Muscle conditioning apparatus

Abstract

An apparatus ( 10 ) for muscle conditioning comprises a supporting body ( 12 ), a hood-shaped pad ( 14 ), moveable relative to the body ( 12 ), and resistive means in the form of a weight stack ( 16 ) and suspension mechanism ( 18 ). The weight stack ( 16 ) is coupled to the hood-shaped pad ( 14 ) via the suspension mechanism ( 18 ), such that a resistive force can be applied against movement of the hood-shaped pad ( 14 ) from a first position relative to the body ( 12 ) to a second position relative to the body ( 12 ). The apparatus enables the conditioning of the muscles required for successful rugby scrummaging.

1 . An apparatus for muscle conditioning, the apparatus comprising:
 a body;   a head member arranged to contact a user's head, in use; and   a chest member arranged to contact a user's chest, in use,   wherein the head member is arranged for rotation relative to the body against a resistive torque about an axis spaced from the head member, the axis being arranged substantially transversely to the longitudinal direction of the user's spine, in use, whereby the resistive torque urges the user's head forward, and   the chest member is mounted relative to the axis and restrains forward movement of the user's chest, in use, whereby movement of the user's head to counter the resistive torque predominantly exercises the cervical section of the spine.   
   
   
       2 . An apparatus for muscle conditioning as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the head member is arranged to contact the back of a user's head, in use. 
   
   
       3 . An apparatus for muscle conditioning as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the chest member is arranged for rotation about the axis. 
   
   
       4 . An apparatus for muscle conditioning as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the chest member is fixed relative to the axis for movement therewith. 
   
   
       5 . An apparatus for muscle conditioning as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the apparatus is configured to accommodate translational movement of the axis. 
   
   
       6 . An apparatus for muscle conditioning as claimed in  claim 5 , wherein the apparatus is configured to accommodate translational movement of the axis against a resistive force. 
   
   
       7 . An apparatus for muscle conditioning as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the apparatus comprises at least one cam member arranged for rotation about the axis, the cam member comprising a connecting point spaced from the axis to which a force is applied in use of the apparatus in order to generate the resistive torque. 
   
   
       8 . An apparatus for muscle conditioning as claimed in  claim 6 , wherein the force applied to the connecting point is the resistive force that resists translational movement of the axis. 
   
   
       9 . An apparatus for muscle conditioning as claimed in  claim 1  further comprising a shoulder member arranged to contact a user's shoulders, in use,
 wherein the shoulder and head members are movable relative to the body; and the apparatus comprises resistive means coupled to the shoulder and head members for providing a resistive force against movement of the shoulder and head members from a first position relative to the body to a second position relative to the body.   
   
   
       10 . An apparatus for muscle conditioning, the apparatus comprising a body, a shoulder member arranged to contact a user's shoulders, when in use, a head member arranged to contact a user's head, when in use, the shoulder and head members being movable relative to the body; and resistive means coupled to the shoulder and head members for providing a resistive force against movement of the shoulder and head members from a first position relative to the body to a second position relative to the body; and wherein the head member is rotatable relative to the body. 
   
   
       11 . An apparatus as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the axis of rotation of the head member is arranged to be substantially co-incident with the centre of rotation of a user's cervical spine, when in use. 
   
   
       12 . An apparatus as claimed in  claim 9 , wherein the chest member is fixedly mounted relative to the shoulder member and movable therewith. 
   
   
       13 . An apparatus as claimed in  claim 9 , wherein the shoulder member is fixedly mounted relative to the head member and rotatable therewith. 
   
   
       14 . An apparatus as claimed in  claim 9 , wherein the head member is rotatably mounted relative to the shoulder member and moveable therewith. 
   
   
       15 . An apparatus as claimed in  claim 9 , wherein the shoulder member is configured for substantially horizontal movement with respect to the ground. 
   
   
       16 . An apparatus as claimed in  claim 15 , wherein the resistive means provides a force configured to act against the horizontal movement of the shoulder member. 
   
   
       17 . An apparatus as claimed in  claim 9 , wherein the shoulder member is configured for substantially vertical movement with respect to the ground. 
   
   
       18 . An apparatus as claimed in  claim 17 , wherein the resistive means provides a force configured to act against the vertical movement of the shoulder member.