Method and apparatus for land and aquatic exercise

Abstract

An aquatic exercise tool for use with a user's body part includes a strip of elastomeric material with an engagement area spaced from and proximate one end. The engagement area defines an opening with a rest perimeter, and the engagement area has an elasticity sufficient to stretch the opening from the rest perimeter to a larger perimeter sufficient to receive the body part when it is inserted with a minimum predetermined force. When the opening is stretched above the rest perimeter, the engagement area exerts a tightening force into the opening to tighten against the body part. A method includes inserting the body part into the opening, fixing the other end of the strip to an anchor, and stretching the strip with the body part away from the anchor while the user is at least partially submerged in water.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0001]Aquatic exercise, such as swimming and water aerobics, is well known for providing excellent resistance to normal movements due to the increased viscosity of water over air. Exercise in water is also less damaging to joints than is exercise on land. This is because normal human buoyancy creates a relative weightlessness in water, reducing both the effect of gravity and the shock absorbed by the body when pushing against the ground.[0002]Despite all of the benefits of aquatic exercise, however, traditional fitness equipment is generally unsuitable in water-based settings. Well-known tools like resistance bands, for example, that provide resistance for various muscles when pulled in opposite directions, can easily slip from the hand or foot when underwater, rendering them unusable. Even when handles are attached to the resistance bands, they may result in the junction between the bands and the handles slipping relative to each other or the handles slip...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The patent describes an exercise apparatus that can be used with different body parts, such as hands, feet, and wrists. The apparatus has a planar strip of elastomeric material with an engagement area that can stretch to accommodate different body parts. The engagement area has a minimum perimeter and exerts a tightening force to secure the body part in place. The apparatus can be used in water and can be easily fixed to an anchor or a second body part. The technical effects of the invention include providing a versatile and effective tool for aquatic exercise and promoting muscle strength and flexibility.

Problems solved by technology

This is because normal human buoyancy creates a relative weightlessness in water, reducing both the effect of gravity and the shock absorbed by the body when pushing against the ground.

Despite all of the benefits of aquatic exercise, however, traditional fitness equipment is generally unsuitable in water-based settings.

Well-known tools like resistance bands, for example, that provide resistance for various muscles when pulled in opposite directions, can easily slip from the hand or foot when underwater, rendering them unusable.

Even when handles are attached to the resistance bands, they may result in the junction between the bands and the handles slipping relative to each other or the handles slipping from the hands when in water.

Although aquatic exercise raises these particular problems due to slippery conditions and drag presented by water, common resistance bands on land may also slip off the hand or foot.

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