PHYSIOTHERAPY, SPORTS REHAB AND INJURY REHABILITATION ADELAIDE

BOOST MICROGRAVITY 

TREADMILL

LESS LOAD. MORE MOVEMENT. EARLIER PROGRESS.

Getting back to walking and running is one of the hardest parts of rehab. Too much load too soon can flare an injury. Too little and fitness, confidence and movement quality slip away.

The Boost lets us take the pressure off. You walk and run with a controlled amount of your body weight supported, so you can keep moving while your body recovers, then we gradually bring the load back as you improve.

Now at iPerform in Edinburgh, the Boost facilitates return to walking or running and lower-impact training during injury rehabilitation.

HOW THE BOOST WORKS

The Boost uses air pressure technology that was originally developed at NASA. You wear a pair of specially designed shorts that zip into an airtight seal around the opening of the treadmill’s air chamber. The chamber surrounds your lower body and is gently pressurised, creating an upward lifting force that reduces the effective weight going through your legs.

Because the support comes from air pressure rather than a harness, you can walk and run with a natural gait, and nothing restricts your upper body. Increasing or decreasing the pressure changes how much of your body weight you carry, so we can fine-tune the load to suit you.

WHAT DO “ANTI-GRAVITY” AND “MICROGRAVITY” MEAN?

You’ll hear these treadmills called anti-gravity, microgravity or even zero-gravity treadmills. The names sound futuristic, but the idea is simple.

Gravity doesn’t actually change. What changes is how much of your body weight your legs have to carry. The Boost surrounds your lower body with an air-filled chamber and gently pressurises it. That pressure creates an upward lifting force, so a portion of your weight is supported by air rather than by your legs, joints and bones.

The more pressure, the more lift, and the lighter you feel. The Boost can take you anywhere from your full body weight down to 20%. At 50%, for example, you’d run or walk with half the load going through your legs, while still using your normal walking or running pattern.

The technology has its roots in space. NASA-related research looked at how to keep astronauts’ bones and muscles strong in an environment with very little gravity. The same air pressure idea was then flipped around here on Earth, so that people can reduce load rather than add it.

ADJUSTABLE SUPPORT, SET BY YOUR CLINICIAN

The Boost lets you exercise at anywhere from 100% down to 20% of your body weight. Support is adjusted in small steps, so we can find the level where you move well and your symptoms stay settled. The right starting point depends on your injury, your stage of recovery, and your age and fitness.

As you improve, we reduce the support, then build speed, incline and session length.

Book an appointment below to get started with an early rehabilitation plan.

The anti-gravity treadmill is mainly a rehab tool. It suits people who need to reduce the load through their legs while still building up to walking or running and wanting to build trust in their injured limb again, including those recovering from the following:

Overuse and tendon injuries

  • Achilles tendinopathy

  • Patellar tendinopathy

  • Medial tibial stress syndrome (shin splints)

  • Plantar fasciitis

Bone injuries

  • Bone stress injures

  • Stress fractures

  • Fractures including those that require surgery that have been cleared to start weight bearing at partial body weight.

Surgical procedures

  • ACL reconstruction

  • Other knee surgeries including meniscus repairs

  • Ankle surgery including syndesmosis reconstruction, ankle reconstruction,

  • Hip arthroscopy

WHAT INJURIES MAY BENEFIT FROM USING THE BOOST?

WHAT THE BOOST CAN HELP WITH

By taking some of the load off your legs, the Boost lets you do more of the movement your rehab or training needs, sooner and with less pain. Here’s where we use it most:

  • Earlier movement after injury or surgery, when your physio clears it.

  • Progressively increasing weight-bearing as you recover from an injury.

  • Maintaining cardiovascular fitness while you can’t run normally.

  • Working on gait and running patterns with less stress on your joints.

  • Building strength and endurance gradually in early rehabilitation.

  • Exercising with less pain when joints are sore or irritable.

  • Supporting your return to sport progression.

Unsure if microgravity treadmill running is appropriate for you? Book a physio appointment so we can discuss with you in person, call 8151 1347, or message us here to find out how we can help.

TRUSTED ACROSS ADELAIDE’S NORTH

We support active individuals and athletes of all levels, who participate in a wide range of physical activity and sports across South Australia.

From local club players to high-performance athletes, we support people recovering from injury across South Australia, including Edinburgh, Mawson Lakes, Salisbury, Golden Grove, Modbury, Elizabeth, Munno Para, Gawler, the Barossa Valley, Virginia, Angle Vale and Two Wells.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

  • You’ll hear these treadmills called Boost, Alter G, anti-gravity, microgravity or even zero-gravity treadmills. They all refer to the same type of equipment: a treadmill inside an air-filled chamber that reduces the amount of body weight you carry while you run. Some of these names are brand names, while others are general terms. At iPerform, we use the Boost.

  • Your first session, and potentially a few more, is with a physiotherapist. They’ll work through your recommended settings, your program and your progressions with you, and guide you on how to get into the Boost. This makes sure you start at the right load for your injury and know exactly how to use it.

  • Yes. Once your physio feels you are independently competent to do your Boost running yourself, you can book a time slot and come in to use it. Your physio will keep reviewing your progress and adjusting your program as you improve.

  • The anti-gravity treadmill can manipulate your running gait. Due to the lighter loads, a decrease in cadence, altered stride length, and changes in speed can occur. However, these changes would take many sessions to become ingrained and the recommended number of sessions before outdoor running is significantly less than this (so no need to stress).

  • Yes, but it isn’t directly comparable to outdoor running. Because you carry less body weight, the load through your legs is lower, and the way your body produces and absorbs force is different. Even so, you can still achieve a meaningful physiological output. Athletes can still reach high running intensities at 85-90% body weight, which means you can keep building your fitness while the injured area is protected.

  • That’s a decision to discuss with your physio. Typically, we want to see you run pain-free at around 85-90% body weight for around 25-30 minutes.

YOUR RECOVERY STARTS HERE