CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/336,861, filed on May 16, 2016, and is a continuation-in-part of and claims priority to and the benefit of non-provisional patent application Ser. No. 15/597,027 filed on May 16, 2017. The disclosure of the foregoing applications are expressly incorporated herein by reference as though fully set forth herein.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

This invention relates to exercise devices, and, more particularly, relates to devices having multiple resistance elements permitting the user to exercise his or her arms and/or legs synchronously in full or nearly full range of motion without the influence of gravity.

Description of the Prior Art

There are two major reasons people don't exercise. The most common objection is the time it takes for a workout, typically at least 45-60 minutes, performed three or more times per week. The second most common objection to exercise is the lack of results from engaging in an exercise program.

Safety concerns about exercise in general also limit or altogether preclude many from exercise, including those who: have heart conditions; have balance problems; have dizziness and occasionally lose consciousness; have bone or joint pain made worse by weight-bearing activity; or have neuropathy made worse by weight-bearing activity.

However, the importance of exercise is universally recognized. Moreover, the wider/fuller the range of motion through which a user's limbs are put during exercise, the more benefit is realized. Some of the benefits of full range of motion during exercise include muscles becoming far stronger, not just in the bottom of the range of motion but throughout the entire range of motion, muscle size increases throughout the entire muscle, fat stores decrease, joints are strengthened throughout the entire range of motion, not in just one particular range of motion, less work (weight and intensity) is needed to strengthen a muscle during a full range of motion, and greater efficient load can be imposed on the muscle(s) (using less weight or resistance) during full range of motion.

The best exercise for the body is it to engage the most muscle groups in the highest active intensity for the shortest time, until complete fatigue. The more muscles that are engaged, the more the heart pumps blood, the more the lungs exchange oxygen and carbon dioxide, the greater the volume of oxygen (VO2). The more muscles that are engaged, the less time it takes to reach maximum anaerobic threshold (the point of anaerobic metabolism) and the sooner the striated muscles and cardio-respiratory system reaches fatigue. The most successful cardio-respiratory exercise is one that activates the most muscle groups to reach maximum fatigue as rapidly as possible.

To improve muscle function, tone, strength, and endurance the muscles must be overloaded to the point of fatigue. An overloaded muscle requires more mitochondrial activity, more oxygen consumption, and increased efficient metabolism through anaerobic metabolism. The longer time spent in muscle overload (past the level of maximum anaerobic threshold), the more oxygen/carbon dioxide is exchanged and the more glucose is used. Therefore, the goal of effective exercise is to bring total cardio-respiratory overload as fast as possible. This can best be done by engaging large muscle mass with bi-directional resistance, through near-complete ranges of motion, while involving both sides of the body synchronously.

In some approaches, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,750,735, 6,500,099, and 4,949,954, the user is limited in the range of motion provided by the exercise machine. In particular, the exercise machines described in the prior art generally limit the user to extension of one set of limbs during exercise. Other approaches, such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,104,363 and 4,684,126, require the user to remain in a seated position and still limits the range of motion provided during exercise. There is an unmet need in the art for an exercise machine that allows a user to have a full range of motion in both the arms and the legs at the same time so as to allow for high intensity interval training or equivalent exercise, for which the current art does not provide.

Maximum aerobic capacity is the maximum rate of oxygen consumed and is measured as VO2Max. VO2Max reflects the aerobic physical condition of the individual.

VO2Max is affected by: the ability of the lungs to transfer maximum oxygen through inspiration and maximum carbon dioxide through expiration, the efficiency of oxygen and carbon dioxide exchange in peripheral tissues, the ability of the heart to pump maximum blood volume through the lungs and peripherally through the body, the condition of the circulatory system, the condition of the muscles and peripheral tissues, and the autonomic nervous system control.

Maximum anaerobic capacity is the maximal amount of energy released by anaerobic metabolism. Enhanced anaerobic metabolism causes: improved efficiency of the lactic acid cycle, mobilization and burning of fats, increased metabolic efficiency such that both metabolic rate and caloric burning is more efficient 24 hours per day (not merely while exercising—this is the “after-burn” affect), more efficient use of sugar and glycogen (stored sugar) for energy, maximization of muscular development, maximization of cardiovascular-pulmonary stamina, enhanced regeneration of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and creatine phosphokinase (CPK) in muscle tissue, and mitochondrial growth throughout muscle cells.

The more muscles that are activated into fatigue the more calories are burned. The more the muscles that are activated the more oxygen is required by them. The more the muscles that are activated the more sugar the body burns as fuel. The more the muscles that are activated the more likely the body moves into anaerobic metabolism, increasing the efficiency of mitochondrial function at the cellular level.

The greater the muscle mass that is activated, the greater will be the caloric burn quantity and rate. The highest muscle activation comes from muscle contraction under resistance. The further the muscle moves through its range of motion, the greater the muscle is activated. The greater the resistance and stretch on the muscle, the greater the muscle strength gained (both in the striated and cardiac muscles) during the anabolic repair phase. The prior art previously only allowed for range of motion in one set of limbs, thereby only allowing for muscle activation in fewer than desired muscle groups.

Exercise is a physical/mechanical stress that causes a catabolic phase (tissue breakdown), followed by a longer anabolic phase (tissue repair), lasting hours or days. Efficient exercise tears down striated muscle and cardiac muscle, forcing the body to rebuild and repair. When exercise is efficient, the body rebuilds tissue such that the functional capacity of the muscle is more efficient than it was before the exercise was performed and the oxygen delivery system is improved (VO2max).

With proper exercise, body strength is increased and physical stamina improves until a physiological limit is reached at about 32 years of age. After the physiological limit has been reached, no greater gains can be made in physiology. However, with a proper exercise routine, strength and stamina can be maintained for decades as body metabolism and other factors of health are maintained. The greater the catabolic breakdown of the muscle through proper exercise and the greater the opportunity to complete the anabolic repair cycle, the more efficient the muscles become. Exercising multiple muscle groups at the same time allows for greater catabolic breakdown of the muscles thereby allowed for a greater opportunity to complete the anabolic repair cycle, leading for more efficient muscles.

The complete cycle of exercise begins with a strenuous exercise. Ideally, the catabolic phase begins during the exercise activity and then continues, and then the anabolic phase begins and continues until full recovery and rebuilding from the workout is completed, up to 48 hours later. In an efficient exercise routine, the anabolic phase is not interrupted by an early catabolic phase, but it often is when a person exercises too frequently—a condition known as overtraining. In a high intensity, short duration catabolic exercise phase, the anabolic recovery phase may take up to 48 hours for completion.

High intensity interval training (HIIT) sessions are highly intense, short duration workouts in which a person quickly reaches maximum aerobic capacity (VO2max) and then approaches their anaerobic threshold, to the point of muscle fatigue and in attempt to satisfy the growing oxygen debt.

HIIT is a short duration exercise (sprint-like bursts of activity). HIIT is the most effective way to condition the physical body, while low intensity, long duration exercise (jogging, treadmill, elliptical, cycling) usually makes a person weak, tired, hungry, irritable and older faster. Consider the health and physique of a sprinter versus that of a long-distance runner.

The most effective high intensity interval training will cause the body to reach its anaerobic threshold quickly. The exercise goal of HIIT is to continue in anaerobic metabolism as long as possible, until complete fatigue. In summary, high intensity interval training (engaging in short bursts of rapid activity (20-30 second bursts)), using the most muscle mass, to the point of complete fatigue, is the most effective form of exercise. The prior art fails to disclose exercise machines that allow for the most effective high intensive interval training because they generally only use a smaller number of muscle groups at a time or exercises in less ranges of motion.

HIIT produces the greatest hormonal and other metabolic effects that can be derived from any exercise, burns body fat, burns sugar, builds lean body mass, and continues metabolic processes up to 24-48 hours later.

HIIT has at least two novel features: Firstly, unlike walking or moderate intensity aerobic training, efficient HIIT involves the activation of large muscle mass. Secondly, this large muscle mass activation is associated with a very high glycogen breakdown-turnover which means improved muscle glucose uptake.

The principal benefits of HIIT are that: the cardio-respiratory system will be strengthened; the risk of heart attacks and strokes will reduce; circulation will improve; functional muscular strength will improve; weight loss will occur more readily; food cravings will be reduced; hormonal balance will improve; muscles will be toned; fat reserves will be metabolized; energy will improve; aerobic and anaerobic fitness will improve; fasting insulin levels will decrease; insulin sensitivity will increase; abdominal and subcutaneous fat will reduce; and total exercise time will decrease.

As little as six sessions of HIIT over two weeks, or a total of only approximately 15 minutes of very intense exercise (a cumulative energy expenditure of roughly 600 kJ or 143 kcal), has been shown to increase oxidative capacity in skeletal and cardiac muscle and significantly improve performance in activities that rely on aerobic energy metabolism.

Most people who exercise over-train. Because of their exercise routine, people are either in an ongoing catabolic phase or an incomplete anabolic phase. That is, they are stuck in a catabolic phase and cannot begin the anabolic phase needed to recover and repair, or they are stuck in an anabolic phase in which their body is working desperately in an attempt to complete recovery from the previous catabolic workouts. But they do not complete the anabolic recovery phase before their next workout. In either case, most people over-train and continue exercising while they are not fully recovered.

Overtraining and excessive exercise are metabolic stressors that advance the catabolic damages of aging. More than just a few minutes in a catabolic phase without a complete anabolic repair phase is over-training. A person cannot over-exercise themselves into better health. It takes very little exercise volume to maximize cardio-respiratory fitness, fat loss, strength gain, and metabolic efficiency.

The “plateau” is the phase of exercise when the body approaches the zone of causing greater catabolic stress than anabolic repair. When a person reaches a plateau, exercise should not continue until the anabolic cycle is completed. Objective measurements must be used to determine when the plateau has been reached (heart rate recovery). Continuing to exercise beyond the plateau will only make a person tired, hungry, and irritable, have more pain, waste more time, expose them to injury, and age faster.

In an effective exercise program, a person will just reach plateau but never overdo the exercise routine.

Therefore, the most effective exercise routine is to engage as many muscles, safely, through their complete range of motion, in a synchronized pattern, with adequate resistance, as vigorous as possible, to complete fatigue.

However, there has heretofore not been proposed an exercise machine that can provide such an effective workout. Therefore, it is a principle object of this invention to provide an exercise device adapted to simultaneously, or synchronously, exercise the arms and legs in near complete range of motion with resistance in the flexion/extension planes.

The main objective is to exercise the arms and legs in near complete range of motion with resistance in the flexion/extension planes. A second objective is to activate the muscles so that muscular fatigue can be reached quickly. A third objective is to allow for a non-weight bearing way to exercise large groups of muscles. A fourth objective is to provide a synchronized movement of the arms and legs in a gait-like pattern. A fifth objective is to rehabilitate the arms and leg muscles and joints through near complete range of motion with adjustable resistance. A sixth objective is to offer one of the safest ways to exercise, almost eliminating any risk of injury.

It is also an object of this invention to activate the muscles so that muscular fatigue can be reached quickly.

Another object of this invention is to allow for a way to exercise large groups of muscles without the user bearing any weight.

A further object of this is to provide a synchronized movement of the arms and legs in a gait-like pattern, synchronizing the nervous system.

A still further object of this invention is to rehabilitate the arms and leg muscles and joints through near complete range of motion with adjustable resistance.

It is yet a further object of this invention to provide an exercise device which allows for a free, not rigid, range of motion of the limbs.

It is yet a further object of this invention to provide an exercise device which allows for a full body, non-weight bearing exercise.

It is an even further object of this invention to provide an exercise device which offers purely operator-induced exercise because the exerciser is supine and using only muscular action, not gravity, to facilitate exercise.

It is an even further object of this invention to provide an exercise device which offers the greatest effect to the cardio-respiratory systems by utilizing the largest muscle groups in all four limbs in near-complete range of motion through resistance.

It is an even further object of this invention to provide an exercise device which provides high intensity interval training exercise.

It is an even further object of this invention to provide an exercise device through which a user reaches cardio-respiratory fatigue quickly.

It is an even further object of this invention to provide an exercise device which activates more than one muscle group at one time.

It is an even further object of this invention to provide an exercise device which increases cardio-respiratory output.

It is an even further object of this invention to provide an exercise device which increases aerobic metabolism.

It is an even further object of this invention to provide an exercise device which increases anaerobic metabolism.

It is an even further object of this invention to provide an exercise device which offers the shortest time to achieve a full body exercise.

A further object of this invention is to provide an exercise device having one or more resistance elements selected from the group of magnetic, also known as “eddy current,” resistance elements, which cause resistance or braking without contact between relative moving/braking members, such that braking parts are not worn out due to friction. In addition, when using magnetic resistance elements, magnetic resistance increases as the speed of the user increases. In other words, two people can have different experiences at the same magnetic setting solely based on how hard, i.e., how fast, they try to operate their limbs against the machine.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The foregoing objectives, among others, are achieved through an exercise apparatus which allows for near-complete joint range of motion of the elbows, shoulders, knees and hips in active and resistant movements.

An embodiment of the present invention is directed to an exercise machine comprising a base, a first pair of bi-directional resistance elements, each comprising a first end and a second end, the first end of each resistance element of the first pair of resistance elements pivotally attached to a support in such a manner as to imbue each element with a substantially free range of motion, the second end of each resistance element of the first pair of resistance elements comprising a foot-engagement member, and a second pair of bi-directional resistance elements, each comprising a first end and a second end, the first end of each resistance element of the second pair of resistance elements pivotally attached to the support in such a manner as to imbue each such element with a substantially free range of motion, each resistance element of the second pair of resistance elements comprising a hand-engagement member.

In another embodiment, an exercise machine is provided which comprises a base, a first pair of bidirectional resistance apparatus adapted for engagement by a user's legs or feet, and a second pair of bidirectional resistance apparatus adapted for engagement by a user's hands or arms. In this embodiment, the first pair of by directional resistance apparatus, and/or the second pair of bidirectional resistance apparatus, employ eddy current braking elements to provide resistance to the movements imparted on the respective apparatus by the user.

Eddy current braking, also known as induction braking, electromagnetic braking and electric retarder braking, is a frictionless braking technology that is used to slow a moving object by dissipating its kinetic energy as heat. Eddy current braking has both economic and risk management advantages. This braking system takes the simple function of magnetic and non-magnetic forces and uses them as a braking mechanism through the purposeful generation of eddy currents in order to slow a movement. Eddy currents are formed when a conductor moves through a magnetic field, which induces an electromagnetic force.

A magnet moving past a conductor will induce circular electric currents called eddy currents in the conductor by the magnetic field, as described by Faraday's law of induction. By Lenz's law, the circulating currents will create their own magnetic field which opposes the field of the magnet. Thus, the conductor will experience a drag force from the moving magnet that opposes the motion of the magnet, proportional to its velocity. The kinetic energy of the moving magnet is dissipated as heat generated by the current flowing through the electrical resistance of the conductor.

In an eddy current brake, the magnetic field may be created by a permanent magnet (where braking force can be varied or turned off by adjusting the position of the magnet relative to a conductive member), or by an electromagnet (where the braking force can be turned on and off or varied by varying the electric current in the electromagnet's windings). Since the brake does not work by friction, there are no brake shoe surfaces to wear out, necessitating replacement, as with friction brakes.

Eddy current brakes are an ideal form of braking because of their absence of physical contact between internal components, which allows eddy current brakes to be very low maintenance.

Example embodiments will become more fully understood from the detailed description given herein below and the accompanying drawings, wherein like elements are represented by like reference characters, which are given by way of illustration only and thus are not to be taken as limiting of the scope of the invention.

