AlterG Anti-Gravity Treadmill

Walk to Promote Your Health

As you will learn below, the AlterG can allow you to walk or run with less pain or pain-free. So, what's stopping you now from following the exercise guidelines that scientist have been recommending for years?

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendations:

Adults need at least:
A) 2 hours and 30 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity (i.e., brisk walking) every week and

B) Weight training muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a week that work all major muscle groups (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders, and arms).

More than 40 studies in the scientific literature document that cardiac risk can be reduced by 30 - 50% by regular, moderate exercise for 20 - 30 minutes at least five days a week.

Research indicates that walking 15 minutes a day three times a week may help decrease osteoarthritis pain by up to 40 percent.

A massive study (of over 5000 male subject spanning 30 years) shows that lung capacity determines longevity.

Live longer and feel better while you live!

I have to admit it... I have never enjoyed running! (...until now)

In my younger years I was a weight lifting fanatic.

Today, there is overwhelming evidence that suggests to be healthy and live longer, we need to RUN LONG DISTANCES. Weight lifting just doesn't do it.

The three STANDARDS for running long distances are:

1) Be as "thin as a rail,"

2) Learn how to breathe right, and

3) Train in the right zone to use oxygen to burn fat.

I can teach you how to breathe right for running and how to train in zone two, but let's face it... getting thin is not even in the realm of possibility (or is it?).

Since 60% or more of Americans are overweight, where does that leave the average person?

What if I told you there was a NASA invention being used right here in Provo that could turn the average person, like me, into a runner.

At the the age of 41, I had never run over three miles in my life. But now I guess you could say I'm addicted and do it almost every day.

How could that be when my BMI (Body Mass Index) says I am 25 pounds over weight?

It's called the Alter G and it is nothing short of amazing.

I know it sounds too good to be true, but it's happening in the Provo-Orem area. It's a treadmill, of all things, that NASA invented.

I heard about it a few months ago and I was intrigued. Dubbed the "Anti-Gravity Treadmill," it is the closest thing to walking on the moon as we will ever see. As a physical therapist I could see the potential uses for my patients, so I bought one just days after I discovered it.

Since this is no ordinary treadmill, users have to wear shorts that look like ballerina "tutus." Then the person climbs inside and get zipped in.

Dawn Baker says: "Nothing could prepare me for the feeling. It's like running in the clouds. When I climbed inside and started my run, I could feel my feet hitting the treadmill, but there was no pain nor that jarring sensation that you get from running outside."

The Alter G makes it easier and much more comfortable for the average person like me to run longer distances than would be possible on the ground. Here's why - the Alter G takes the load off my joints, essentially lightening my burden.

For example, since I weigh 226 pounds... if I take off 25% of my body weight, then only 169.5 pounds of pressure would be on the treadmill deck. It's as if I had liposuction and the plastic surgeon took off 56.5 pounds of fat from my body weight.

At 169.5 pound I would officially be "skinny as a rail." And since I know how to breathe and I know how to train in zone two, I officially meet the three standards for running long distances.

The really cool part is I can lose weight without changing the amount of calories in my diet. My dream is that in the near future I will be able to run along the beach and play sports with my kids without any problems.

Imagine Running 50 Pounds Lighter

The first time you try the AlterG you won't believe how much fun it is to exercise at a lower body weight. People who have used the AlterG say it's like "running on air" and "it's so much more fun than normal running" and "you have to try it to believe it!"

Train Smarter, Progress Faster and Reduce Injuries

Used by the World's Best Athletes

Until now only available to the elite, the AlterG Anti-Gravity Treadmill has been used by distance runners, top professional and Olympic athletes, and dozens of pro teams worldwide.

The AlterG allows you to add mileage without the stress on the body and train through injury, without pain (avoiding a loss in your fitness level).

Designed by NASA, the AlterG Anti-Gravity Treadmill is the first to allow you a normal non-impeded running experience, reducing the impact as your body goes through the normal healing process.

Precise unweighting allows you to walk or run at anywhere between 20-100 percent of your body weight.

Easily select your reduced body weight where running becomes pain free

Runners are using it to add up to 25% more miles without the impact

Provides the opportunity for a smooth progression back to full recovery when injured

Fun and easy to use-run like you're on the moon!

Imagine Running 50 Pounds Lighter

The AlterG can be used in a variety of ways, offering an array of benefits, such as:

Rehabilitating after surgery of the lower extremity (hip, knee, ankle or foot)

Continued training through injury/recover to avoid deconditioning

Reduced impact training and conditioning to reduce injury or overuse training

"The AlterG took the fear out of returning to training. It enabled me to begin running 6 weeks before my doctor cleared me to run on the ground and allowed me to incrementally transition back to full training." -Shannon Rowbury-2008 US Olympic Team

"I think the AlterG is the best piece of equipment made for running in the last 30 years"

-Alberto Salazar, Winner of the Boston Marathon

ALTER-G ANTIGRAVITY TREADMILL

Do you . . .
. . . Enjoy running, but running has created sore and painful joints?
. . . Have a history of stress fractures, knee, hip, or ankle pain?
. . . Want to take your endurance training to the next level?
. . . Want to walk fast or run, but feel it is impossible?

If you answered "YES" to any of the following questions, you are perfect for the Alter-G Antigravity Treadmill. The Alter-G Antigravity Treadmill defies gravity by partially unweighting you through simple physics of air pressure that allows you to walk or run naturally.

Salus has the only Alter-G Antigravity Treadmill in Southeastern Wisconsin that is open to the public. Call Salus (262-646-3993) for your FREE 15 minute trial and experience how it feels to defy gravity.

Fitness and Sports Training

Teach your body to run faster through neuromuscular training (Overspeed training).
Walk or run at different paces and intensities throughout your workout (Interval training).
Aerobic conditioning while not placing unwarranted stresses on your body that pavement would.
Maintain cardiovascular fitness while recovering from an injury.
Prevent overuse and chronic injuries related to running and walking.
Train your body to go faster, for longer periods of time, and more frequently.
Recover from injury or hard training sessions.

Weight Loss and Weight Control

Increase confidence by allowing you to walk faster or even run which leads to more calories burned.
Improve coordination of your legs.
Exercise if you are unable to support your full body weight for extended periods of time.

Features of the Alter-G Antigravity Treadmill

Easy to operate touch screen user interface.
Reduce your body weight by up to 80% in 1% increments
Forward speeds ranging 0-18 mph.
Reverse speeds ranging from 0-10 mph.
0-15% Incline

What is an AlterG and what does it do?

An AlterG is a rehabilitation treadmill that is encased in a pressurized tent. The tent is made of the same material as a rubber river raft with see-through plastic windows.

An air-compressor inflates the tent to create a positive-pressure lifting force on the lower body.

A force plate (that works like a weight scales) is located beneath the treadmill. It measures your body weight so the computer can determine how much positive-pressure is required to create a lifting force to lower your body weight while walking or running on the treadmill.

Lower-body positive-pressure treadmill.

Why is an AlterG a perfect rehabilitation device?

The scientific explanation is that the AlterG lowers a patient's Ground Reaction Force (GRF). How does it do this?

The "lifting force" -- created by the pressurized tent -- lowers the GRF... which lowers the strain and compression that gravity places on your joints, fascia, and muscles.

What the heck is GRF?

In physics, and in particular in biomechanics, the GRF is the force exerted by the Earth on a body in contact with it.

The GRF follows Newton's Third Law of Motion, which states:

"For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction."

In other words, if object A (your body) exerts a force on object B (the earth), then the earth (object B) also exerts an equal and opposite force (the GRF) on your body (object A).

ground reaction force

What does this mean in layman's terms?

It means that when your foot strikes the ground... the Earth "kicks" you back. And the impact of that "kick" travels up your leg to your spine.

Some of us can tolerate the "Earth's kick" while others cannot. If you have strained muscles or fascia, or if you have osteoarthritis and inflammation in your joints then running or even walking may be painful.

How much the Earth pushes back depends on how fast we are walking or running and how much we weigh.

When walking or running, our muscles generate the forces that push against the ground and the GRF propels us forward. Greater speed (velocity) requires greater push-off force, which creates greater GRF (which means the earth hits you back harder).

The AlterG treadmill allows you to promote health and wellness while you:

1) burn calories by using metabolic power
2) work your heart to keep it healthy and strong
3) work your lungs to cleanse your blood
4) get your blood flowing to all of your body's cells

But most importantly, the AlterG allows you to manipulate the GRF (the Earth's kick that causes back and leg pain) to extremely low levels, so you can exercise with minimal to zero pain.

Guess what? This means YOU can tolerate exercise again!

Who can AlterG help?

Pain, Orthopedic and Sports Medicine
Rehabilitation Patients
We can select from 20% of body weight to 100% in 1% increments, so patients can specify exactly where exercise becomes pain-free and progress can be easily tracked and charted.

People who want to Lose Weight
Being over-weight can cause repetitive strain on ankle, knee, and hip joints, the sacroiliac joints, and the lumbar facet joints and discs. The AlterG treadmill is perfect for those that need to burn calories to lose weight but are finding it hard to exercise.

Senior Rehabilitation Strengthening and Conditioning (or those who are sedentary)
Exercise at fractional body weights to overcome mobility challenges in senior patients

Promotes cardiovascular and musculoskeletal health in a safe environment

Strengthening and improved coordination of muscles thereby protecting surrounding joints

Builds confidence in senior patients for improved functional capacity

May lower the risk of falling

Watch this short video about the Alter G.:

Study shows promising results for treatment of Low Back and Leg Pain with the AlterG anti-gravity treadmill

The results of a study in the Journal of Orthopedic and Sports Physical Therapy suggest that walking on a anti-gravity treadmill (combined with other physical therapy) for people with low back and/or leg pain holds promise for pain relief and functional improvement.

Be the HERO! ...to your friends, family, or co-workers who are suffering with persistent pain! Tell them about this newsletter and refer them to see Dr. Knudsen.

Print the coupon below for a 10 minute FREE ride on our AlterG Anti-Gravity Treadmill and pass them out (feel free to bring one in for your own test drive).

Thank you in advance for your support.

AlterG Coupon