BOOTSTRAP FOR HIKING BOTTLE WEIGHT LIFTING EXERCISES

Bootstrap converts any hiking bottle into a safe and long-lasting weightlifting device. It consists of two main components:          1″-1.5″ plushed strap with low elasticity and high durability,     0.4″ or thicker silicon bumper for bottle bottom.       Several embodiments have additional components used as connection items. VELCRO® brand VELSTRETCH® tape is a perfect material for the heavy bottle strap. It is used in industrial applications to withstand multiple expansions/contractions and to minimize shear stress on hands. Thick silicon bottom bumper absorbs stress coming from two bottles collision that is common for such weight lifting exercise. Overall design protects hikers head, hands, and body from injuries. Several embodiments varying aesthetically and in cost are presented. Basic math provided in the background section explains current solutions' failures. The same math lays the path to the bootstrap.

PRIOR ART

Electronic Publications as Prior Art

Relevant products available online in April 2020:

R2. “Nylon Outdoor Hiking Camp Belt Carrier Pouch Water Bottle strap Holder Bag”, https://www.ebay.com/itm/Nylon-Outdoor-Hiking-Camp-Belt-Carrier-Pouch-Water-Bottle-strap-Holder-Bag-/392275230277, April 2020

R3. “Handiwear (2 Pack, Water Bottle Carrier Grip for Running. Soft Band Holder Strap Makes Any Bottle Handheld. Bike, Gym or Jogging”, https://www.amazon.com/s?k=B018ZE50UC&i=sporting&ref=nb_sb_noss, April 2020

R4. “Windspeed Water Bottle Carrier Grip for Outdoor, Soft band Holder Strap Makes Any Bottle Handheld, Water Bottle Bands For Bike, Gym or Jogging 4 Pack (random color)”, https://www.amazon.com/s?k=B01LZ3S9ST&i=sporting&ref=nb_sb_noss, April 2020

DESCRIPTION

Background

Hiking becomes increasingly popular in U.S., but UC Davis (“Muscle matters: Dr Brenan Egan at TED×UCD” on YouTube) shows that “walking is not enough—we have to lift weights” to avoid sarcopenia (loss of muscle tissue as a natural part of the aging process). Hikers, inventors, and industry have tried to use bottles as dumbbells (patents 5580343, AT4824U1), light plastic bottles with hand-strap (available at sporting goods), bottle-carrying straps (available at ebay.com), and silicon carrier grips for water bottles (available at amazon.com). I have been hiking Bay Area trails for 20 years and I have observed only a handful of hikers a year lifting weights when walking. Why? Let's use math and physics for the explanation and for finding a solution:(a) Average hiking takes 3-4 hours. With 10-20 hands lifting every 5-10 minutes we have 400-500 hands-up per trip.(b) Popular among hikers 1-1.2 lb thermoflask or hydroflask (or another metallic bottle, often with vacuum insulation) with 24-40 oz of water weights 2.5-3.7 lb. That matches 2-3 lb dumbbells used at gym aerobics.(c) It is essential to understand how arms move when lifting 2-4 lb bottle in each hand 500 times in 4 hours. Because it is quite exhausting exercise, it works like a pendulum swing (FIGS. 7C, 7D) rather than folding and unfolding arms. Swing-up ends over a hikers head and a relaxed swing-down ends behind hiker's hips (by inertia, and to avoid hurting the hiker's sides). Bottle swing trajectory is about 1 meter diameter semicircle, and bottles meet 500 times at the trajectory's apex and 500 times at the trajectory's bottom.(d) With a 1 meter swing-up taking about 1 second, acceleration is about 0.2 g and speed at the apex is about 2 m/sec. When bottles meet at the top and at the bottom of the trajectory, their stop path is very short and is determined by the thickness of a bottle's bumper (elaborated later) or by the bottle's deformation (if there is no bumper). Let's do the math for 1 cm—thick bumper as a stop path (1 cm=0.01 m=0.4″). Newton's formula for acceleration gives an acceleration of −20 g at the collision (based on the speed coming down from 2 m/sec to zero at 0.01 m distance). For 2-4 lb bottle, 20 g acceleration means 40-80 lb stress at the bottles' collision (FIG. 7A).
Now let's translate these numbers into English to see what fails or what does not scale from light bottle usage to an intensive workout with 2-4 lb bottles:(e) There is significant and repetitive normal (perpendicular to surface) stress on the bottles and there is shear (along the surface) stress on hands from either side: from bottles grip to the palm side of the hand at every collision of the bottles, and from a strap jig-sawing the dorsal side of the hand on every acceleration.(f) If strap material is too stretchable then the jig-sawing effect coming from strap's elongation and contraction on every acceleration is considerable. And if straps are not elastic then normal repetitive stress damages hands and skin.(g) No hiker wants a bottle holding device to crack, snap, or fall off the bottle when it is over his/her head and hit him/her with 40-80 lb force. Neither hiker wants fingers jammed with such force, as even if it is a rare incident—on 500 repetitions, an accident is bound to happen (aka “happens by design”).(h) Damage to the bottle and its vacuum insulation (if present) at the bottles' collision should be avoided.(i) Hands' exhaustion from carrying heavy bottles around contributes to the unpopularity of the existing solutions.(j) Some patents were not implemented by manufacturers and some products died out because of poor aesthetic and/or because of substantial price.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Bootstrap converts any hiking bottle into safe and durable workout device. It consists of two main components:

1″-1.5″ plushed strap with low elasticity and high durability;

0.4″ or thicker silicon bumper for bottle bottom.

Embodiments differ from aesthetic and cost perspectives. Some embodiments can be applied to any bottle, other depend on bottle design. VELCRO® brand VELSTRETCH® tape used for the strap comes from industrial applications where it provides comfort for hands in similar circumstances: numerous expansions and contractions, substantial load, and high durability. Moderate pressure to the dorsal side of the hand provided by the strap allows a hiker to relax his/her grip. That minimizes shear stress on hands when bottles collide and reduces hands' fatigue when the hiker carries bottles around. Slight curvature of his/her fingers and support from the strap are enough to control the bottle. The second main component, thick bumper, absorbs impact on the bottles and on the hands when bottles collide. Bootstrap material and design suppress bottle's wiggling and keep the hiker's hand reliably confined between the strap and the bottle. That eliminates head, body, and hands injuries.

Drawing Reference Numerals10Strap20bumper with sleeve and hole25hole in bumper30parachute buckle40adjustable buckle50Ring60Bottle70hook-and-loop ring(s)80duct tape attaching bumper90flat bumper100bottle with two buckles110metallic buckles on the bottle120ultrasonically welded strap end(s)130bumper with long sleeve140buckle for soft lock150soft lock160hard side of furniture slider170soft side of furniture slider

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1Ashows bootstrap embodiment that can be applied to a bottle having a cap holder. Strap10and silicon bumper20are connected through hole25in the bumper's sleeve. Strap can be closed with a parachute buckle30. Strap10is at least 1″ wide, and it goes over dorsal side of the hand twice, so plushed side should be the outer side of the locked strap. Silicon bumper20is in a shape of a cup/boot that is popular with thermoflask or hydroflask (“REUZBL Protective Silicone Boot Sleeve . . . ” in prior art), but it has 0.4″ or thicker bottom.

FIG.1B—Application of First Embodiment

FIG. 1Bshows first embodiment applied to a bottle with a cap holder.

FIG. 2Ashows bootstrap embodiment with a ring50for the bottle neck, to be used with bottles not having a cap holder. Adjustable buckle40is used instead of parachute buckle because there is no need in opening and closing strap10loop in this embodiment.

FIG.2B—Application of Alternative Embodiment

FIG. 2Bshows alternative embodiment attached to the bottle neck with a ring50.

FIG. 3shows the embodiment that can be made of any metallic bottle60by anybody. Strap10is attached to the bottle with two hook-and-loop rings70.0.4″ or thicker flat silicon bumper90is attached over its perimeter to the bottle with duct tape80.

FIG. 4shows the embodiment for the bottle100having two metallic buckles110on its surface. In this embodiment strap10can have 1.5″ width and be single layered, with its plushed side facing the bottle. An end120of the strap goes through metallic buckle110, flipped over the strap, and ultrasonically welded to it. Such closure eliminates scratching hand with the seams. Silicon bumper130is in a shape of a cup/boot popular with thermoflask or hydroflask (“REUZBL Protective Silicone Boot Sleeve . . . ” in prior art), but with 0.4″ or thicker bottom and with an elongated sleeve to hold on to the bottle. Sleeve in this bumper should be made longer/higher compared to the bumper with the hole, for it to hold well to the bottle.

FIG.5—Hook and Loop Strap with Soft Lock

FIG. 5shows hook and loop strap10with soft lock150and simple loop-through buckle140. Soft lock provides better comfort compared to hard plastic locks, and is less expensive. Lock150should be welded to strap10with sticky side of the lock and plushed/soft side of the strap facing the same way (that differs it from “VELCRO Brand All-Purpose Elastic Straps . . . ” prior art where sticky side of the lock and non-plushed side of the strap face the same way). Length of strap10should be couple inches more than twice the distance between the points where the strap is attached to the bottle. So the item (strap+lock) length is 2.5-3 times the distance between the attachment points.

FIG.6—Furniture Slider as a Bumper

FIG. 6shows furniture slider with its hard/sliding side160up and its soft/silicon side170down. It can be used as a bumper in Do-It-Yourself embodiment. It provides better bonding with the duct tape than silicon-only bumper because of thin hard layer160.

FIG. 7Ais a view of the moment before bottles collide or right after they bounce off each other.

FIG. 7Bshows a grip over the bootstrapped bottle. This grip is intrinsically relaxed—it is far from being complete/closed. Slight curvature of the fingers and support from the strap secure the hold. To envision it better—even if a hiker straightens out his/her fingers and the bottle tries to roll of his/her hand—strap won't allow this to happen—thanks to the heavy weight of the bottle and the low elasticity of the strap.

FIG. 7Cshows swing move done by a hiker (we are looking at him/her from his/her left). Apex point is over his/her head and bottom point of the swing is behind the hiker's back—hands arrive there by inertia from the swing.

FIG. 7Dshows another swing move (we are looking at the hiker from his/her back). It looks like wings' flapping. Apex point is over and a bit in front of the hiker's head—to use inertia of the swing on the way down to bring his/her hands behind his/her back and not to hit the body.

Advantages—Prior Art Disadvantages or New Usage

Background section thoroughly explains math and physics behind weightlifting exercise with hiking bottles, gives insight why previous solutions fail, and shows the path to the presented solution. Here we extend prior art with what it is, why it is referenced, and to show disadvantages or new usages.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,580,343—bottle with a rigid handle. Rigid handle will cause wrists fatigue and is unsafe to use in 3-4 hour weightlifting exercise.
Patent AT4824U1—dumbbell-shaped bottle. Our solution is for any hiking bottle, and there is no need to manufacture a special bottle for weightlifting.

R1—Lightweight plastic bottle with a hand-strap. The strap and the bottle materials are too weak to scale up to the heavy metallic bottle (that is our object).
R2—Bottle strap made of rigid material. This material will hurt hands if used on heavy metallic bottles at intensive weightlifting exercises (that is our subject).
R3, R4—Silicon bands for water bottles. These bands will squeeze and hurt hands when used with big and heavy bottles. And heavy bottles will be wiggling if controlled by such rubber bands, increasing risk of injuries.
R5—Silicon boot for HydroFlask or ThermoFlask. Its bottom will get chewed up quickly with a common weightlifting exercise where bottles collide up to 1,000 times a trip. With every independent claim we specify thicker bottom of this boot/bumper to prevent damaging bottles and hurting hands. Longer sleeve or a hole in the sleeve for a strap needed to secure boot/bumper to the bottle in some embodiments.
R6—Furniture sliders. In Do-It-Yourself embodiment we found new usage for them as bottle bumpers.
R7—VELCRO elastic strap. It is used in many industrial applications like lumber and cable holders. We claim another usage as a bottle strap. Soft lock should be flipped over to be used as the bottle strap and the length of the strap should be predefined.

CONCLUSION, RAMIFICATIONS, AND SCOPE

Heavy bottle is a different beast than a light-weight (plastic, aluminum, or single-layered metallic without vacuum insulation) bottle. Weightlifting exercise performed hundred times several hours in row is a new experience. The idea of carrying 2-4 lb bottle in each hand several hours may sound daunting. But with new materials' usage, new design, and with the understanding of how hands and arms work with the bootstrapped bottles—we dramatically reduce stress, fatigue, and overall concerns around this exercise.

Many manufactures can add weightlifting elements to their hiking bottles easily. Number of bootstrapped bottle owners will eventually reach critical mass, and other hikers will ask: “What's that for?” and “Where did you buy them?” And voila—weightlifting while hiking is trending and now bootstrapped bottles have a broad base to spread across. Such perspective should petrify manufactures and vendors who have not adopted this idea in the first place:

It is about new market that can be grown to the stage when it becomes self-growing.

It is about new customers coming for two bottles—per person.

It is about old customers coming for another bottle and a bootstrap device for the bottle they already have.

Now it is the time to emphasize benefits of adding weightlifting on top of walking. It is all about health—the actual scope of this invention:

Lungs and heart are pumped in and out at 100% rate and beyond.

Sarcopenia (loss of muscle tissue as a natural part of the aging process) won't be waiting around the corner.

In COVID-19 pandemics, it is not the virus per se that kills, but the inability to breathe with stiffen lungs. Forcing lungs expansion and contraction helps to beat such complication. Preparing your rib cage muscles for such kind of battle is a smart move.

When COVID-19 patients are knocked out and hooked up to ventilators with medically induced coma for several weeks—physically fit individuals have much better chances to come off and to restart their system.