AN anti-gravity treadmill developed by boffins at NASA is aiding Clarets striker Sam Vokes’ road to fitness.

And gym members at Crow Wood Leisure in Burnley can follow in the Welsh international’s footsteps after bosses installed one of the revolutionary machines.

The AlterG is used in some orthopaedic hospitals and by the military for amputee rehabilitation.

It is hailed by health professionals and sports scientists as a game changer in terms of rehabilitation from sports injuries, but also as a means to support people on weight-loss programmes.

The new machine has already been used by Vokes, who is recovering from a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament, sustained towards the end of last season’s successful promotion campaign.

Sam, who netted 22 goals for Sean Dyche’s men, said: “I’m working hard on my rehabilitation and things are progressing.

“Having a state-of-the-art facility on our doorstep here at Crow Wood in Burnley is proving to be very useful indeed as I recover from the injury — I’ve really enjoyed using it. Hopefully this will reduce the amount of time before I’m back in action.”

Andrew Brown, the managing director of Crow Wood Leisure, said: “We’re delighted to have been able to support Sam’s rehabilitation and we’re looking forward to seeing him in action in the Premier League.

“The AlterG enables you to reduce gravity’s impact by selecting any weight between 20 per cent and 100 per cent of your body weight.

“So you can train and rehabilitate injuries with less pain and less impact. It’s unlike any other piece of training equipment available in our region as you can go further and faster than you ever thought possible after surgery, injury or other mobility impairment.”