Running, Technology

Audio/Video System for Treadmill Running

I’ve never enjoyed treadmill running, but it’s often a necessary evil. I bought a used treadmill several years ago for less than $200. It doesn’t have many bells and whistles, and I only really use it when the weather is awful or it’s icy outside or I have to squeeze in a run at a weird time. Right now it’s in my basement, but I’ve also had it in my garage.

If you’re going to do any amount of treadmill running, you might as well make it as un-unpleasant as possible. So … technology to the rescue!

Let’s assume you have a treadmill and a place to put it. You also probably subscribe to at least one streaming service (Prime Video, Netflix, Disney+). Maybe, like me, you also have a Plex server. The trick is to be able to run on your treadmill while watching something that will distract you from the mind-numbing tedium that treadmill running brings. With me so far?

Here’s what I did.

Buy Some Stuff

I happened to have a good-sized (32″) computer monitor sitting around, so I started with that. I bought a wall mount at my local Harbor Freight store ($15.99) and mounted the monitor to the wall so it was eye level when I was standing on the ‘mill. So far, so good.

Next came the video/audio tech. I got a Google Chromecast ($29.85), which outputs video and audio to the TV/monitor via HDMI. If I were planning to use the audio straight out of the TV/monitor, that would be all I needed. But my secondhand treadmill is kind of noisy, so I knew I’d need earbuds to hear anything over the sound of the machine. So I bought an HDMI to HDMI and audio extractor converter ($25.93) and a Bluetooth transmitter ($17.99) to split the audio from the Chromecast HDMI signal and transmit it to my earbuds.

I also got a power strip ($13.59) with USB ports to power the various devices.

(Note: the Bluetooth unit I bought is slightly different from the one linked above, but the one I purchased is no longer available. The one I linked to above should be just as good.)

Plug Stuff In

How here’s how everything connects together:

  1. Chromecast: plug the power cord into the power strip and the integrated HDMI cable to the HDMI-in port on the audio extractor.
  2. Audio extractor: plug the power cord into the power strip and connect the HDMI-out to the HDMI input on the TV/monitor using the supplied HDMI cable.
  3. Bluetooth transmitter: plug the power cord into the power strip and connect the 3.5mm audio plug to the audio-out port on the audio extractor.
  4. TV/monitor: plug it into the power strip.

Set Stuff Up

Once everything is connected, you’ll need to get your Chromecast device connected to your home network. Follow the instructions and use Google’s Home app to get the Chromecast configured. When it asks for a name, call it something obvious, like “Treadmill TV.”

Once the Chromecast device is registered, follow the directions that came with the Bluetooth transmitter to pair your earbuds or headphones with that device.

Time to Run

Here’s how to get ready to run.

  1. Power up your treadmill.
  2. Turn on your TV/monitor and wait for the Chromecast device to start up.
  3. Turn on your earbuds/headphones and pair them with the Bluetooth transmitter.
  4. On your phone, open the app for the service you want to stream. Most of them are compatible with Chromecast, including Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, Sling, YouTube, Plex, Vevo and Facebook video.
  5. Pick whatever you want to watch and start it playing.
  6. Tap the screen to display the controls, then look for the Chromecast icon. When you tap the icon, Chromecast will ask what device you want to stream to. Choose “Treadmill TV” (or whatever you called it).

That’s it! You should be watching your video on the screen while you hear the audio in your earbuds. Select the speed for your treadmill running and start your run.

Now that you have a good way to pass the time, you may find that you spend more time on the treadmill. I sincerely apologize for that.

Separate Audio and Video

Sometimes you might want to listen to audio-only content—like a podcast or audio book—but you might not want to stare at a blank screen while you’re running. For situations like this, the best solution is YouTube.

  1. Power up your treadmill.
  2. Turn on your TV/monitor and wait for the Chromecast device to start up.
  3. Turn on your earbuds/headphones and pair them with your phone (or whatever device you use to listen to podcasts and/or audio books).
  4. On your phone, open the YouTube app. Search for something like “treadmill scenery” or “virtual scenery” or “virtual run.” There’s a LOT of content on YouTube made by runners for runners. I especially like these channels: Virtual Running Videos, Virtual Run TV, and Treadily.
  5. Pick whatever you want to watch during your run and start it playing.
  6. Tap the screen to display the controls, then tap the Chromecast icon. Tell Chromecast which device you want to cast to.
  7. If you need to run for longer than the video you’ve chosen, you can select additional videos and add them to your queue. They should play one after another without you having to stop running. (YouTube may put ads in between, or even during, your virtual running content.)

It’s also fun to run all or part of a virtual race. Search for “virtual Boston Marathon” or “virtual New York City Marathon” (or whatever race you’d like to run virtually) and you’ll probably find somebody’s GoPro footage from the event. Have fun!