Description

Technical field Generally, the invention relates to equipment for performing exercises aimed in improving physical conditions, more particularly the invention relates to a series of solutions which use a belt of non-elastic flexible material to perform exercises for improving kinesthetic self-control as well as for endurance and strengthening of muscular system. Background art

Currently, there are some known and extremely popular suspension training techniques carried out by using an exerciser having belts and handles which make an athlete able in training using his/her own body weight. The suspension training is carried out through a series of exercises in which the body is strongly unbalanced to improve strength, balance and endurance of muscular system. Such technique involves practicing a series of exercises without resorting to various tools (such as handlebars, bars, benches...); that is a key advantage for people having a life style full of commitments and no time to go to the gym.

Applications providing such type of suspension training have the only purpose of practicing exercises based on muscle loosening or even stamina.

Another limit in devices according to prior art is that a user cannot "enter" the suspended belt with both his/her feet to perform exercises which could be performed with such arrangement. Moreover, the absence of constraints on the belt often brings to belt winding and spiraling on itself conditions, thus altering its functionality and type of strain resistance.

A solution according to the present invention aims to overcome the above mentioned limits.

Furthermore, an object of the present invention is to provide a telescopic belt for fitness and to improve proprioceptive capabilities that, in addition to improving athlete's strength and stamina, allows an user to exercise, contextually, the effort and proprioceptive components of a particular movement. A further object of the present invention is to provide combined systems for activating and exercising athlete's kinesthetic functionalities, enabling him/her in obtaining optimized performances regarding the ability of perceiving his/her own movement and posture, through a real-time interaction between different types of strains.

Finally, it is an object of the present invention to provide a telescopic belt for fitness and to improve the proprioceptive capabilities, which uses constitutive components, standard materials and technologies within the field of sport equipment construction, in order to produce a low cost and easy to maintain device.

Disclosure of invention

These and other objects, which will be clear in the course of the description, are obtained through a training equipment based on a flexible telescopic belt in semi-rigid material comprising, two terminal sections closed on themselves, which adjust the flexible belt length according to athlete's height and type of exercise he/she is going to perform, and two elongated flexible belt sections which extend from fastening and holding means down toward the ground, up to a certain height adjustable by means of said fastening and adjusting means. In further embodiments, in a central part of the belt, a length-adjustable, rigid flat support could be inserted as integral with said belt , by means of couples of adjusting and fastening means. The user which goes up on said support with one or both his/her feet, thus simultaneously exerting effort and proprioceptive components related to a particular movement, takes advantage of a wide range of stability/instability values regarding the oscillating apparatus, comprising: a- on the one hand, stabilizing means such as lateral weights resting on the ground, which limit said apparatus front/rear spatial oscillation as well as its transverse oscillation, b- destabilization means, such as suspended weights in position which is symmetrical or asymmetrical, with respect to a support central part, thereby amplifying unbalance components in front/rear spatial oscillations as well as a transverse oscillation component.

Interaction between different instability components occurs in real time through different types of strain, in order to optimize performances in exercising the ability to perceive one's own motion and posture.

Brief description of drawings With the only purpose of better understand the invention without intending to limit its scope, the invention will be illustrated based on a series of preferred embodiments with reference to the attached figures, in which: Fig. 1 is a schematic view of the belt in its whole extension;

Fig. 2A-B are sectional views of an additional component of a belt according to the present invention;

Fig. 3A is a sectional view of a different configuration of the support shown Fig. 2; and Fig. 3B is a sectional view of an support detail shown in Fig. 3A;

Fig 4 is a schematic view of a particular use of a belt according to the present invention;

Fig. 5A and 5B are sectional views of a different configuration of the support shown in Fig .2; Fig 6 is a schematic view of a further particular use of a belt according to the present invention;

Fig 7 is still a schematic view of another particular use of a belt according to the present invention;

Fig. 8 is a view showing the upper clamp means to support apparatus; Fig 9. is a sectional view showing the adjusting means for horizontal positioning of the support board;

Fig. 10 is a schematic view of a further particular embodiment of a support board according to the present invention.

Best mode for carrying out the invention This relates to a flexible but not elastic belt , in a fabric material such as hemp, that is a semi-rigid natural material. Unlike solutions for TRX - which are made by linear modules constrained at one end -, herein rigidity is given not only by the type of constituent material but also by the belt size which is configured as an elongated band 1 with a varying thickness from 1.5 cm to 2 cm and a varying width from 6 cm to 7 cm.

In the present context we do not analyse the solution concerning devices 14 for fastening, adjusting and blocking ends of the flexible belt 1, because said devices have already been debated in literature and various equivalent solutions were already disseminated. In the central area a series of pocket pairs 2', 2" are formed, as shown in Figure 1; each pocket pair is intended to integrally receive end sections of a rigid support 3 which remains blocked during an exercise execution, when inserted.

Pockets 2 are placed symmetrically, but they can be used even in an asymmetric manner: that is when support 3 is placed into pocket pairs having a different distance from the central point 4 of the flexible belt - for example into the pockets 2"" and 2'. The advantage of that is extremely important considering a user which is improving his/her proprioceptive functions of the ankle or knee. Even an athlete starts with a series of exercises in which support 3 is perfectly parallel to the ground, where support end sections are inserted into a pair of pockets 2', 2", which are perfectly symmetrical with respect to the center 4 of the flexible belt, then the support slope gradually increases relative to the ground by inserting said support into pocket pairs which are displaced relative to the symmetry center 4. A preferred configuration of the present invention provides a support 3 formed with a slight central recess, intended to receive an athlete foot and/or a shoe worn by him/her. Stability in foot insertion allows to exercise a proprioceptive component in a more specific manner, since there is no variability resulting from foot slipping on said support.

In a further embodiment of the present invention, rather than having a series of supporting boards 3 different in length, it's preferable to consider a single support varying in length which inserts into different containment pockets intended to receive said support. In this case, support is composed of three components with two lower sections 6', 6"- provided with at least one raised portion with a dovetail shape - and able to slide into a matching recess in an upper structure 7.

At least two corresponding holes placed between said lower sections 6', 6" and a top section 7 are aligned to receive a pair of safety elastic split pins 8, which are able to block said lower sections 6', 6" into a fixed element 7 during their translation, in order to obtain a rigid support varying in length according to the type of exercise to be performed, as well as to athlete's height.

(In this case the split pin 8 is formed with a folded bar, with a first straight part and a second part shaped as to be able in bending without it deforming, so that said second part can be reused. The straight end has to be inserted in a hole, while the other one is shaped to make an elastic grip directly on a hole).

As known, the elastic split pin is especially useful in cases wherein a frequent disassembly and reassembly is expected -engagement / disengagement -. In order to have a support with a slightly wider plane than the basic width of the belt, it is preferable to configure said support with: i- two protruding narrow terminal sections, 11 ', 11", which have to be inserted into containment pockets 2, and ii- a slightly larger supporting surface, such as to allow a foot support with the whole foot sole.

Furthermore, final thickness of the two narrow areas 11' and 11" of support 3 is slightly tilted with respect to the true thickness of said flat support 3. A frustoconical profile 11', 11" facilitates insertion into pockets 2 and stabilizes integral interlocking. For this purpose, more advantageously, pockets 2 material is an elastic material - for example a rubber-based material -, therefore said material is different from the belt 1 material which is a not elastic material - such as hemp or woven rope -. Pockets 2 in elastic material, are made integral with the hemp belt through suitable seams which ensure a perfect integral combination of the two components. Especially advantageous is the rigidity of belt/support integral structure in the belt area in which they are interfaced. Said rigidity is essential in that it limits belt spiraling and winding tendency.

Pocket configured containment device (sewn on the belt 3) is just an example. Several other solutions can be used with equal effectiveness. Particularly, a pair of sandwich- type locking devices 35', 35"can be used, such as those used to retain a roof bag on a car roof. Said device comprises distributed screws, such as headless stud-type screws, to be forced into a female screw, wherein tightening takes place on the belt and causes slight deformations on threads which ensure an interlocking with the inserted integral belt 1. It forms a clamp which affects a large section of the interfaced support 3 - comprising the upper part F and the lower part G- and flexible support, without damage their strength. In fact, in this way a through hole through the belt is avoided. The main constructive principle was to avoid having through holes which might limit belt tensile strength, thus producing lacerations and fraying on it. In a still further embodiment, support is configured with a composed structure of the type shown in Figure 3, with a fixed supporting plane A and an internal tilting plane or frontal part B, which allows a limited oscillation centered on support X', X". It is possible to have oscillations of about 7°- 8° in order to provide said composed structure with instability due to both the belt, which oscillates as suspended, and the plane B realized with a tilting structure.

Basically, support implementation is obtained by means of two complementary structures, A and B, a first structure A, is a fixed containment structure, being provided with two wings 11 ' and 11" for insertion into pockets 2' and 2", and a second structure B which is fixed, with a slight backlash, to the containment structure A by a mechanical connection 18 (for example a nut, bolt and interposed seal) conferring the desired oscillation degree.

Such a solution is extremely effective especially in the case it is necessary to exercise ankle ligaments. In such a case, availability of a support B surface being able to vary its tilt angle, from time to time, in real time, appears as advantageous. For this purpose, as stated beforehand, a supporting support itself is configured as an oscillating structure. Support B is a tilting board made of a supporting overturned semi ellipsoidal element (with an elongated lentil shape, namely an oblate spheroid shape) able to provide a calibrated oscillation related to support X', X", having a mounting pin 18 as a pivot.

For this purpose, we configure a tilting central constraint, with no translation, of the support board by means of said supporting semi ellipsoid. As shown in Figure 3 A, said support is overturned, resting in a containment section A with its curved surface and ending at an upper side in the supporting surface B, for receiving a foot. To obtain a certain degree of freedom in (anyhow constrained) displacement of the supporting surface, with respect to the support A, a connection is provided at the edge with a slight backlash between the two sections A and B, said backlash being imperceptible to a user which however senses as an adaptation to the force differently applied by his/her foot, according to varying conditions at the edge. To allow a minimal possibility of translation - downwards or upwards, leftwards or rightwards - it is sufficient to vary the central reference axis of the supporting structure and surface. In any case, said slight backlash is able to provide an angular displacement of about 7°/8° that it's enough to provide an ideal foot oscillation on surface B. Structure B returns to a straight position, by means of a system of at least four elastic elements 24, such as fixed springs, each of them ending with a helical profile so as to abut and match with the ellipsoidal profile supported by it.

Starting from the slight backlash of central position, to achieve said - still constrained and limited in range - tilting motion, it is enough making a significant pressure on any point on the supporting surface B up to limits imposed by springs 24 and pivot, nut-bolt 18, which connect the two constituent structures A and B. Thus, an exercise performed by an athlete benefits from two destabilized components which interwork each other to provide a suitable stimulus to neuromotor system. A first component results from suspended belt oscillation, and the other component results from instability of support board 3 upper plane. In a different embodiment, support board 3 is configured into two sections I and II, being set one above the other as shown in Figures 5A and 5B, with a threaded pin 18 in a blind hole which keeps them together, or providing a bearing interworking, wherein said bearing is fixed to the lower section II and able to rotate the upper section I.

Two barriers formed by protruding I^shaped elements 25' and 25", limit a complete rotation of the support 3 upper section I, which in this way can only rotate through a limited angle (of about 10°-30°). The pair of protrusions 25', 25' are fixed to the lower support section II and placed at opposite sides, at a support board 3 end, said protrusions are covered with a soft rubber-like material, or other material with a soft padding which reduces abutting with the upper support I. They protrude about 3-4 cm with respect to lateral edges of the supporting board II.

A further preferred embodiment provides for application of constraints or stabilizing weights 9 to the belt 1: said weights can be provided with accessories for a telescopic kit of the belt 1, or said weights can be dumbbells or heavy elements already present in the gym. For this purpose, in any case fittings 10 - such as bands or small ropes - are configured, which originate symmetrically in a lower area of the belt in a middle position spaced from containment pockets 2 of support board 3. The purpose is to provide a stabilizing element of the flexible belt 1 that would be otherwise subjected to too large intrinsic oscillations, both in a transverse and longitudinal direction.

If an athlete - considering the case of a knee ligaments rehabilitation - starts a proprioceptive functions rehabilitating activity, then it will be necessary for said athlete to go up with one foot on a suspended belt 1 in a more stable condition; as said athlete recovers his/her functions, the stabilizing action can be decreased by adjusting fittings 10 tension, up to a complete disengagement of said fittings.

For this purpose, stabilizers 10 are provided with two slider adjusters or elastic elements such as springs, to form actual oscillation dampers. Regulation allows for tensioning or progressive loosening up to actual disengagement.

A further embodiment of the invention provides for a weight 20 hanging centrally from the support board 3. This configuration can be used primarily to produce an unbalanced action with an effect known in physics by the technical term 'chaotic movement'. Hence the ability to use the invention with purposes and methods that differ considerably from one another: while preparing the stabilizers 10', 10" by means of weights 9, that have the effect of maintaining the equilibrium conditions for the belt, surprisingly it was found that front/rear movement, typical of the hanging belt, can be stimulated toward further directions by forcing a transverse oscillation through the hanging weight 20.

As it is known, a double pendulum is a physic system consisting of two pendulums, one attached to the end of the other. Its dynamic behavior is highly sensitive to small changes in the initial conditions and, due to some important energy values, its movement is chaotic. Obviously, it is essential the load of the weight 20, attached to the bottom related to the board 3, as shown in Figure 6. Particularly, a relationship between the weight of the user that goes on the board 3 and the weight 20 relative to the second swinging pendulum has been established. Already from an initial examination, it is obvious that, in order to generate a chaotic solicitation, a boy who weighs 30-35 kilos should use a relatively low mass, related to an athlete who weighs 80-90 kilos and does the same type of exercises. An additional parameter that has been considered is the type of exercise. Surely, a greater weight 20 and thus a greater instability may be assigned to a user who is already at an advanced stage on his path to rehabilitation (since the dynamic system is highly sensitive to small changes in the initial conditions, as already stated).

The weight 20 is hung centrally from the board 3. Actually, it is hung through two pairs of wires 21 ' and 21 ". These pairs of wires are wrapped around the board 3, that is provided with a pairs of grooves 22' and 22". Both pairs of wires enter these grooves to provide a pair of supporting elements centered in relation to the weight 20, which is placed at the bottom now, hanging and symmetrically spaced from the ends of the board 3.

It is noteworthy that the belt is not provided with any type of hole or groove to insert the usual range of accessories, board, weight... That is to say, the belt maintains its adaptability, integrity and strength.

The same logic is applied to insert a support rod 12, which is to be placed at a height higher than the board 3. The user grabs this rod when he climbs on the board using his foot or his knee in order to do his exercises, like the boom in a windsurf board. The user, once his foot or his knee is inserted in the belt, can lean on the rod 12, whose height is adjustable, as required. To achieve the adjustable fixing of support rod 12, a single bar is used, provided with two of the sandwich supports 16, already mentioned, at its ends; such supports tighten the belt 1 at the height more suitable to the exercise and/or the user's height.

Furthermore, different variants of the double oscillating system 1, 20 can be considered and the system may consist of two equal or different masses, placed at the end of the board 3. The behavior is comparable to that of two simple or composite pendulums and the movement can occur in three dimensions or it can be limited to the vertical plane solely. In the following analysis, for simplicity's sake, the second pendulum is constituted by two oscillating masses and it is therefore provided with two arms to be considered as oscillating pendulums with a phase-shift with each other.

Then it was considered the application of two different weights 23', 23" at the end of the board 3. In the interaction between the coupled weights 23', 23", a minor solicitation originating small amplitudes of oscillations (which, being small, are not comparable to a chaotic movement) was supposed. This led to a periodic behavior for each weight 23 and a period of the overall movement that is wider than that of each individual pendulum.

From a physical point of view, the fact of having the small oscillations implies that the movement of the two pendulums is independent of each other and each one oscillates with an oscillation reduced in its amplitude, starting from the initial conditions. It was found that, for very small oscillations, the behavior of the system tends to the behavior of a simplified system, since the terms of the second order become less and less important. However, this configuration results in an energy exchange between the two weights 23' and 23": a - initially, the first weight 23' oscillates and the second pendulum 23" is stationary, b- after a series of oscillations gradually dampening, the oscillation switches to the second pendulum 23 " .

Conversely, when the second weight oscillates, it transfers energy to the first weight and slowly the system returns to its initial state in which the second pendulum is stationary and the first pendulum oscillates.

This limited solicitation starts from one of two weights 23' o 23" of the apparatus, so as to provide an oscillation/vibration of the apparatus to only one side of the board 3. The user directs his proprioceptive capacity on this side of the board 3 in order to produce a stabilization on such side.

Immediately after (once dampened, for example, the oscillation of the first weight 23'), the oscillation induced by the second weight 23" starts, bringing the user to direct to the other side of the board 3 affected by the periodical oscillatory phenomenon. The exercise becomes a sort of competition with the dampening of the oscillatory phenomenon, which propagates alternately to both sides of the board 3, capturing the attention and the concentration of the athlete who does the exercise, in order to achieve or maintain his/her proprioceptive capacities at an efficient level.

In one particular embodiment of the invention, an adjustment (to the ground) of the parallelism of the board 3 is provided, intervening on two different components of the telescopic belt: the ends 14' and 14"" of the belt and the arrangement of the supporting board 3.

In particular, pairs of elements 5, 26 are provided at each end, for insertion and locking one inside the other. In such embodiment, elements similar to strips of tape are provided, which are sewn in series at predetermined progressive distances from each end. These seams are open on both opposite sides and through them a snap-hook- like fastening element 26 is inserted each time.

Right in the final section of the tape's end a ring 5 - or a rigid element anyway closed with a semi-elliptical, for example, profile - is provided and its function is to be inserted in the snap-hook 26 to lock the ends 14 of the belt 1 on the table 36. Basically, in relation to the different distance from the end of the belt, through which the insertion ring/snap-hook is carried out, different positioning heights of the board 3 in relation to the ground will result.

As shown in Figure 8A - which refers to the initial phase of assembling and adjusting the tension to the flexible belt - the terminal part 14 of the belt can be wound several times around the support board 36 until reaching the desired matching between a' and a", b' and b", c' and c" ... between the ring 5 and the snap-hook 26 (not visible in Fig. 8 A, but only in Fig. 1). In practice, the belt 1 is wound once or several times, starting from a rough measure, depending on the height of the board 3 from the ground to be obtained. Once the winding is properly tensioned on one side and the other of the two end sections 14', 14" of the belt 1, respectively, a balanced positioning of the board is already obtained, since the seams a', b', c'...on one end correspond perfectly (distance from the termination of the band) to the seams a", b", c" ... on the other end of the band.

However, this positioning constitutes a rough balancing of the support board 3. In order to optimize the parallelism with the ground and obtain a perfectly horizontal positioning, methods of fine adjustment have been provided, and a user can activate them during his workout. For the best performance of the exercise, it is particularly important the type of insertion of the board 3 in the two elastic pockets 2. Obviously, the optimum condition to perform each exercise is the one corresponding to the board 3, horizontally arranged, being perfectly parallel to the ground. If a belt 1 is used without board, automatically the foot is placed in the lowest central point of the belt, even in case of an unbalanced and dissymmetric positioning of the end sections 14', 14" of the belt 1. On the other hand, if the board 3 interposes with a dissymmetric starting arrangement of the terminations 14' and 14", a section of the belt 1 falls lower than the other, giving rise to a not perfectly parallel positioning of the board in relation to the ground.

The comprehensive solution to this kind of problem is the insertion of the board 3 in the pockets 2 made of an elastic material, with a minimum play provided on one side and on the other of these pockets 2', 2"; 2"', 2 ^1V ; 2 ^V ; 2 ^V1 , opposed to each other. As shown in Figure 8 A, the truncated cone profile of the two tabs 1 Γ, 1 1 " inserts in the two pockets 2', 2" leaving a minimum gap / clearance 30', 30" of 1 -2 cm, respectively, at the bottom of both pockets. The stability of the board 3 in the two pockets 2 is ensured by the close interfacing between the two tabs 11 ', 11 " and the pockets 2', 2"; 2"', 2 ^iv ; 2 ^V ; 2 ^vi , made of elastic material.

The athlete who is about to perform an exercise puts one foot on the board 3 and, if he notes an unwanted slope in the board, he arranges for a rebalancing. In practice, facilitated by the truncated cone profile, he forces the board into the pocket 2 where he notices that the belt falls lower. In this way, eliminating the gap / clearance 30, the section of belt that hangs, 1 ' or 1 ", which is longer than the other, is shortened.

In order to facilitate a perfectly horizontal configuration, a visible and closed at both ends little tube, half filled with fluid, is placed on the board 3. It is arranged so as to be transversally visible to the user. In practice it is provided a simple tool similar to a level, for monitoring the horizontal configuration through the position of a bubble of air in the half filled little tube.

The process of fine adjustment of the board-ground parallelism may be obtained by other types of boards and related couplings with the belt. When the board 3 is constituted by two sections (an upper and a lower one) that are structured as a sandwich on the belt 1, forming a sort of vice, the unity and stability of the apparatus is granted by at least one pair of locking vice, or by spring mechanisms such as lever lock clamps - like in the ski boots - that allow to lock the upper to the lower section by locking the belt 1 there, in the middle. Even in this solution, the fine adjustment may be performed immediately, by loosening the clamps and sliding to the left or right the whole upper/lower section of the belt.

The little tube, half filled with fluid, allows to assess the degree of parallelism with respect to the ground.

Industrial Applicability

The typology of exercises performable through the apparatus according to the invention is extremely varied.

It is important to emphasize that this solution offers the possibility to perform not only a front/rear movement but also a more or less complete rotational movement, with solicitations spatially explicating. It is also clear that in the embodiments according to the invention, compared to the solution applied in TRX, since the two locking points on the belt are corresponding to the ends of the board 3, the possibility of the belt to be wound around itself is limited. In this way, the belt remains rigid and does not twist/spirally winds around itself, even in the case of complex exercises.

Further embodiments of the invention employing software applications based on the use of accelerometers or sensors detecting the more or less abrupt movements underwent by the belt 1 during the exercise. These measurements are compared with the planned exercise and/or the functional recovery programs using a central data- processing unit. Basically, the collected data are transmitted to a computer which analyses and compares them, in real time, to the reference parameters, pre-configured for a particular kinesthetic recovery program.

Interactively, the communications of the computer that, in a visual (graphic or textual) mode or in a sonic mode, inform the user of the correspondence between the exercises being performed and the planned program are established. To implement this feature one or more acceleration sensors are enough; they are located on the belt 1, measuring the effective performance of the exercises in real time.

This type of detection provides also a medium and long term recording about the effective correspondence between the performed and the assigned exercises, evaluating the benefit drawn by the athlete.