Traversing the River by Working Out in the Gym

Using your own physical strength as a means of travel is an old concept. Most of us likely remember watching The Flintstones as the cartoon cavemen family used their feet in order to move their vehicles. Even in real life, there are several different vehicles in operation today which require some form of jogging or pedaling.

And believe it or not, they’re relatively popular. What’s not to love: you get to travel for free and exercise all in one. Which is why international design company Carlo Ratti Associati has developed a similar concept design to help passengers traverse the Seine river. Say hello to the Paris Navigating Gym!

Photo Credit: Carlo Ratti Associati

Photo Credit: Carlo Ratti Associati

The Paris Navigating Gym would be a 20-meter long vessel which harnesses the energy for locomotion from passengers working out in the gym. It would achieve this by using ARTIS machines – a technology developed by its partner Technogym. The equipment would be energized using solar cells on the roof of the vessel. It’s route: the Seine river within Paris, France.

You can read over Carlo Ratti Associati’s Press Release by clicking here.

FUTURE IMPLICATIONS

The future of transportation will likely come in many forms. Some people will opt for public self-driving vehicles. Some might even fly drone taxis or advanced jet packs. And then there’ll be people who’ll travel by working out. The concept design by Carlo Ratti Associati is unique in the sense that it combines the efforts of several future-oriented companies (Technogym, Terreform ONE, and URBEM) as a means of bringing about truly innovative technological disruption ideas. It not only tackles a means of transport on certain rivers in the world, but equally provides people a financial motive to start exercising more.