Core exercising machine

Abstract

A collapsible exercise machine for strengthening the core muscles (transverse abdominal, internal obliques, external obliques, rectus abdominis, and erector spinae) includes a frame mounted on a base on which a user sits and manipulates an upstanding lever arm. A seat is convertible between two differently-angled positions for back extension or abdominal exercises. The lever arm rotates a curved tube having a plurality of force adjustment holes. The tube passes through a frame at the upper end of a gas spring, and engaging an adjustment pin on the frame with different adjustment holes changes the amount of resistance. The entire frame above the base can be vertically adjusted to accommodate different sizes of user without altering the relative position between the seat (and user's hips) and the axis of rotation of the lever arm thus not affecting/changing the designated resistance between users of different heights (resistance is affected when the lever arm is lengthened). The connection between the frame and the base enables the unit to be collapsed to a profile small enough to fit under a bed.

Description

RELATED APPLICATION[0001]The present application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119 to U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61 / 806,319, filed Mar. 28, 2013.FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0002]The present invention is directed to a collapsible resistance-based machine for exercising the core muscles of the body.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0003]With widespread awareness of its significant health benefits, regular exercise including progressive resistance strength training has become a matter of high priority to many members of the general public. Progressive resistance strength training is a type of strength training that uses free weights, exercise weight stack machines, compressed air (pneumatics), hydraulic resistance, elastic / rubber bands and gas springs as resistance to strengthen muscles. The key to this type of exercise is adjusting the resistance as the person progresses. A major obstacle faced by most in following a progressive resistance strength training program is the lack of r...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0008]The present application provides an exercise machine for strengthening the core muscles of the body, which consists mostly of the abdominal (transverse abdominal, internal obliques, external obliques, and rectus abdominis) and erector spinae muscles of the back. The machine has a relatively elongated base, and is shaped like an upside down “T” (with the base as the top of the “T”). The machine is collapsible for storage under a bed and shipping. The angle of the top vertical bar can be adjusted forward and backward by the user. The top vertical bar can be adjusted to different angles to target the various muscles of the core, to safely limit flexion or extension if needed to avoid discomfort, and it allows for a slimmer profile when collapsing the unit so that it can be stored under a bed or shipped. The top vertical bar can also be adjusted to properly isolate the desired muscles for a given exercise or limit range of motion to avoid a painful position for the user. The height of the vertical bar can be adjusted to the height of the user's torso. There may also be a foot rest so that the height can be adjusted to match the user's leg length.

Problems solved by technology

A major obstacle faced by most in following a progressive resistance strength training program is the lack of readily accessible equipment that enable them to exercise different portions of the body at home.

These muscles are antagonistic in that they oppose the movement of one another.

Those machines, however, typically include complex arrangements of mechanical parts and require complicated series of adjustments to reconfigure the machine for different exercises.

Where such complexity is not present, the machines are either undesirably limiting in the number of different exercises that may be performed on them, don't allow for any significant resistance, don't offer a wide range of resistance or are physically of such substantial mass and dimensional extent that they may be fully utilized only in certain wide-open areas of a given home, and are hardly movable, let alone portable.

Known exercise machines provide weights or a reaction force as a source of resistance (weights are heavy and expensive).

Rubber elements used as stretchable resistance bands have been widely used to oppose motion of certain mechanisms in an exercise machine (the problem with a stretchable band is that the resistance greatly increases as the band stretches and they tend to dry out and break).

Furthermore, the net force on the piston is out of the cylinder because the piston rod within the cylinder takes up space and thus there is a pressure differential across the piston.

Images