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Ever wonder what it would feel like to weigh 20 pounds less? Well, there’s a device at CU in Boulder that can give you that feeling. However, that’s not what it’s really meant to do.

“Regular running slows the effects of aging, according to a new study from the [Stanford] School of Medicine that tracked 500 older runners for more than 20 years. Elderly runners have fewer disabilities, a longer span of active life and are half as likely as nonrunners to die early deaths, the research found.”

What if you could defy gravity and recover from an injury at the same time? Karen Hayes is zipped in and ready to become almost weightless. “It’s like someone is holding you up,” said patient Karen Hayes. Becky Robinson, a physical therapist recommended Hayes use the g-trainer to gain strength while recovering from her second knee surgery. The G-Trainer allows her to exercise without putting too much stress on her unstable knee.

Back in February, just days after clocking the fastest indoor 4×400 meter relay time in the world, Baylor’s Quentin Iglehart-Summers was diagnosed with a stress fracture in his 4th metatarsal. The BU All-American was ordered to stay off the foot for 4-to-6 weeks. Had it not been for the Alter-G anti-gravity treadmill, Iglehart-Summers may not have been back at 100-percent in enough time to anchor the Bears’ National Championship 4×400 meter relay at the NCAA outdoor championships.

There is a new treadmill being tested that could help people recovering from knee and joint surgery. A Bay Area medical center is experimenting with a model that actually controls your body weight while you’re using it. Finishing the San Francisco Marathon was a moment of ecstasy for Claire Conely, followed by months of agony. “Somewhere in that stretch I hurt my knee, but with the adrenaline I didn’t realize what happened. Just felt pain, but didn’t want to stop,” said Conely.

When Paula Radcliffe was diagnosed with a stress fracture at the top of her left leg two weeks ago, doctors warned her that she had virtually no hope of being fit again in time for the Beijing Olympics. But the marathon world record-holder will defy medical opinion to carry on training for the big race on August 17, using an “anti-gravity” treadmill originally developed by Nasa to help astronauts exercise in space.

Dragila is trying to make the Olympics for a third straight time. She won the gold in 2000 and then failed to secure a medal in 2004. This is Dragila’s final shot at the Olympics, and she almost didn’t get the opportunity

After Alana Burns went through seven surgeries to repair a persistent knee injury, doctors told the 33-year-old to give up running if she wanted to avoid further injury. The former college basketball player for Michigan State University said she was devastated. That was then. Her spirits are now buoyant, thanks to an athlete-oriented rehabilitation and training program at the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan, where she receives physical therapy.

…Yao Ming had surgery in March to repair a stress fracture in his left foot and said his rehab is on schedule. He is working out on the Alter-G treadmill, which regulates the amount of body weight he puts on the foot. He said he is using about 80 percent of his weight now.

One hundred days out to the opening ceremony for the 2008 summer Olympics in Beijing and pole-vaulter Stacy Dragila is healthy again — finally. Dragila tore her Achilles on her right foot back in 2006 and just as she was getting back to an elite level, she did the same thing to her left achilles last year.