Alter-G treadmill uses NASA technology to make you feel light on your feet

by Zachary Lewis

Ever wish you could run on the moon? Well, now you can, sort of, and you don't even have to put on a spacesuit.

You do have to wear spandex, however. That's because this would-be interstellar journey involves a treadmill, specifically, an Alter-G treadmill, a new high-tech device that requires compression shorts and makes you feel lighter when running by encasing your legs in an airtight chamber.

Whether and how such an anti-gravity machine improves one's everyday fitness remain open questions. I only used it for a few minutes. But its therapeutic potential is real, and there's no doubt the Alter-G is unlike any other piece of equipment on the planet.

Conceived years ago by NASA, Alter-G treadmills are now being sold commercially. But at $55,000 a pop, they're not exactly intended for your average weekend jogger, but are, rather, the province of medical facilities and professional sports.

Here in Cincinnati, for instance, I could only track down one, with the Cincinnati Bengals. There's another one up in Cleveland - at the Cleveland Clinic.

Well, until now, that is. Cincinnati's HealthStyle Fitness will be the first in Ohio, Indiana or Kentucky of offer the Alter-G to the public by way of AlterG memberships. http://www.cincinnatifitness.com/running-injury-alter-G-treadmill.html

While runners have been among the first to adopt Alter-G, the machine is probably best for those who can't run. Before and after my session, I saw therapists using the Alter-G with patients who otherwise could barely walk, let alone run. There they were, though, jogging without pain or fear of falling. Amazing.

In most respects, the Alter-G looks and works like a regular treadmill. It has a monitor in front and handles on the side. The belt and frame are perhaps a bit heftier than usual.

The main difference, of course, is the anti-gravity piece, a balloon that inflates from a pump up front to form an airtight chamber around the base and your lower body. To use it, you wear "G-trainer shorts," -- the waist zips into the top of the bag like the waterproof skirt of a kayak.

Once you're locked and loaded, the belt starts moving and you're free to adjust for speed and incline, as on a regular treadmill. Only here, you can also control how much of your weight you want to feel. You can go all the way down to about 20 percent, roughly the same sensation astronauts experience on the moon.

Not that you'd want to go that low. A few percentage points suffice to make you feel lighter and freer, and by 15, you're prancing along like a gazelle. Make that a centaur, since your torso is still fully weighted.

The benefits of running on an Alter-G stem from landing on your toes as you run, rather than your heels. With less gravity to fight, your stride lengthens, and the strain on your knees, hips and lower back disappears. Suddenly it's easy to maintain a swift pace.

The appeal of Alter-G is undeniable. If you're someone who logs mileage every week in lust of a better half or full marathon, yet your body is beat up, this would be a great way to go the distance without risking injury.

And for those who are injured, the Alter-G allow you to continue training, pain free, as you recovery - without losing all the fitness you've worked so hard for!