Supertraining

The below may be of interest:

Swedish space gym being tested by astronauts  

http://www.alphagalileo.org/index.cfm?
fuseaction=readrelease&releaseid=529158&ez_search=1
 
The crew of the International Space Station (ISS) is presently 
testing a Swedish space gym. The gym was developed by Per Tesch, a 
professor at Mid Sweden University in Sweden. The aim is to 
counteract muscle atrophy and osteoporosis in astronauts.

Astronauts who spend a long time in space can face problems when they 
return to earth. Weightlessness atrophies the muscles and decalcifies 
the skeleton. It doesn't help to "pump iron." Barbells and dumbbells 
are also weightless on a space voyage. 

But Per Tesch and his colleagues have found a solution that functions 
like a reverse yo-yo. The inertia of a rotating flywheel is exploited 
to create resistance. The astronaut velcros him/herself in place and 
pulls a cord that is connected to the flywheel. The wheel only weighs 
a couple of kilos, but its diameter makes the inertia considerable, 
and the load on the muscles and skeleton is at least as great as in 
weight training. 

Per Tesch has researched the topic for 15 years on commission from 
both the Swedish National Space Board and its American counterpart, 
NASA. The "yo-yo" is now being tested in space for first time. It was 
recently delivered by the U.S. space shuttle Atlantis to the ISS, 
which is part of a European laboratory. 

"It's fantastic. I have been working a long time for this," says Per 
Tesch. 

He hasn't received any reports about how it's going. 

"It's still secret, but we'll know in a few months." 

Per Tesch was appointed professor of sports science at Mid Sweden 
University last autumn. The findings from his research in space 
physiology will be put to use in developing training methods for 
sports, exercise, and rehabilitation. 

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Jamie Carruthers
Wakefield UK