Apparatus for practising balance

Abstract

An apparatus for practising balance and improving ankle stability comprises a plurality of elongate spacers 3-5 that may be stacked, the spacers each comprise an upper face, a lower face and an interm

Description

The present invention relates to apparatus for practising balance, improving ankle stability, and strengthening exercises, in particular apparatus for a user to practise standing upon; more particularly but not exclusively apparatus for training balance in context of ice skating. Background and Prior Art In many societies there is an increasing awareness of the importance of balance, in maintaining and demonstrating physical abilities and general wellbeing. Also, many people in many societies enjoy partaking in sports and activities that improve and test balance of participants. For example, many people enjoy ice skating, or similar bladed activities, such as rollerblading. Spending time doing ice skating can be extremely beneficial for balance skills. It can be difficult to practise ice skating, without access to ice, and so it can be difficult to accommodate to the balancing skills needed. This is equally true for people aiming to practice their balancing skills for other purposes. Summary of the Invention According to the present invention there is provided apparatus for practising balance and improving ankle stability, comprising: a plurality of elongate spacers, the spacers each comprising an upper face, a lower face and an intermediate body, each face providing a part of a securement means; and a rigid elongate top plate arranged accept a foot; wherein the spacers provide a plurality of widths of upper face. In some embodiments of the apparatus the spacers comprise a body of resiliently deformable material. In this way a user of the apparatus will place weight on the spacers by standing thereon, or more particularly on the top plate, and the spacers will move and deform to provide an unsure and variable balance point in use, increasing balance and strength training. In this way the device of the present invention may improve balance and improve ankle stability and help users who lack ankle stability which makes them prone to lose balance, wherein there are at least 13 muscles crossing the ankle joint which get activated when using the apparatus, strengthening all of them as the user practices. In addition or the alternative a rotating device may be used as the surface on which the spacers and top plate are placed, wherein the rotatory nature of the device may allow the user to spin on the apparatus, thereby spinning about the axis of the device and practising a three turns move or similar ice skating training. The user may be envisaged to choose whether to place the spinning device down to allow whether to train with or without the spinning motion and then place down the desired number of spacers to adjust difficulty and then begin to train on edges. In some embodiments of the apparatus the apparatus comprises hook and loop securement means, such as Velcro (RTM), which may comprise multiple pads on one face or both. In some embodiments of the apparatus the apparatus comprises a plurality of mating securement pads. In this way the pads may ensure that the spacers are properly and preferably aligned so as to ensure that a replicable exercise regime may be followed and injury minimised. In other embodiments further variation in spacer alignment and balance options may be provided by single pads extending across the spacer, allowing a plurality of different arrangements in use. In a preferred embodiment of the device three spaced apart pads may be used for securement means. When practicing ice skating the centre of gravity is always somewhere over the extension of the rocker of the blade (this comprises a specific area along the blade, therefore the use of the 3 individual pads) so as to replicate where the centre of gravity of the user is place within that limited small space. This avoids allowing a user to end up positioning their centre of gravity in dangerous places over the rotatory device, most likely to end up in a fall and injuries. It may be envisaged that a particular placement of the 3 pads allows for the user to be able to practice in similar way placing their centre of gravity over the length of what would be the rocker on the blade of a real ice skate. In some embodiments of the apparatus the apparatus comprises ferromagnetic securement means in addition or the alternative. In some embodiments of the apparatus the top plate is rigid, so as to allow for deformation and variation in the balance, but not at point of contact with the user’s foot, thereby better replicating balancing requirements necessary in ice skating or similar. In some embodiments of the apparatus the top plate has a resiliently deformable upper surface to provide greater friction for the user’s foot or shoe. In some embodiments of the apparatus the top plate has a raised and lowered upper surface to provide greater friction for tine user’s foot or shoe. In some embodiments of the apparatus the top plate provides a part of the securement means, such that the top plate is held in place on the spacers. It may be envisaged that the top plate may be secured directly to the upper surface of the device in some usages, for example so as to practise spinning. In some embodiments of the apparatus the spacers vary by 4-5mm width. In some embodiments of the apparatus the spacers vary by 6-10mm length. According to a farther aspect of the present invention there is provided a plurality of spacers for apparatus according to any of the preceding claims, such spacers comprising an upper face and a lower face, wherein the lower face comprises a securement means to secure to a structure below the spacer, and the upper face is arranged to be stood upon, wherein the plurality of spacers comprise a plurality of widths of upper face. According to a further aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of balance and strength training for ice skaters, comprising apparatus substantially as described herein. A preferred embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example only and with reference to the Figures in which: Brief Description of Figures Figure 1 shows an isometric view of an embodiment of the apparatus according to the present invention, comprising a rotary device; Figure 2 shows a reverse isometric view of the embodiment of the apparatus shown in Figure 1; Figure 3 shows an exploded isometric view of the embodiment of the apparatus shown in Figure 1; Figure 4 shows a reverse exploded isometric view of the embodiment of the apparatus shown in Figure 1; Figure 5 shows a reverse exploded isometric view of the embodiment of the apparatus as shown in Figure 1; Figure 6 shows a reverse isometric view of the embodiment of the apparatus shown in Figure 1, without the rotatory device; Figure 7 shows an isometric view of the apparatus as shown in Figure 6. and Figures 8 show diagrammatic views of the embodiment of the apparatus shown in Figure 1. Detailed Description of Figures With reference to the figures there is shown embodiments of apparatus for practising balance 99,199, which may comprise a rotating device 100 with an upper surface arranged to accept a plurality of spacers 3,4,5, such spacers each comprising an upper face and a lower face to either side of a body, wherein the lower face in use comprises a securement means 41 to secure to a structure below the spacer, and a top plate 1 which is arranged to be stood upon, wherein the plurality of spacers comprise a plurality of widths of upper face. In this way the device may be used for spinning balance exercises, and the rotating device may be independently available or it may be envisaged that the spacers may be placed directly on the ground or hard surface for use, without the rotating device. In particular reference to the pictured embodiment of the apparatus in Figure 6, the embodiment 99 comprises three spacers 2,4,5, which have three stepped increases in planar dimensions. The spacers 99 are substantially rectangular, having rounded comers, and they vary in dimension by 5-15mm in width and 7.5-10mm in length, being 90mm X 315mm (3), 80mmm X 300mm (4) and 75mm X 295mm (5). Each of the spacers is 15mm deep. The material of the body is a firm foam that provides slight wobble when a user is stood on the top plate, to help them improve their balance. The spacers can therefore be stacked one upon the other in order to provide a narrower or smaller lower face according to user preference, wherein as shown in the pictured embodiment the more spacers used the narrower the lower face of the stack. The spacers all share a hook and loop securement means, such as Velcro (RTM), having hook pads 13 on an upper face and loop pads 41 on a lower face, or viceversa. Further embodiments may use ferromagnetism in addition or the alternative. The rotatory device is similar to a lazy-susan comprising an upper surface 2 arranged to rotate on a lower tray 6. The upper surface of the rotatory device further includes three mating hook or loop pads 13. The apparatus may be acquired with or without inclusion of the rotatory device. The lower surface of the top plate 1 further includes mating loop or hook, comprising three spaced pads 41, as shown in Figure 5, having dimensions and spacing as shown in Figures 8. The location of the 3 pads is one right in the middle of each foam, on top and bellow, and the other two positioned within 5cm to the middle one, again same top and below and each pad measures 4cm x 6.5cm. The three pads restrict the length of the possible attachment of the foams when placed over the rotatory device in order for the user to always have their centre of gravity over what would be the length of the rocker on a real ice skate. In this way the spacer or spacers can then be secured to the device, and the top plate secured thereover, so as to provide a surface for the user’s foot to balance upon. Accordingly the user can also choose to have a wider lower face by using fewer spacers. The height achieved will also be lower. The top plate 1 may be formed in a rigid material such as wood, aluminium or hard plastic like acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS). The upper surface of the top plate may be provided with an enhanced friction surface, for example a raised and lowered surface such as abrasive paper, or resiliently deformable material such as rubber coating. This top plate 1 is a fixed size, being longer and wider than the longest and widest of the three spacers 3,4,5. In this way a user can choose to use a width at the lower face that suits their training requirements, whereas the uppermost face, being that of the top plate, is always the same width and length. The user can then adjust the height and difficulty of the top plate to help train balance and spinning, more specifically working on edges and improving their ‘3 turns’. The spacers are resiliently deformable material such as a closed-cellular structure foam or similar, whereby the top plate 1 under the user’s weight will cause the spacers to deform in use, thereby ensuring that the balance training of the user is enhanced as the user will need to accommodate the spacers’ deformation. The user may also be enabled to place the top plate on top of single spacer, which may be any one of the three sizes, thereby providing balance training at a lower height. Alternatively use of three spacers, with the smallest spacer at the bottom, provides height and a small footprint, thereby demanding greater balance from the user. The rotatory device comprises a standard bearing on a lower tray 6, within which an upper plate 2 rotates, the upper plate providing the securement means 13. The invention has been described by way of examples only and it will be appreciated that variation may be made to the above-mentioned embodiments without departing from the scope of protection as defined by the claims.

Claims

1. Apparatus for practising balance and improving ankle stability, comprising: a plurality of elongate spacers, the spacers each comprising an upper face, a lower face and an intermediate body, each face providing a part of a securement means; and a rigid elongate top plate arranged accept a foot; wherein the spacers provide a plurality of widths of upper face.

2. Apparatus for practising balance and improving ankle stability according to claim 1 wherein the spacers comprise a body of resiliently deformable material.

3. Apparatus for practising balance and improving ankle stability according to claim 1 or 2 comprising hook and loop securement means.

4. Apparatus for practising balance and improving ankle stability according to any preceding claim comprising a plurality of mating securement pads.

5. Apparatus for practising balance and improving ankle stability according to any preceding claim comprising ferromagnetic securement means.

6. Apparatus for practising balance and improving ankle stability according to any preceding claim wherein the top plate is rigid.

7. Apparatus for practising balance and improving ankle stability according to claim 5 wherein the top plate has a resiliently deformable upper surface.

8. Apparatus for practising balance and improving ankle stability according to claim 5 or 6 wherein the top plate has a raised and lowered upper surface.

9. Apparatus for practising balance and improving ankle stability according to any preceding claim wherein the top plate has a part of the securement means.

10. Apparatus for practising balance and improving ankle stability according to any preceding claim wherein the spacers vary by 5-15mm width.

11. Apparatus for practising balance and improving ankle stability according to any preceding claim wherein the spacers vary by 7.5-10mm length.

12. Apparatus for practising balance and improving ankle stability according to any preceding claim wherein the securement means comprises three hook or loop pads.

13. Apparatus for practising balance and improving ankle stability according to claim 12 wherein the securement means comprises rectangular pads spaced apart along the spacer longitudinal axis.

14. Apparatus for practising balance and improving ankle stability according to claim 12 or 13 wherein the pads are spaced apart by 5cm.

15. Apparatus for practising balance and improving ankle stability according to claim 12, 13 or 14 wherein the pads are 4cm wide.

16. Apparatus for practising balance and improving ankle stability according to any of claims 12 to 15 wherein the pads are 6.5cm long.

17. Apparatus for practising balance and improving ankle stability, comprising: a rotating device with a securement means; a plurality of elongate spacers, the spacers each comprising an upper face, a lower face and an intermediate body, each face providing a part of the securement means; and an elongate top plate arranged accept a foot; wherein the spacers provide a plurality of widths of upper face.

18. A rotating device for an apparatus according to claim 17.

19. A method of balance training for ice skaters, comprising apparatus according to any of the preceding claims 1 to 1720. A method of balance training for improving ankle stability, comprising apparatus according to any of the preceding claims 1 to 11.10

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