GB2388049A

GB2388049A - Weight exercise bag

Info

Publication number: GB2388049A
Application number: GB0210208A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Mark James Brian Bellamy
Original assignee: PERFORMANCE TECHNOLOGY Ltd
Current assignee: PERFORMANCE TECHNOLOGY Ltd
Priority date: 2002-05-03
Filing date: 2002-05-03
Publication date: 2003-11-05
Also published as: EP1501611A1; GB0210208D0; DE60319814D1; US20050187075A1; EP1501611B1; WO2003092823A1; ATE389441T1; AU2003233866A1

Abstract

A weight is disclosed for use in performing physical training exercises. The weight comprises an elongate cylindrical flexible-walled bag 10 filled with a flowable solid and having at least two handles 14 projecting from the cylindrical surface of the bag. The flowable solid may be gravel having a diameter in the range of 2mm to 10mm. The bag may have an outer skin made of leather or a plastics material and a separate inner skin formed of a polypropylene fabric. The outer skin may be lined with a padding.

Description

PHYSICAL TRAINING EQUIPMENT

The present invention relates to equipment for use in performing physical training exercises.

It is known to exercise by lifting weights usually constructed as barbells consisting of metal disks secured to a metal bar. The present invention seeks to provide a weight for use in performing physical exercises that is a both safer and more versatile than conventional weights.

According to the present invention, there is provided a weight for use in performing physical training exercises, comprising an elongate cylindrical flexible-walled bag IS filled with a flowable solid and having at least two handles projecting from the cylindrical surface of the bag.

The flowable solid is preferably pea gravel, which comprises rounded particles having a maximum diameter of to around 10 mm. The flowable solid may comprise less coarse material with a particle size as small as 2 mm. Finer materials would prove difficult to contain effectively within the bag.

25 The packing density of the flowable solid within the bag should be such that the bag can flex only to a limited degree in planes containing the longitudinal axis of the bag. Preferably, the maximum possible lateral movement of one end of the bag away from the axis of the bag while the so other end of the bag is held stationary is less than one tenth of the length of the bag.

The bag is preferably also padded. The thickness of the padding is preferably such as to permit deformation of the 35 surface of the bag by 2 to 5 mm. The padding softens impact with the bag and allows the bag to be carried comfortably across the shoulders of the user.

- 2 - When exercising with conventional barbells, exercises are designed to work on one or only a few muscles in one movement of one plane of movement. If a bag of the invention 5 is used in the same way as conventional dumbbells, the flexibility of the bag and movement of the handles relative to the bag result in the user having to use many more different muscles to control the movement of the bag.

lo The bag of the invention can additionally be used to perform many exercises that are not safe or comfortable with dumbbells. For example, the bag can be carried across the shoulders while performing such exercises as jumping, running, climbing up and down stairs, bending forwards, 15 bending sideways and rotating about the hip.

The padding of the bag also permits it to be thrown and caught safely in the same way as a medicine ball.

go The bag may have handles that extend either parallel to its axis or circumferentially. In the latter case, it is 2 preferred that the handles form part of a continuous web that passes round the entire circumference of the bag to provide additional strength and place less reliance on the 25 stitching of the handles to the material of the bag.

Preferably, the bag is of several skins. The inner skin is conveniently a polypropylene fabric as commonly used for sacks used to package and store heavy building materials so such as sand and gravel. Such a fabric is inexpensive and well suited to the task of containing the flowable solid.

The outer skin may suitably be formed of a plastics material or of leather. Between the two skins, a compressible layer may be used to provide the desired padding. The compressible as layer may be a felt or a closed cell foam.

- 3 To permit the bag to be filled with the flowable solid, it is preferred to provide the outer skin with an opening having a resealable fastener, such as a zip fastener, a lace fastener or Velcro.

The opening may extend parallel to the axis of the bag or circumferentially. As a further alternative, the bag may be formed with a removable end cap that is held in position by means of a suitable resealable fastener.

The invention will now be described further, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a first bag, 15 embodying the invention, Figure 2 is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of the invention, and! Figure 2 is a transverse section through the bag of a still further embodiment of the invention.

20; The exercise bag 10 shown in Figure 1 has an outer casing 12 made of leather on to which are sewn two handles 14. The casing has an opening 16 closed by a resealable fastener, such as a zip or Velcro, through which the bag is 25 filled with a flowable solid, preferably pea gravel. As will be described in further detail by reference to Figure 3, the bag 10 may have an inner casing or bladder for increased strength and better containment of the Plowable solid.

so The bag 20 of Figure 2 has an outer casing 22 and differs from the bag of Figure 1 in two respects. First, the handles 24 extend axially rather than circumferentially and secondly, in place of an opening, the bag 20 had a removable end cap 28 attached to the body of the bag by a resealable; Is fastener.

- 4 The size of an exercise bag will of course depend on the desired weight and the diameter of the bag can be increased as necessary to accommodate greater quantities of! the pea gravel. The length of the bag should preferably be 5 greater than 600 cm in order afford sufficient space for two handles and less than 1200 cm to avoid it becoming unwieldy.

The packing density of the pea gravel is important because the bag should be slightly bendable but should not lo sag in the middle under the weight of the pea gravel. It is preferred that the maximum sag at the centre of the bag when it is supported by its ends should not exceed 5% of the length of the bag. Thus it should be possible to raise one end of the bag when lying on a horizontal surface by a 5 distance equal only to about one tenth of the length of the bag before its opposite end commences to tilt. Thus the bag will be able to bend sufficiently to rest on a user's shoulders without applying pressure directly on the spine.

so The flexibility of the bag and the fact that the handles can flex relative to the bag have the effect that its centre of gravity will move around as it is lifted and call upon the user to use a larger range of muscles to control the movement.

25: Figure 3 shows a section through an alternative embodiment of the invention. The bag 30 of Figure 3 has an outer casing 32 made of leather or a suitable plastics material. The outer casing is lined with a padding 36 which so is preferably resilient a close cell foam. The bag 30 has an inner skin 40 made of a woven polypropylene fabric, such as used in the building trade to carry sand, and the inner skin is filled with pea gravel in which the particle size is about 1 cm. It is possible to use finer material in addition as to or instead of the coarse pea gravel but if the particle size is too small it may bleed out of the bag. The use of

( much larger particles, on the other hand, would make the bag uncomfortable to carry across the shoulders.

Whereas in the embodiments of Figures 1 and 2, the 5 handles 14 and 2 are sewn to the outer casing, this is not preferred as the stitching will be subjected to severe stresses and may give way. Instead, in Figure 3, the gripped part of the handle 34 (which is suitably upholstered) passes through slits in the outer casing 32 and lo the padding 38 and is attached to a web 38 that encircles the entire girth of the bag 30. For additional strength, it is possible to sew the handle 34 to sew to the casing.

The outer casing can be formed by folding over and IS sewing or welding the opposite sides of a flat sheet or it may be formed from a seamless extruded tube. The opening 16 in Figure l is better suited to the former method of construction of the casing, while the end cap 28 of Figure 2 is better suited to an extruded tube and makes for an So inexpensive construction in that it can totally avoid the need for sewing.

The padding of the casing makes the bag more comfortable to carry and reduces the risk of injury by 95 impact, which is ever present when using barbells. The padding may be between 2 mm and 5 mm in thickness to permit a similar degree of flexibility in the surface of the bag.

Thus the padding is sufficient to prevent the individual particles of the pea gravel from being discerned.

The ideal separation of the handles of the bag will depend on the size of the user and the exercise being performed. To enable the bag to be used in different ways; and by different users, it is possible to provide more than 35 two handles and these may either be aligned with another or they may be staggered around the circumference of the bag.

( An elongate padded and slightly flexible bag as described above has been found to provide a significant advantage over dumbbells and other devices used in the prior! art for resistance training in that it allows exercise 5 regimes to be designed to improve the performance of all the muscles that are used by a particular athlete rather than just a few of the relevant muscles. The exercises can be tailored to sport in which the athlete specialists and can involve a wide range of body movements as earlier described.

Claims

- 7 - CLAIMS

1. A weight for use in performing physical training exercises, comprising an elongate cylindrical flexible 5 walled bag filled with a flowable solid and having at least two handles projecting from the cylindrical surface of the bag.

2. A weight as claimed in claim 1, wherein the lo flowable solid is gravel.

3. A weight as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the flowable solid comprises rounded particles having a diameter in the range from 2mm to 10 mm.

4. A weight as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the packing density of the flowable solid within the bag is such that the maximum sag at the centre of the bag when it is supported by its ends does exceed 5% of the so length of the bag.

5. A weight as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the bag is padded.

25

6. A weight as claimed in claim 5, wherein the thickness of the padding is between 2mm and Smm.

7. A weight as claimed in any preceding claim having two handles that extend either parallel to the axis of the So bag.

8. A weight as claimed in any preceding claim, having two handles that extend circumferentially.

Is

9. A weight as claimed in claim 8, wherein the handles form part of a continuous web that passes round the entire circumference of the bag.

10. A weight as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the bag has an outer skin and a separate inner skin.

11. A weight as claimed in claim 10, wherein the outer 5 skin is made of leather.

12. A weight as claimed in claim 10, wherein the outer skin is formed of a plastics material.

lo

13. A weight as claimed in any of claim 10 to 12, wherein the inner skin is formed of a polypropylene fabric.

14. A weight as claimed in any of claims 10 to 13, wherein, in order to permit the bag to be filled with the 15 Plowable solid, the outer skin is provided with an opening having a resealable fastener.

15. A weight constructed substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated in the so accompanying drawings.