” said Whelan. “It uses the energy when it”™s created. You plug it directly into the outlet and the electricity goes the reverse direction.”
According to Whelan, the system creates a matched electrical current that allows the energy coming from the bike to blend into the current provided by the utility. The technology used to create the reverse system is similar to that used with solar panels.
“Our technology can attach to any major provider of indoor cycling equipment,” said Whelan. “We made some refinements to make the attachment extremely simple.”
Ridgefield Fitness has been the first to employ the technology and for the last month has had the green gear fitted to all 17 of the exercise bikes in the gym”™s spinning room.
“The members have been very excited,” said Johnstone. “Finally, someone has taken and harnessed the energy that everyone is letting go of everyday and using it for a useful thing. What we like about it is the member can come in for the day take a class and really have an impact about their energy output for the day, and feel good about it.”
Each group cycling participant is able to control his or her individual renewable energy output through a resistance control panel attached to the bicycle, and the health club can track the total energy that is produced through exercise on The Green Revolution Web site. Â
According to Whelan, a typical group cycling class with about 20 bikes has the potential to produce up to 3,600,000 Watts of renewable energy a year. This is equivalent to the amount of power needed to light 72 homes for a month while also reducing carbon emissions by over 5,000 pounds.
Johnstone said the system has proven to be a true motivating factor for those taking spin classes, encouraging members to race against one another to make electricity. The system comes with a meter allowing each bike to see the actual imprint the exercise has had.
“It makes it interesting and different than regular cycling,” said Johnstone. “It”™s great to finally have a product that you can go out and purchase and it”™s going to pay for itself. It”™s going to inspire members and retain members. This is bigger than programming; it can be there all the time.”
“That”™s going to show up on your electrical bill,” said Johnstone. “With anything else you”™re just plugging in and it”™s flying out the window.”
Johnstone says the equipment has also encouraged him to add more spinning programming to the gym”™s schedule.
Whelan said there are plans to apply the concept to all types of aerobics equipment in the future.
“The technology is the same; it”™s just going to be how we attach the piece of equipment that will change,” said Whelan.
According to Whelan, the expansions to the product line should be out within a year.
“There”™s an extreme amount of energy put out,” said Whelan of the decision to wire stationary bikes first. “The classes last an hour or more.”
The Green Revolution Inc. provides energy audits as a service before the technology is implemented.
“We”™ve gotten a lot of great feedback from fitness professionals, asking when they can have this in their home,” said Mike Curnyn, chief strategy and marketing officer of The Green Revolution Inc.
Whelan and Curnyn say that they have considered making their product available to home use but that with price and marketing that is currently not their focus.
“Realistically, a lot of the time home products make great clothes hangers,” said Whelan.
