How I Generate Electricity When I Exercise (And use it to charge my phone and laptop)

I’m no engineer.

I don’t have my basement set-up with a stationary bike jacked up to a generator. There’s no flickering lightbulb hanging from the ceiling. This isn’t a science project. This isn't a superhero or supervillain origin story where I've developed the ability to zap my enemies when I cross train. 

That probably would have been a more interesting article. But I do generate electricity when I exercise.

I use the RE:GEN. It’s the world’s first smart fitness bike able to capture and convert your workout into clean electrical power that you can use.

You’re probably thinking one of two things right now:

  1. We did this in school. There’s no way a static bike can generate enough electricity to power my phone or laptop. This has to be a gimmick.

  2. If you’re generating enough electricity to power phones and computers, then you’re either a professional cyclist or you’re super-fit. I couldn’t do it.


Let me quickly address these before we find out more about the bike.

Your science teacher wasn’t wrong. It can take a lot of pedaling to charge electrical devices like phones and laptops. Until now, human power hasn’t been an efficient source of power: the effort put in far outweighed the power you could expect to get out. Nobody wants to feel as if they’ve ridden several stages of the Tour De France just to charge a Macbook. Not when there’s a perfectly good electrical power socket right there on the wall.

Fix the efficiencies problem

energy generating bike


That’s the challenge that Energym’s founder and CEO set his team of engineers. And that’s exactly what they did. They made it possible for the bike to capture and store more power than had been previously possible.

What sort of power generation are we talking here?

The average workout generates between 170Wh and 230Wh which translates to:

  • 2.6x 13" laptop charges
  • 14x phone charges
  • 30x eBike miles
  • 4x iPad Pro charges

And that’s from an average workout. Not Olympic athlete average. Not professional cyclist average. It’s the electricity generation of an average person exercising averagely. Someone like you. Someone like me. And that’s really important, because this is a bike built for everyone: from the pro to the absolute beginner.


How Can a Bike Generate and Store Power?

This is where it gets exciting.

We all generate energy when we exercise but, without anything to capture and convert it into electricity, that power is wasted.

With the RE:GEN, your power is stored inside a 280kWh battery called the Ohm. It clips onto the bike easily, and won’t get in the way of your workout. When you’ve finished your workout, unclip the Ohm and start charging your devices. You’ve earned it. Use your power however you want.

The standard Ohm has both USB-C (100w) and USB-A (36w) charging. Use the snap-on power extender, to charge up to 4 devices simultaneously. Take it with you when you’re out and about.

It’s clean, useable power right in your hands.

But the RE:GEN is much more than it’s clean-energy generating technology. This isn’t a poor-man's Peloton with a battery attached to it. Energym’s product design and engineering team wanted to build a bike that stands apart from others on the market. Whatever else it could do, first and foremost, it had to be a first-class stationary bike.

It had to give people the workout they wanted.

So, efficiency wasn’t just an engineering problem. Energym also wants people to work out more consistently. Time is precious. Our schedules are tight. We have responsibilities and distractions. Motivation is worth squat when you’re tired or frustrated. Skipping the gym is always easier than going and the excuses to do something else, anything else, are free and easily justifiable. And even when you do make it to the gym, how easy is it to phone it in? To underperform? We turned up, didn’t we. Isn’t that enough?

Energym’s founder knew that if the RE:GEN was for everyone, then it also had to be for the people struggling to maintain a fitness routine as much as it was for those who found exercise easy to enjoy and maintain. It’s why the RE:GEN is so much more than just its clean-energy generating components.

Why Else Should You Buy the RE:GEN?

 

  • During each workout the Ohm battery transforms into a personal power meter. See quickly and easily how efficiently you’re exercising by glancing at its FTP 5-colour zoning system. The RE:GEN knows when you’re phoning it in and pushes you to work harder.
  • Resistance is digitally controlled by the RE:GEN so you can stay focused on your workout.

  • It’s compatible with Zwift. Great for road cyclists during winter training and for anyone who prefers simulated environments over spinning studios.
  • Earn rewards with Sweatcoin for the workouts you do.
  • Using AI technology, the Energym app builds personalised workouts that reflect not only your fitness goals, but your schedule, too. Allowing you to maximise the time you spend on the bike.
  • Choose from on-demand instructor led classes or go head-to-head with others in a fleet of games.
  • Subscribe to your favourite digital fitness apps and use them with the RE:GEN. 
  • The RE:GEN’s tri-axis aluminum and steel frame is a statement piece in anyone’s home gym.
  • The soft-padded saddle and micro-adjustable handlebar puts you in control of your form and comfort. If you’ve ever walked like John Wayne after a spin class, you’ll understand how important it is to have control over how a bike is set-up.

  • The moveable tablet screen holder means you can watch whatever you want when you exercise.

  • The bike is compact with wheels that make it easy to maneuver in your home or apartment.


Using the RE:GEN to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint


It might be a stationary bike, but the RE:GEN can help you move towards a more sustainable future. After all, you’re the clean energy source. Reduce your carbon footprint with every workout and make a real contribution in the fight against climate change.

But I’m just one Lycra-clad person exercising in my living room, I hear you cry. I can't make much of a difference. And that’s true. In the grand scheme of things what difference can you make alone? But then, you’re not alone. You’re part of a community.

Imagine others with clean-energy generating bikes in their homes; the gyms and fitness centres around the world with a fleet of RE:GENs. All those legs powering away day after day, capturing enough energy to power bigger and bigger things, and contributing to power demands alongside other renewable energy sources like solar panels, wind turbines, hydroelectric power, and bioenergy.

Fighting back against climate change is going to be a team effort. Energym would love to have you on theirs.

 

electricity generating bike re:gen energym


The RE:GEN is Getting Ready to Launch


The RE:GEN launches on IndieGoGo in May 2021.

It’s the world’s first indoor bike capable of capturing human power and storing it as clean useable electricity. Hold the energy you’ve created in your hands and then use it to charge your electronic devices. And of course, build more effective workouts with the Energym app and it’s AI. Stay consistent in your training by using the personal power meter and digitally controlled resistance. Earn rewards on the workouts you do whilst reducing your carbon footprint.

And this is just the beginning.

The world’s first clean energy generating fitness bike for the home is launching on IndieGoGo next month.

Reserve your launch invite today by visiting the Energym website.

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