The Altitude Centre in London's Covent Garden provides sessions in Intermittent Hypoxic Training (IHT), a form of simulated altitude training said to make you more efficient with the oxygen you breathe.

Target groups for the process are athletes aiming to improve their sporting performance; mountaineers looking to pre-acclimatise to a high altitude trip; and the general public just wanting to improve its health.

The company supplies a range of hypoxic training units for a variety of applications, from the High Performance Hypoxicator which can simulate altitudes of up to 5100m, to the brand new personal training device called Altipower®.

Two models of Altipower are available, the Advanced and the Professional, the specification of the latter including a portable pulse oxymeter which allows fine tuning of an IHT session.

The system works by using a person's natural breathing process to produce reduced oxygen - hypoxic - air. Continuous breathing using Altipower gradually decreases the oxygen content of the breathing air, this in turn replicating the conditions of high altitude and the benefits of mountain-like air. Training sessions are claimed to be pleasant and easy, with the unit continuously removing carbon dioxide and capturing exhaled moisture.

Both models are supplied with two breathing cartridges, enough for 20 hypoxic sessions.

leisure-kit keyword: Altitude