The present disclosure is directed to exercise equipment and more particularly to a sit box for use on the carriage of a reformer exercise apparatus.
An exemplary conventional reformer exercise apparatus 10 is shown in
Care must be taken, however, to ensure that the box is centered and that a user, when sitting or lying on the box 24, doesn't put too much of his or her weight on either end of the box 24 as those ends are not supported by the carriage 14 if positioned as shown in
A sit box in accordance with the present disclosure directly addresses the above identified needs. An exemplary sit box for use on a carriage of a reformer exercise apparatus in accordance with the present disclosure is a unitary block shaped body, preferably molded of closed cell polymer foam. The unitary body has a rectangular flat top surface portion merging via curved wall portions into an upright front wall, an upright back wall, an upright left side wall, and an upright right side wall. These walls terminate at a flat bottom parallel to the top surface portion. The bottom has a plurality of spaced upwardly extending recesses into the body including at least two spaced vertical recesses therein adjacent the front wall each adapted to receive therein one shoulder stop of a pair of shoulder stops projecting from a reformer exercise apparatus carriage when the sit box is positioned on the carriage.
Each of the vertical recesses is preferably outwardly open and preferably extends through one of the left and right side walls adjacent the front wall. Each vertical recess is upwardly tapered and spaced from each other by at least one and preferably two support ribs extending from the bottom toward the top portion. The two spaced support ribs extending from the bottom toward the top portion define therebetween one of the spaced recesses. Each of the outwardly open upright recesses extending through the side walls is preferably tapered.
The sit box bottom preferably has a plurality of spaced recesses between the front and back walls each extending upward toward the top wall. The front wall and the back wall each preferably has a cutaway portion forming a hand hold adjacent the bottom of the body, for a user to grasp and carry the sit box. Each cutaway portion of the front wall and the back wall merges into one of the recesses extending from the bottom internally upward toward the top wall.
Each wall has a curved portion joining the flat top surface portion. The flat top surface portion has a first plurality of spaced grooves therein parallel to the left and right side walls and a second plurality of spaced shallow grooves parallel to the end walls, forming a crisscrossed array of grooves creating squares or rectangles in the surface portion upon which a user sits.
A sit box for use on a reformer exercise apparatus carriage in accordance with this disclosure may be viewed as a unitary polymer body having a rectangular flat top surface portion and four curved portions each merging with one of an upright front wall, upright back wall, upright left side wall, and an upright right side wall. The walls each terminate at a generally flat bottom parallel to the top surface portion. The left and right side walls each has a vertical recess therein adjacent the front wall adapted to receive within each vertical recess one of a pair of shoulder stops that extend upward from the reformer carriage when the sit box is positioned on the carriage thereby capturing the sit box on the carriage.
The sit box flat bottom includes a plurality of recesses each extending upward internally toward the top surface. The sit box includes two vertical recesses adjacent the front wall that are spaced from each other by at least one support rib extending from the bottom toward the top surface portion. Preferably the vertical recesses are spaced from each other by two spaced support ribs extending from the bottom toward the top portion defining one of the recesses. The front wall and the back wall each has a cutaway portion between the two support ribs forming a hand hold in the wall adjacent the bottom of the body. The cutaway portion of the front wall and the back wall each merges into the one of the recesses between the two spaced support ribs.
A sit box in accordance with the present disclosure for use on a reformer exercise apparatus carriage may be viewed as a unitary solid body having a rectangular flat top surface portion joining four curved portions each merging with one of an upright front wall, back wall, left side wall, and a right side wall, wherein the walls terminate at a generally flat rectangular bottom parallel to the top surface portion and wherein each wall curves to merge with an adjacent wall. The left and right side walls each preferably has an outwardly open upright vertical recess therein adjacent the front wall adapted to receive within each vertical recess one of a pair of shoulder stops projecting from the carriage.
The outwardly open vertical recesses are spaced from each other by at least one support rib extending from the bottom toward the top portion, and preferably spaced from each other by two spaced support ribs extending from the bottom internally toward the top portion. The sit box bottom has a plurality of recesses extending upward internally toward the top surface portion forming a grid of vertical ribs therebetween.
Each of the front and back walls has a cutout adjacent the bottom merging into one of the recesses forming a hand hold for a user to grasp the box when arranging the box on a reformer carriage.
Further features, advantages and characteristics of the embodiments of this disclosure will be apparent from reading the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the drawing figures.
An exemplary sit box 100 for use on a carriage 14 of a reformer exercise apparatus 10 in accordance with the present disclosure is shown in a separate upper perspective view in
The sit box 100 has a unitary block shaped body 102, preferably molded of closed cell polymeric structural foam. The exemplary body 102 has a rectangular flat top surface portion 104 merging via curved wall portions 106 into an upright front wall 108, an upright back wall 110, an upright left side wall 112, and an upright right side wall 114. These walls 108, 110, 112, and 114 terminate at a flat bottom 116 parallel to the top surface portion 104. The bottom 116 has a plurality of spaced upwardly extending recesses 118 into the body 102 including at least two spaced vertical recesses 120 therein adjacent the front wall 108 each adapted to receive therein one shoulder stop 22 of a pair of shoulder stops 22 projecting from the upper surface 20 of a reformer exercise apparatus carriage 14 when the sit box 100 is positioned longitudinally on the carriage 14. A side view of a reformer exercise apparatus 10 with the sit box 100 oriented in this configuration is shown in
Each of the vertical recesses 120 is preferably outwardly open and extends through one of the left and right side walls 112 and 114, respectively, adjacent the front wall 108. The side walls of each vertical recess 120 are upwardly tapered. The vertical recesses 120 are spaced from each other by at least one and preferably two support ribs 122 extending upward internally from the bottom 116 toward the top surface portion 104. The two spaced support ribs 122 extend upward internally from the bottom 116 toward the top surface portion 104 and define therebetween one of the spaced recesses 118. Each of the outwardly open upright recesses 120 extending through the side walls 112 and 114 is preferably tapered.
The sit box bottom 116 preferably has a plurality of symmetrically spaced recesses 118 between the front and back walls 108 and 110 each extending upward internally toward the top surface portion 104 inside the block body 102. The front wall 108 and the back wall 110 each preferably has a cutaway portion 124 forming a hand hold adjacent the bottom 116 of the body 102, for a user to grasp and carry the sit box 100. Each cutaway portion 124 of the front wall 108 and the back wall 110 merges into one of the recesses 118 extending from the bottom 116 upward internally toward the top surface portion 104.
The top surface portion 104 has an array of crisscrossed transverse and longitudinal spaced shallow grooves 126 and 128 respectively forming a gripping surface for contact with a user's body when the user is sitting or reclining on the box 100. These grooves may be oriented in a variety of different ways and alternatively may be replaced with an etched design in the top surface portion 104.
The vertical recesses 120 are preferably outwardly open as shown. However, they may alternatively be covered, i.e. totally within the block body 102, essentially being blind recesses through the bottom 116 into the body 102. In such an alternative embodiment, the surfaces of the external walls 112 and 114 would be unbroken, i.e., smooth. Also, in the embodiment 100 shown, as well as in an alternative, two of the spaced recesses 118 adjacent the left and right sides 112 and 114 may be spaced apart similarly to the vertical recesses 120 such that when the sit box 100 is positioned laterally across a carriage 14 the shoulder stops 22 fit within the two spaced recesses 118 so that the sit box 100 is centered across the carriage 14 with the shoulder stops 22 hidden from view.
All such changes, alternatives and equivalents in accordance with the features and benefits described herein, are within the scope of the present disclosure. Any or all of such changes and alternatives may be introduced without departing from the spirit and broad scope of this disclosure.
This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/434,493, filed Feb. 16, 2017, the content of which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 15434493 | Feb 2017 | US |
Child | 16254351 | US |