BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

THIS invention relates to an exercise apparatus and more particularly but not exclusively, to a leg exercising arrangement incorporating an upper body work out arrangement.

Many different exercise apparatuses are known in the trade. One popular group of exercising apparatuses is leg exercising apparatuses. A popular type of leg exercising apparatus is a stationary exercising bicycle, which comes in many different forms, such as upright bicycles, recumbent bicycles and indoor cycling bicycles which are used in so-called spinning sessions. For the purposes of interpreting this specification the term exercising bicycle should be interpreted to encompass any stationary exercising apparatus that includes a saddle or seat and pedals that can be engaged whilst sitting on the saddle or seat. The exercise bike may also include some form of handlebar arrangement.

Most exercise bicycles provide a mechanism for applying resistance to the pedals which increases the intensity of the exercise. However, the upper body of a user remains largely unchallenged, which render existing exercising bicycles unfit for use in a full body workout.

It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide an exercising apparatus that will, at least partially, alleviate the above disadvantages.

It is also an object of the invention to provide an exercising apparatus which will be a useful alternative to existing exercising apparatuses, and in particular exercising bicycles.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the invention there is provided an exercise apparatus including:

a leg exercising arrangement comprising a seat and pedals mounted on a frame; and

an upper body exercising arrangement which is also secured to the frame;

characterized in that the upper body exercising arrangement includes at least one resistive element terminating in one or more handle formation that can in use be engaged by a user sitting on the seat of the leg exercising arrangement. The resistive element may be in the form of an elongate resilient chord that is anchored relative to the frame.

In another embodiment, the resistive element may include a cable and weight arrangement.

There is provided for the leg exercising arrangement to be in the form of a bicycle arrangement.

There is provided for the resistive element to be anchored relative to the frame of the bicycle arrangement by way of an anchoring structure.

The anchoring structure may be in the form of an anchoring beam that is secured to the frame of the bicycle arrangement, with the resistive element engaging at least an end zone of the anchoring beam.

The anchoring beam is preferably located towards a rear end of the frame.

There is provided for the anchoring beam to be substantially T-shaped, with a central, operatively vertical, element of the T-shaped beam being secured to the frame of the bicycle arrangement, and two sideways extending arms of the T-shaped beam defining anchoring points or engagement points for the resistive elements.

In one embodiment there is provided for the upper body exercising arrangement to include two resistive elements in the form of resilient chords, with one end of each chord being secured to an anchoring point of the beam.

In another embodiment there is provided for the upper body exercising arrangement to include a single resistive element that engages pulleys or apertures provided at the anchoring points of the beam, without the resistive elements therefore being fixedly secured to the anchoring points.

There is provided for the resistive element to extend between and beyond the two anchoring points of the anchoring beam.

In this embodiment a central pulley may be provided on the central element of the anchoring beam in order to increase an effective stroke of the upper body exercising apparatus.

The central pulley provided on the central element of the anchoring beam may be adjustable relative to the central element of the anchoring beam in order for the position of the pulley relative to the anchoring beam to be adjustable.

The anchoring beam may be pivotable relative to the frame, and may be securable in a desired position relative to the bicycle arrangement in order to adjust an effective anchoring point of the resistive element.

The anchoring beam may include a telescopic section which enables the effective anchoring point of the resistive element to be adjustable.

The telescopic section is preferably part of the central element of the anchoring beam.

There is provided for the exercising apparatus to include a set of resilient chords of different elasticity.

There is provided for more than one set of resilient elements to be secured to the exercising apparatus at the same time. There is also provided for the saddle of the exercising apparatus to include a backrest.

Preferably, the bicycle arrangement of the exercising apparatus will be that of a recumbent exercise bicycle.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Two embodiments of the invention are described by way of non-limiting examples, and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a side view of the exercising apparatus in accordance with one embodiment of the invention;

Figure 2 is rear perspective view of the exercising apparatus of Figure

1 , in particular showing the anchoring structure;

Figure 3 is a side view of the exercising apparatus in accordance with another embodiment of the invention; and

Figure 4 is a rear view of the anchoring structure used in the exercising apparatus of Figure 3.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION

Referring to the drawings, in which like numerals indicate like features, a non-limiting example of an exercise apparatus in accordance with the invention is generally indicated by reference numeral 10.

The exercise apparatus 10 comprises an exercise bicycle including an upper body exercising arrangement 20. The exercise bicycle may for example be in the form of an upright bicycle (Figure 1), recumbent bicycle (Figure 3) or an indoor cycling bicycle (not shown).

In the embodiment shown in Figures 1 and 2, the exercise bicycle is of the so-called X-bike configuration, being a bicycle having an X-shaped frame that can pivot at an intersection of two frame elements in order to be displaceable between an operative position (as shown in Figure 1) and a collapsed, stowage position.

The exercise bicycle includes a frame 11 , which may be of many different configurations, but in this particular embodiment is in the form of an X- frame as described above. A seat 12 (for example a saddle) is secured to one end of the frame 11 , and in this embodiment also includes a backrest 13 which assists in providing stability to the user when the upper body exercising arrangement is used. An opposing end of the frame 11 terminates in a handle arrangement 14, which can be used by the user when not utilizing the upper body exercising arrangement 20. A pedaling arrangement 15 is integrated with the frame 11.

In the embodiment shown in Figures 3 and 4, a recumbent bicycle is used instead of an upright bicycle. This type of training apparatus also includes a frame 11 and a seat 12 with a backrest 13. Due to the recumbent configuration of the exercising apparatus 10, and hence the body position of a user, the handle arrangement 14 in this particular configuration extends from a region of the frame 11 in the proximity of the seat 12.

These features described above are all known in the art, and the detail design and configuration thereof are therefore neither limiting nor of particular importance insofar as the invention is concerned.

The exercising apparatus 10 includes an upper body exercising arrangement 20 which allows the user to exercise his or her upper body while pedaling. The upper body exercising arrangement 20 takes the form of one or more resistive elements 21 that terminate in handling formations 22 which can be displaced by the user while seated on the exercising apparatus.

The upper body exercising arrangement 20 can comprise a single resistive element that is configured to extend about a plurality of pulleys (33, 34) in order for the opposite ends that terminate in the handling formations 22 in use to be located adjacent a user. This is the configuration shown and described in the specific embodiments of Figures 1 to 4. However, provision is also made for one end of a resistive element to be secured to the frame of the exercising apparatus, and for the opposite end that terminates in a handling formation 22 in use to be located adjacent a user. In this case, an independent resistive element will be located on each lateral side of the frame of the bicycle arrangement. The two resistive elements will therefore not be linked, but will be independently secured to the frame.

Note that, even in the case where a single resistive element is used, one can still have more than one set of resistive elements of varying elasticity, with only one of the elements being used at the time. The embodiment shown in Figures 3 and 4 shows an example where two of the continuous resistive elements are used.

In the embodiment shown in Figures 1 and 2, a single resistive element in the form of an elongate resilient chord 21 is used. The two opposite ends of the resistive element 21 terminate in handling formations 22, while a proximal zone of the resistive element engages an anchoring structure 30 thus allowing the resistive element to be longitudinally displaceable while still remaining anchored to the anchoring structure, and hence the exercising apparatus.

The anchoring structure 30 comprises a generally T-shaped anchoring and supporting beam comprising a central element 31 and two sideways extending arms 32 extending from an end of the central element 31. A free end 31.1 of the central element 31 is pivotably connected to the frame 11 of the exercising apparatus 10. A stay mechanism 35 is provided for securing the beam in a selected position relative to the frame 11. This enables an effective anchoring point of the resistive element(s) 21 to be adjustable, which in turns enables the upper body exercising arrangement 20 to be used for a variety of exercises due to the angle of the resistive elements relative the user being adjustable.

As mentioned above, it is foreseen that two separate resistive elements in the form of discrete elastic chords may be used, but this will have the drawback of the stroke of each element being limited, and it will also not be ideal for unilateral arm movement. Although this arrangement still falls within the scope of the invention, in a preferred embodiment (shown in the figures) a single resistive element is used in combination with the T-shaped supporting beam 30. In this embodiment side pulleys 33 (alternatively apertures) are provided at the ends of the sideways extending arms 32, and allows the resistive elements to be slideably anchored relative to the arms 32. Even though the exact configuration may vary, the common denominator is that the resistive elements will be slideably displaceable relative to the arms 32 irrespective of the position of the T-shaped anchoring beam 30. It may for example make sense to provide side pulleys 33 at the very ends of the two opposing arms 32, but various other configurations, such as the provisions of apertures and /or sleeves, may suffice.

A further base pulley 34 is provided on an operatively upper end of the T- shaped anchoring beam 30, and more particularly on the central element 31 of the anchoring beam 30. The resistive element 21 is therefore allowed to slide freely through the pulleys, and in use the user manually anchors the one end of the resistive element relative to the other end, irrespective of the resistive elements being used for unilateral or bilateral arm movement. This configuration also increases the stroke of the resistive element.

The anchoring structure 30 shown in Figures 3 and 4 is conceptually similar to that described above, and the description of the anchoring structure 30 of Figures 1 and 2 also applies to the anchoring structure of Figures 3 and 4. There are a few differences resulting from the fact that the anchoring structure 30 is mounted on the back of a recumbent bicycle arrangement, including the use of a different stay arrangement 35, for example the indexing disc shown in Figure 3, to adjust the position of the anchoring structure 30 relative to the frame.

Further features shown in Figure 3 and 4, but which are equally applicable to the embodiment shown in Figures 1 and 2, include the provision of a telescopic supporting frame and the provision of a displaceable pulley(s). More particularly, a central element 31 of the anchoring beam 30 may include first 31.2 and a second 3.13 tubular beams, with one of the beams configured and dimensioned slidingly to fit inside the other of the beams. This will enable the effective length of the anchoring beam 30 to be adjustable, which will in turn enable the exercise apparatus to be adjustable for use for persons of different height and size. There is also provided for the pulley 34 to be slideably displaceable relative to the central element 31 , and more particularly for the pulley 34 to be displaceable inside a slot or groove 31.4 provided in the central element 31. The pulley can then be secured in a desired position in order to vary the effective length or tension of the resistive element(s). It should be noted that the resistive element(s) can also be removed from the pulley altogether in order further to reduce the tension of the resistive element, and simultaneously to increase the effective length of the resistive element.

It will be appreciated that the above are only two embodiments of the invention and that there may be many variations without departing from the spirit and/or the scope of the invention.