I love to run. If God were to ask me to plan my perfect day, it would include a mid-morning run on a warm day. If asked why I love to run, I’m hard-pressed to explain why beyond the usual “it feels good”. There’s something about the combination of physical exertion, sunshine, and music that I never get tired of. The closest thing to it might be dancing.
But running on a treadmill? I absolutely hate it. I can’t think of a better way to ruin my favorite activity. Oh, I’ll do it when I absolutely have to. My family took a Disney cruise a while back and I ran on the nicest treadmills in the most gorgeous fitness center I’ve ever been in. If it hadn’t been for my losing the calorie battle vs the non-stop amazing food getting thrown at me I probably would’ve skipped it. BTW, the fitness center is the most empty part of a Disney cruise ship.
I’m sure I’m not alone in being a runner who hates treadmills. Part of the experience of running is going somewhere. It’s traveling in a manner that lets you fully take in your surroundings. You have time to see things, study them. And before you get bored of it, you’ve moved on to somewhere else. Treadmill running sucks all that away. There’s something about running in a room and staring at the same spot on the wall that feels so unnatural.
But all this talk of virtual reality has me excited about the possible applications to treadmill running. I’m hoping that soon there will be programs which allow me to run on various trails around the world. Programs that will match my virtual speed to my real world cadence. Programs which will allow me to naturally turn my head and see things all around me if I want. That would greatly help solve the problem of running on a treadmill.
Because despite my aversion to treadmills, I concede that they have lots of advantages. You don’t have to deal with traffic. If you want to run late at night when it’s dark outside, no problem. And on some cold winter days, I kinda wish I could just put my shorts on and run in the warmth of my house.
On a few podcasts I’ve heard tech writers wonder out loud if anyone will ever see any value in virtual reality beyond entertainment and games. I just shake my head and say “You must not be a runner.” Because I’ve never met a runner who didn’t fantasize about being able to visit places virtually on a treadmill.
With VR I can imagine being so excited to run on my treadmill that I can’t wait to get home from work. I’d want to run in Italy, the California beaches, the Vicksburg National Military Park. And on and on I can think of a myriad of places that I’ve never been. Or maybe even better, places that I have run in the past but can’t get back there for a quick Saturday morning run.
Can you imagine going on a “group run” with friends all across the world in which you all run the same route? I imagine something like Fortnite for runners. But instead of killing each other, you are going for group runs. There could be special events and concerts, etc. Half the fun would be exploring the virtual world. Or you could even do competitive races where you pay to enter. The possibilities are astonishing.
As I always say, the future of tech is bringing the world to you, not you to the world. It’s about moving data in new ways that allow for connections or experiences that were not possible before. It’s not about yet another iteration of cars that do the same old job of moving your body from point A to point B.
Good VR programs can’t get here soon enough as far as I’m concerned. VR could transform how a whole generation feels about running on treadmills. Or it could change how they feel about running in general. That could open up running to a whole group of people who maybe couldn’t before. When I was in New Delhi, India, on business, I couldn't run outside due to the traffic and smog. People will be healthier and happier.
To people who say that tech just makes people unhealthy, I’d say “just wait until VR comes to the treadmills.” Well, actually that’s probably the second thing I’d say. But it would be right after I said “have you looked at the Apple Watch lately?”
I’m sure I’m not alone in being a runner who hates treadmills. Part of the experience of running is going somewhere. It’s traveling in a manner that lets you fully take in your surroundings. You have time to see things, study them. And before you get bored of it, you’ve moved on to somewhere else. Treadmill running sucks all that away. There’s something about running in a room and staring at the same spot on the wall that feels so unnatural.
But all this talk of virtual reality has me excited about the possible applications to treadmill running. I’m hoping that soon there will be programs which allow me to run on various trails around the world. Programs that will match my virtual speed to my real world cadence. Programs which will allow me to naturally turn my head and see things all around me if I want. That would greatly help solve the problem of running on a treadmill.
Because despite my aversion to treadmills, I concede that they have lots of advantages. You don’t have to deal with traffic. If you want to run late at night when it’s dark outside, no problem. And on some cold winter days, I kinda wish I could just put my shorts on and run in the warmth of my house.
On a few podcasts I’ve heard tech writers wonder out loud if anyone will ever see any value in virtual reality beyond entertainment and games. I just shake my head and say “You must not be a runner.” Because I’ve never met a runner who didn’t fantasize about being able to visit places virtually on a treadmill.
With VR I can imagine being so excited to run on my treadmill that I can’t wait to get home from work. I’d want to run in Italy, the California beaches, the Vicksburg National Military Park. And on and on I can think of a myriad of places that I’ve never been. Or maybe even better, places that I have run in the past but can’t get back there for a quick Saturday morning run.
Can you imagine going on a “group run” with friends all across the world in which you all run the same route? I imagine something like Fortnite for runners. But instead of killing each other, you are going for group runs. There could be special events and concerts, etc. Half the fun would be exploring the virtual world. Or you could even do competitive races where you pay to enter. The possibilities are astonishing.
As I always say, the future of tech is bringing the world to you, not you to the world. It’s about moving data in new ways that allow for connections or experiences that were not possible before. It’s not about yet another iteration of cars that do the same old job of moving your body from point A to point B.
Good VR programs can’t get here soon enough as far as I’m concerned. VR could transform how a whole generation feels about running on treadmills. Or it could change how they feel about running in general. That could open up running to a whole group of people who maybe couldn’t before. When I was in New Delhi, India, on business, I couldn't run outside due to the traffic and smog. People will be healthier and happier.
To people who say that tech just makes people unhealthy, I’d say “just wait until VR comes to the treadmills.” Well, actually that’s probably the second thing I’d say. But it would be right after I said “have you looked at the Apple Watch lately?”
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