WO2010008271A1

WO2010008271A1 - Exercise harness

Info

Publication number: WO2010008271A1
Application number: PCT/MY2009/000097
Authority: WO
Inventors: Yama Zafer
Original assignee: Yama Zafer
Priority date: 2008-07-16
Filing date: 2009-07-15
Publication date: 2010-01-21

Abstract

A body harness for use with an isokinetic, isometric or isotonic exercise apparatus comprises a front and a rear portion removably attachable to each other to form a secure harness for a human upper body. The removable engagement of the front and rear portions are via a plurality of buckle mechanisms located along the sides and top of both the front and rear portions. A plurality of attachment points are located on both the front and rear portions of the body harness for attachment to an isokinetic, isometric or isotonic resistance member. As the user moves through various planes of motion within the thoracic, thoraco-lumbar, lumbar or lumbo-sacral spinal segment the resistive member transfers the force through the harness and onto the torso benefiting the spinal or abdominal muscles without assistance or engagement of the powerful arm and shoulder muscles.

Description

EXERCISE HARNESS

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates to a body harness for use with an isokinetic, isometric, isotonic, resistive, static, concentric or eccentric exercise system.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION

There are currently many different types of devices and methods for exercising the various muscles in a human body. Exercise devices generally work by providing a resistance to the muscle force exerted by a user. The resistance may be provided by weights, elastic elements such as springs or bands, and pneumatic, motorized or hydraulic devices. Exercise machines which use weights to provide resistance are commonly bulky and not easily portable. Elastic elements and pneumatic, motorized or hydraulic resistance devices can provide a much more portable exercise system. A common use of these devices is to attach one end of the resistance member to a stationary object such as a wall or a post, with the user grabbing the other end of the resistance member and performing various lifting, pulling, or pushing motions.

One problem with this technique is that a great proportion of the resistance is being transferred to powerful muscles of the arms and shoulders of the user, as the user holds the end of the resistance member. A user who wishes to exercise the abdominal muscles, for instance, will also be forced to exercise the arm and shoulders as they are used to hold the resistance member.

What is desired in the art is a device which will transfer the resistance from the exercise device to a larger part of the human body, for example, the torso so that the user may be more selective and specific in choosing the muscle or muscle groups exercised.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

The present invention is a harness for use with an isokinetic, isometric, isotonic, resistive, static, concentric or an eccentric exercise system. It is designed to strengthen the soft tissues of the spine, including ligamentous, muscular and other soft tissue connections affecting the thoracic, thoraco-lumbar, lumbar and/or lumbosacral spinal segments by engaging the spine directly without assistance from the arm or shoulder muscles.

The present invention is a body harness for use with an isokinetic, isometric or isotonic exercise apparatus comprising a front and a rear portion removably attachable to each other to form a secure harness for a human upper body. The removable engagement of the front and rear portions are via a plurality of buckle mechanisms located along the sides and top of both the front and rear portions. A plurality of attachment points are located on both the front and rear portions of the body harness for attachment to an isokinetic, isometric or isotonic resistance member.

The device of this invention can be arranged to universally fit patients or custom fit per individual. The design is such that a user can benefit from spine or abdominal exercise by moving the torso through varies planes of motion without the use of a hand held resistance member. As the user moves through varies planes of motion the resistance member transfers the force through the harness and onto the torso benefiting the spinal or abdominal muscles without assistance or engagement of the powerful arm and shoulder muscles.

The present invention is a harness which allows the user to exercise and strengthen muscles, ligaments and soft tissues of the spine and abdomen. As the user moves through various planes of motion within the thoracic, thoraco-lumbar, lumbar or lumbo-sacral spinal segment the resistive member transfers the force through the harness and onto the torso benefiting the spinal or abdominal muscles without assistance or engagement of the powerful arm and shoulder muscles.

The present invention comprises a body harness for use with an isokinetic, isometric, isotonic, resistive, static, concentric or an eccentric exercise apparatus comprising: a front portion having a plurality of buckles extending from the periphery thereof; a rear portion having an equal number of buckle receivers extending from the periphery thereof for removable engagement to the said plurality of buckles, so that a secure harness for the upper portion of a human body is formed. A plurality of attachment points located on the front and rear portions of the harness for attachment to an isokinetic, isometric or isotonic resistance member.

The present invention also relates to an exercise system for providing resistance comprising a body harness according to any of the preceding claims and at least one resistive member with one end attached to any one of a plurality of attachment points provided on said harness and the other end attached to any form of resistance producing systems such as weights, motors, pneumatic, hydraulic or an elastic tubing, such that a user wearing said body harness experiences resistance as the upper body is moved away from said stationary object, and the resistance is transferred by said body harness to a substantially large portion of the upper body, the muscles exercised depending on the placement and positioning of the resistive member.

Other objects and advantages will be more fully apparent from the following disclosure and appended claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS Figure 1 shows an overall view of an embodiment of this invention.

Figure 2 shows an overall view of an embodiment of this invention.

Figure 3 shows the front portion of an embodiment of this invention.

Figure 4 shows the rear portion of an embodiment of this invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION

The present invention will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which preferred embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited by the embodiment set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2, there is shown a user wearing a body harness of this invention with a front portion (10) and a rear portion (20) assembled to each other to form an upper body harness, the size of which is substantially adjustable. The assembly is formed by the removable engagement of a plurality of first engagement means (30) located on the front portion (10) to an equal number of second engagement means (40) located on the rear portion (20). The removable engagement means (30, 40) is a buckle mechanism in this embodiment, but may comprise any other removable engagement means such as Velcro, buttons, etc. In this embodiment, there are three substantially horizontal first engagement means (30) extending from each side of the front portion (10) to be removably engaged to a matching three substantially horizontal second engagement means (40) extending from each side of the rear portion (20). There are also two substantially vertical first engagement means (30) extending from the top of the front portion (10) to be removably engaged to a matching two substantially vertical second engagement means (40) extending from the top of the rear portion (20). There are two shoulder straps (12) extending from each shoulder of the front portion (10) and parallel to the said two substantially vertical first engagement means (30) such that when the harness is worn, the shoulder straps (12) lie in between the first engagement means (30) and the user's shoulders. The shoulder straps (12) are padded to provide comfort to the user's shoulders from the buckle mechanism of the first (30) and second (40) engagement means. In this embodiment shown here, each of the three substantially horizontal first engagement means (30) extending from each side of the front portion (10) is a male part of a buckle mechanism, while each of the three substantially horizontal second engagement means (40) extending from each side of the rear portion (20) is a female part of a buckle mechanism. Each of the two substantially vertical first engagement means (30) extending from the top of the front portion (10) is a female part of a buckle mechanism, while each of the two substantially vertical second engagement means (40) extending from the top of the rear portion (20) is a male part of a buckle mechanism. However, it is to be noted that the male and female parts of the buckle mechanism may be interchanged freely at any of the plurality of first (30) and second (40) engagement means. The engagements of these first (30) and second (40) engagement means form a secure upper body harness. A plurality of attachment means (50) is fixed throughout the front portion (10) and rear portion (20). Any one or more of these attachment means (50) can be attached to one end of a stretchable member (80), the other end of which is attached to a stationary object such as a wall or post. In this embodiment, the attachment means (50) are metal rings, but it should be noted that any other means that can be temporarily secured to a stretchable member (80) may be used. The stretchable member (80) may be an elastic band, rope or other isokinetic resistance member.

In Figure 1, the stretchable member (80) is attached to an attachment means (50) located at the center of the top periphery of the front portion (10). With this configuration, the user is predominantly exercising the muscles of his/her back. The user starts from a more or less vertical position, and as the upper body is tilted backwards, the stretchable member (80) exerts a resistive force against the direction of motion, causing the user's back muscles to be exercised. The padded shoulder straps (12) provide comfort to the user's shoulders from the buckle mechanism of the first (30) and second (40) engagement means, hi this figure, it can be seen that the user is standing upright, but it should be noted that this invention could also be used if the user were in a seated position.

In Figure 2, the stretchable member (80) is attached to an attachment means (50) located at the center of the top periphery of the rear portion (10). With this configuration, the user is predominantly exercising the muscles of his/her abdomen. The user starts from a more or less vertical position, and as the upper body is tilted forwards, the stretchable member (80) exerts a resistive force against the direction of motion, causing the user's abdominal muscles to be exercised. The padded shoulder straps (12) provide comfort to the user's shoulders from the buckle mechanism of the first (30) and second (40) engagement means, hi this figure, it can be seen that the user is standing upright, but it should be noted that this invention could also be used if the user were in a seated position.

Other than the above examples, there are a multitude of positions and configurations attainable with this exercise harness. As another example, the stretchable member (80) may be attached to an attachment means (50) located on the left side of the upper body, that will allow the user to exercise the muscles on the right torso, and vice versa.

Referring now to Figures 3 and 4, there is shown an unassembled front portion (10) and rear portion (20), respectively. A plurality of first engagement means (30) extend from the sides and top of the front portion (10). An equal number of second engagement means (40) extend from the sides and top of the rear portion (20). The engagement means (30, 40) comprise a buckle mechanism in this embodiment, but may comprise any other removable engagement means such as Velcro, buttons, etc. In this embodiment, there are three substantially horizontal first engagement means (30) extending from each side of the front portion (10) to be removably engaged to a matching three substantially horizontal second engagement means (40) extending from each side of the rear portion (20). There are also two substantially vertical first engagement means (30) extending from the top of the front portion (10) to be removably engaged to a matching two substantially vertical second engagement means (40) extending from the top of the rear portion (20). There are two shoulder straps (12) extending from each shoulder of the front portion (10) and parallel to the said two substantially vertical first engagement means (30) such that when the harness is worn, the shoulder straps (12) lie in between the first engagement means (30) and the user's shoulders. The shoulder straps (12) are padded to provide comfort to the user's shoulders from the buckle mechanism of the first (30) and second (40) engagement means. In this embodiment shown here, each of the three substantially horizontal first engagement means (30) extending from each side of the front portion (10) is a male part of a buckle mechanism, while each of the three substantially horizontal second engagement means (40) extending from each side of the rear portion (20) is a female part of a buckle mechanism. Each of the two substantially vertical first engagement means (30) extending from the top of the front portion (10) is a female part of a buckle mechanism, while each of the two substantially vertical second engagement means (40) extending from the top of the rear portion (20) is a male part of a buckle mechanism. However, it is to be noted that the male and female parts of the buckle mechanism may be interchanged freely at any of the plurality of first (30) and second (40) engagement means. The engagements of these first (30) and second (40) engagement means form a secure upper body harness. A plurality of attachment means (50) is fixed throughout the front portion (10) and rear portion (20). In this embodiment, the attachment means (50) are metal rings, but it should be noted that any other attachment means may be used. In this embodiment, there are seven attachment means (50) located on each of the front (10) and rear (20) portions. Three of these attachment means (50) are located on the top periphery of each of the front (10) and rear (20) portions with the center attachment means (50) substantially vertical, the attachment means (50) to the left of the center attachment means (50) inclined to the left, and the attachment means (50) to the right of the center attachment means (50) inclined to the right. Two more attachment means (50) are located one on each of the vertical (30, 40) engagement means. A further two attachment means (50) are located at the joining of the uppermost horizontal engagement means (30, 40) to the harness. However, there may be different configurations of these attachment means (50) on other embodiments of this invention.

There are two shoulder straps (12) extending from each shoulder of the front portion (10) and parallel to the said two substantially vertical first engagement means (30) such that when the harness is worn, the shoulder straps (12) lie in between the first engagement means (30) and the user's shoulders. The shoulder straps (12) are padded to provide comfort to the user's shoulders from the buckle mechanism of the first (30) and second (40) engagement means.

While several particularly preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described and illustrated, it should now be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the following claims are intended to embrace such changes, modifications, and areas of application that are within the spirit and scope of this invention.

Claims

1. A body harness for use with an exercise apparatus comprising: a front portion (10) having at least one first engagement means (30); a rear portion (20) having at least one second engagement means (40) for engaging to the first engagement means (30); a plurality of attachment points (50) located on the front (10) and rear (20) portions whereby the front (10) and rear (20) portions when engaged at the at least one first (30) and second (40) engagement means form a secure harness for the upper portion of a human body.

2. A body harness according to claim 1, wherein each of said at least one first engagement means is coupled to a matching second engagement means, the coupling forming a removable buckle mechanism.

3. A body harness according to claims 1 and 2 wherein there are a plurality of substantially horizontal first engagement means (30) extending from each side of the front portion (10) for engagement with an equal number of substantially horizontal second engagement means (40) extending from each side of the rear portion (20).

4. A body harness according to claim 3 wherein there are three substantially horizontal first engagement means (30) extending from each side of the front portion (10) for engagement with an equal number of substantially horizontal second engagement means (40) extending from each side of the rear portion (20).

5. A body harness according to any of the preceding claims wherein there are a plurality of substantially vertical first engagement means (30) extending from the top of the front portion (10) for engagement with an equal number of substantially vertical second engagement means (40) extending from the top of the rear portion (20).

6. A body harness according to claim 5 wherein there are two substantially vertical first engagement means (30) extending from the top of the front portion (10) for engagement with an equal number of substantially vertical second engagement means (40) extending from the top of the rear portion (20), whereby the said two substantially vertical engagement means each travel over each of the user' s shoulder.

7. A body harness according to any of the preceding claims wherein the attachment points (50) are rings.

8. A body harness according to claim 7 wherein the rings (50) are attached to the side and top edges of both front (10) and rear (20) portions.

9. A body harness according to any of the preceding claims further comprising a pair of shoulder straps (12) extending from the top periphery of the front portion (10) lying in between the user's shoulders and the first engagement means (30), said shoulder straps (12) being substantially padded to provide comfort to the user's shoulders.

10. A body harness according to any of the preceding claims wherein said exercise apparatus is any of isokinetic, isometric, isotonic, resistive, static, concentric or eccentric.

11. An exercise system for providing resistance comprising:

A body harness according to any of the preceding claims; and at least one stretchable member (80) with one end attached to any one of the attachment points (50) and the other end attached to a stationary object; such that a user wearing said body harness experiences resistance as the upper body is moved away from said stationary object, and the resistance is transferred by said body harness to a substantially large portion of the upper body, the muscles exercised depending on the placement and positioning of the stretchable member (80).