What if there was a machine that allowed injured runners to run again without any pain? Better yet, what if there was a way to make you feel like you were running on air?
The AlterG Anti-Gravity Treadmill might just be the answer to an injured runner’s prayers. Instead of pushing through a “no pain, no gain” training season, this modern treadmill reduces the load and impact on legs and joints by providing a supported weightless experience.
As I stood on an AlterG Anti-Gravity Treadmill at Bodies in Motion Physical Therapy in Falls Church, Virginia, I wished that I could have utilized this rehabilitation tool during my six months of non-running brought about by hip pain and Iliotibial band syndrome.
Admittedly, my first steps with 50 percent of my body weight being supported by the unique technology that gives you the weightless feeling felt strange, like I didn’t know where my legs were underneath me. But as I kept running, I acclimated and felt strong — without any of the impact. Using my heart rate monitor as a gauge, even at 80 percent of my body weight I was able to run faster (and with a higher percent of incline) with a lower heart rate on the AlterG compared to my treadmill at home. For me, though, the real impact of the AlterG lies not just in the physical rehabilitation, but in the emotional recovery to a runner or athlete like myself, who becomes so disillusioned and depressed when an injury gets in the way of training.
How the AlterG Anti-Gravity Treadmill Works
This state-of-the-art treadmill uses “unweighting” at anywhere between 20 and 100 percent of your body weight to allow you to walk or run. AlterG’s patented Differential Air Pressure technology, developed by NASA, uses air pressure to provide a lifting force that gently supports the body to provide precise weight reduction. Physical therapists and practitioners use pain as an indicator for a starting percentage — looking for the point at which a patient’s pain goes away as the baseline.
Who Benefits From Using the AlterG?
“The AlterG treadmill is perfect for individuals [who] have suffered a lower extremity injury, like an ACL reconstruction, hip or foot and ankle injury,” says Peter Tooley, a physical therapist at Bodies in Motion Physical Therapy. Whether a patient is post-operative or trying to prevent surgery, the AlterG reduces the impact on joints to provide both strength and aerobic conditioning. Even stroke patients can benefit, Tooley says — the treadmill can help retrain their legs and brain with supported movements. One of the many benefits to using the AlterG is the ability to track progress as a patient requires a decreasing amount of their body weight to be unweighted.
As more and more practicioners use the AlterG in therapy, creative utilities are developed based on the needs of patients. In addition to running and walking, Tooley explains that the supported unweighting forces can be used to perform strength exercises such as lunges or squats without any pain.
Non-injured athletes have also found ways to utilize the AlterG before and after endurance events. Runners might consider an AlterG run to log a few miles without the impact before a marathon, or conversely as a tool for recovery after a long race.
The hefty price tag of the unique treadmill means that rehabilitation centers and physical therapy offices are currently the main locations to find an AlterG. Some centers allow non-patients to purchase passes or time on the machine, while others maintain the treadmills only for patients.
The AlterG is not for everyone. Traditionalist runners may find the movement artificial without the impact. But for runners facing months of injury rehabilitation without logging any miles, the AlterG provides a way to move again — stimulating both the muscles and the mind toward recovery.
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How Weightless Rehabilitation Can Help Injured Runners originally appeared on usnews.com
