Sidelined Crows Ricky Henderson and Andy Otten are hopeful training on the Club’s new Anti-Gravity treadmill will aid in their recovery from injury, and have them back on track before finals.

The impressive piece of machinery, the ‘Alter-G’, arrived at West Lakes last week. Originally developed by NASA to help astronauts prepare for space travel, the Alter-G is a treadmill encased in a pressurised, airtight enclosure that can be calibrated to an athlete’s exact body weight.

The expensive technology allows an athlete to run on as little as 20 per cent of their body weight, enabling them to maintain fitness and conditioning in their legs without the strain of running on a standard treadmill.

Adelaide Physiotherapist and Rehabilitation Coordinator Scott Wilson said the Alter-G had the potential to reduce recovery time in certain injuries.

“The benefit of using the Alter-G is getting players mobilised a bit earlier than they normally would,” Wilson told the RAA Crows News Update.

“In the reduced-gravity environment, they can start load-bearing on their legs more often.

“They can run at 60 or 70 per cent of their body weight, and get more miles into their legs in preparation to returning to the main group. They’ve still got the same muscles working, but it’s less effort on their bodies.

“Depending on the injury, it can accelerate a player’s rehabilitation. For others it won’t, but it means we can get them moving a lot earlier and be a bit more specific in what they’re doing in their rehab.”

Click the play button above to watch vision of Hendo on the Alter-G and the full interview with Scott Wilson

A number of clubs throughout the AFL competition have invested in Anti-Gravity treadmills. However, the Alter-G at West Lakes is the first of its kind in South Australia.

Earlier this year, full-back Ben Rutten flew to Melbourne to utilise the technology and speed up his recovery from foot surgery. Henderson (ankle) and Otten (knee) are both 2-3 weeks away from returning from lower-limb injuries.

Henderson said the sensation of running on the Alter-G was difficult to describe.

“It’s really strange,” he said.

“I guess it’s similar to the feeling you’d have running on the moon.”