Most fitness gear is specialized. Running shoes are for running. Hiking boots are for hiking. Active people know that the gear you buy is for the activity you do.
So you'd be forgiven for being skeptical when you hear that the VIGX π Plus, an AI-powered exoskeleton, is an incredibly versatile device for walking, hiking, running, and more.
Iron Man in Real Life
The π Plus is the closest I’ve seen any product come to an actual Iron Man suit in real life. It even comes in a suitcase! With this backpack-size frame, this exoskeleton straps to your legs, and like Iron Man, it does give you super strength!
It comes equipped with AI that learns and adapts to your gait, whether you are walking, hiking, or going up a huge flight of stairs. It adjusts the level of assist based on the amount of effort you are putting in. Alternatively, you can adjust the setting yourself, increasing the amount of assistance for big hills on a hike, or just allowing the AI to do its thing.
Of course, it’s not walking for you. It just makes walking easier, increasing your overall endurance, reducing overall load, allowing you to do more of the activities you love.
Let’s explore a few.
Hiking: Extended Range and Hill Support
Perhaps the most obvious use for the π Plus is hiking.
After all, the entire undertaking of a hike is an exercise in energy management. You have only so much energy to expend, and you have to spread it out over the entire trail, including the way back for trails that don’t loop. Carrying a heavy backpack, hauling yourself uphill, and navigating uneven terrain all require your body to work harder.
The adjustment settings mentioned above mean the π Plus can act like gears on a mountain bike. You shift down on big hills and shift up on level ground. Gears are great, but we’ve never had them for our legs. It makes going up a hill that would make you turn around and go home actually possible. It means not getting completely gassed. That means hiking farther and seeing more.
That also means less soreness the next day. With the support of an exoskeleton, you feel the impact less, and your bag doesn’t weigh you down. More summits. More challenging trails. More amazing views. Even when there’s snow on the ground, take a hike!
Walking: Daily Strolls to Long Treks
Even a simple stroll through the neighborhood can become more enticing when you have lower-body support, particularly if you often deal with feeling tired. It makes walking just a bit easier. Will that make it more likely to walk regularly? If so, the consistency of a daily walk, getting your daily steps, can make all the difference.
For longer walks (whether through a city or a charity walk-a-thon), the VIGX π Plus can help you maintain a steady pace over the course of hours. This may not seem like a big deal, but for many who choose not to take part in longer walks, new possibilities suddenly become available when you have an exoskeleton.
And since the battery lasts up to 24,000 steps, range anxiety is no issue. One charge for both batteries is enough for all-day walking, and if you do need to change batteries, the replacements are hot-swappable, meaning you can clip them into the belt without losing momentum.
Gait adaptation is particularly helpful for walking because no two people have the same gait. When it functions correctly, the device learns your particular stride and cadence and helps offload effort. At the end of the day, it all amounts to having no reason not to get out there and walk.
Running: Sustainable Pace and Less Fatigue
“Are you telling me I can run while wearing a robot?” someone may reasonably ask. Answer: absolutely. At only about 4.6 pounds (2.1 kg), the VIGX becomes a supportive, lightweight, running companion. It doesn’t get in the way. It just helps.
You still have to recover, but by offloading up to 30 percent overall effort (15 Nm of torque), imagine how much easier recovery is. Imagine how much less impact your legs need to absorb when you have a supportive, battery-powered exoskeleton running with you. And when recovery is lighter, running the next day becomes a no-brainer. And imagine how many more “good years” you can get with that kind of support.
The π Plus is able to detect when you're running as opposed to walking, ensuring it gives you the power you need, where you need it, and not where you don’t.
Golf: The Underrated Endurance Sport
Here's one people don't usually think about: golf.
But think about what a typical round consists of. Four or five hours on your feet with no hope of sitting down (assuming you aren’t taking a cart). A several-mile walk that frequently takes you over hills can be a real drain, and can start wearing down your game over the course of nine or eighteen holes. If you carry your bag, even a short 9-hole golf outing becomes a draining workout.
Are you golfing to push your physical endurance to the limit, or are you golfing to get better at golfing, to lower your score, and perfect your swing? Most golfers will probably say the latter.
The π Plus provides just enough support to help your legs, keeping you strong for when you actually need to swing. Even a small boost over time can make a huge difference for your game. Bonus: if you would otherwise have to get a cart to do 18 holes, you’re saving money in the long run.
How the AI Adapts
The common denominator across all these activities is the adaptable on-board AI system that learns how you move.
The continuous motion sensor automatically tweaks its level of assist based on the way you’re moving, no matter what you happen to be doing. That means you don’t have to think about switching between modes or dealing with a bunch of settings. It works in real-time to zero in on your stride length, cadence, speed, and patterns of movement. No matter what you are doing.
The assistance feels different if you are picking your way over rocks rather than walking at a brisk pace, sprinting down a hill, or walking up one. You simply move, and the device does the rest.
Adjustment
While the adaptive assistance is great, there are certainly times when you will want to manually choose more or less assistance. This can be done easily with two buttons on the belt, a plus and a minus. You can easily feel and adjust the buttons without looking down, and when you increase or decrease the level, there is a callout from the on-board system. It goes down to 1 (the least support) and up to 15 (the most support).
Here is a quick overview of the levels and suggestions on how to use them across different activities:
- Level 1-5: Light assistance. These work best for easy walks on flat terrain, giving you maximum workout with just a little support.
- Level 6-10: Moderate assistance. That’s the sweet spot for hikers and urban walkers alike. Enough support to be helpful.
- Level 11-15: High assistance. Big hills on hikes or runs, when you would otherwise start bonking, or have to turn around.
Everyone is different, of course, so experiment with the levels that work for your activities.
Quick Specs
- Weight: ~4.6 lbs (2.1 kg Including batteries)
- Torque: Up to 15 Nm (roughly 30% effort reduction)
- Assistance levels: Adjustable from 1 to 15
- Battery life: Up to 24,000 steps with both batteries
- Hot-swappable batteries: Switch without powering down
- Gait learning: Continuous AI adaptation to your movement
Who This Is For
The π Plus is great for anyone who loves being active and would, in fact, like to be even more active. Because that’s what this device delivers.
And for those of us whose workouts include a bit of everything, one device that can cover all our activities is very appealing. Hikers are always looking to increase their range and tackle more challenging terrain. Runners tend to prefer training that’s lower impact. And golfers who like to walk all 18 holes don’t want to affect their game as fatigue sets in (especially when carrying a bag). And for the rest of us, resuming a sport or physical activity after time away from regular exercise, or starting to age out of our favorite activities…we just want to be more active, and we want few reasons not to be active.
A Movement Partner, Not a Replacement
The π Plus won’t do your work for you. It's designed to extend it.
You're still doing the work. Running and biking will never be a layup. But when calories are being consumed by overworked quads, or heaving lungs, endurance can become a major limitation. Even an experienced hiker knows their limits, and probably wishes those limits could be pushed farther.
Long, daily city walks, challenging hikes, morning runs, and 18 holes of golf all become more manageable. You can recover faster. You can say yes to things you would normally skip.
One device. Every way you move.
Explore the VIGX π series at vigx.ai.
