Going to the gym is bad for the environment. Yes now you can add another excuse to your list of reasons why not to go. I am not advocating against exercise just circumventing the gym and introducing some electricity free forms of exercise and when circumstances allow enjoying exercising outdoors.
The energy cost of exercising at a gym multiplies. First you start with the machine let us say a treadmill with a sample rating of 15 amps. If in our example the machine runs at a third of its rating for about 5 hours a day then the machine on average consumes 3kW/day*365 days/year = 1095 kw/yr. This is just the beginning. As you run on the treadmill you get bored To keep you coming back the gym designer installs a TV you can watch. The TV is on all the time and consumes on average another 100 watts. The treadmill, you, the TV and the people next to you are all generating heat. This causes the gym operators to install air-conditioners to keep you comfortable and coming back. Often gyms have fresh towels adding energy and water cost to wash towels used two or three times to wipe of sweat. Each time you trade the treadmill for a bike trail outside you save 1.5 Kwh and 2Lbs of CO2. Checkout other calorie burning ideas here.
Sometimes completely eliminating the gym is not an option, the weather outside is bad, its dark, you do not want to run alone, biking in the city with all the fumes and crazy drivers may be dangers to your health in more ways than one. For the energy-conscious athlete a mix may be the solution. On good weather days run outside, walk up the stairs in your work place, get of the subway a stop early and walk. Or run on the treadmill for half of the usual time and then use a non-electric stationary bike or jump rope for the rest of the time. If exercising alone does not appeal to you consider joining a group or a local bike club, it will keep you motivated and outdoors.
Signing up to a gym has a real financial cost in the hundreds of dollars annually, so is buying gym equipment and paying for its electricity consumption. Consider this cost in relation to the cost of a good pair of sneakers or even a bike for exercising outdoors plus the benefit of conserving energy, reducing your carbon footprint, and an opportunity to enjoy the many green spaces available in NYC and other metropolitan areas.
