Abstract:
The disclosed invention relates to an exercise bag specifically designed to accommodate the practice routines of the martial arts and kick-boxing practitioner. The bag features a suspendable enclosure having a bottom, a removable top and a continuously curving side. The enclosure is fabricated from a durable material and encloses a padded structure which, in turn, envelopes a water-tight resilient container that can be easily removed and re-inserted to facilitate toting.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates generally to an exercise bag that is used for striking, usually with the foot, as part of an exercise routine or practice associated with one of the numerous martial arts that are currently in vogue as part of a fitness regimen. More specifically, the disclosed bag can be used as a resistance target in karate, tai kwan do, kick-boxing or any of the variations thereof. 
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART 
     Exercise bags have been part of the exercise environment for years. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 291,015, issued Dec. 25, 1883 to Rumsey, describes efforts to provide an air-tight bag offering a large surface area and light weight resulting in a bag with quicker movements and thereby allegedly affording a better form of exercise for the striker. 
     G.B. Patent 432,056, issued Jul. 19, 1935 to Mallin describes a punching bag having an internal bladder that may be wholly or partially filled with water. The water content of the bag can be varied to alter the weight add, to some extent, the “yieldingness” of the bag. This bag is also equipped with straps to facilitate suspension. 
     U.K Patent Application 2,084,028, published Apr. 7, 1982 describes an athletic bag having a valved, flexible container filled with water and gas under pressure providing a firmness and resistance to a blow delivered by a fist, hand or foot of a practitioner of any of the martial arts. 
     And finally, Soviet Patent Document 1720671 A1, dated March 1992, describes a punch bag with two coaxial sealed elongated chambers filled with substances of different specific gravities. 
     Notwithstanding the similarities of the exercise bags comprising the relevant prior art, unmet needs of exercise aficionados, particularly kick boxing devotees, remain for a durable, light-weight kick bag that is readily suspendable to provide a cushioned resistance target that can be readily dismantled and easily transported to gym, home or office. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Specifically, what is described herein is an exercise bag which comprises a suspendable enclosure, said enclosure having a top, a bottom and a continuously curving lateral side surface. Typically, the enclosure will be fabricated from a durable material able to endure arduous and protracted amounts of physical activity. The enclosure encompasses a padded structure, also designed to suffer the effects of repeated, regular physical forces and contacts. The padded structure, in turn, envelopes a resilient water-tight container, typically containing water, which can be removed and re-inserted at will. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING 
     FIG. 1 is an elevated side view of the disclosed exercise bag in cross-section. 
     FIG. 2 is an elevated side view of the disclosed bag. 
     FIG. 3 is an elevated side view of the disclosed bag, suspended and ready for use. 
     FIG. 4 is an elevated side view of the disclosed bag, in cross-section, disassembled. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     For a clear and complete understanding of the disclosed kick-boxing bag, reference should be made to the drawing. Beginning with FIG. 1, the exercise bag  10  is depicted in its entirety. Typically, the bag will have a cylindrical shape and be about 50 centimeters in height. Readily apparent is the enclosure  12 . The enclosure serves as the skin of the bag  10 . It will incur all of the strikes and blows meted out by the practitioner as he kicks, jabs and chops the bag during his exercise regimen. Not surprisingly, the enclosure must be made of a durable material. Historically, most exercise, punching or speed bags were made of leather or canvas. Over the years, polyvinyl materials have become the enveloping material of choice. In addition to being durable, it is desirable for the enclosure to be relatively soft and gentle to the touch. Generally, heavily woven materials are too abrasive to the skin of the practitioner. 
     Within the enclosure  12 , the exercise bag  10  contains padded structures  14 ,  14   a ,  14   b  and however many additional structures that may be required to adequately pad the exercise bag after the centerpiece  16  of the bag  10  has been inserted. The centerpiece  16  is a resilient plastic container, filled with a liquid, preferably water, that is inserted within the padded confines of the bag  10 . Typically, the preferred centerpiece  16  is an empty two-liter soda pop container, filled with water to the shoulder  15  of the container and nestled within the padded structures  14   a, b , etc. 
     For easy insertion into the padded confines of the bag, the enclosure  12  has a removable top  11 . The top  11  can be held in place by a variety of fasteners, including buttons, zippers, snaps or the preferred hook and loop arrangement  13  depicted in FIG.  1 . The point is that when removing or installing the centerpiece  16 , the top  11  of the bag  10  can be removed to permit installation. To avoid removing all of the padding structure  14  within the bag, structures  14   a  and  14   b  have been cut or formed to permit selective removal so that the primary padded structure  14  can remain intact in the bag  10 . 
     To facilitate suspending the bag  10 , as for example, in the middle of a room, or at least away from undesirable obstructions, the bag  10  can be hung as depicted in FIG.  3 . The bag is ideally fitted with a suspending strap  18 , and more than one strap is deemed to be even more desirable. The bag  10  can also be decorated and equipped with a circmferential stripe  21  to provide a target for the practitioner. Typically, the stripe  21  will be colored to contrast with the appearance of the enclosure  12 . 
     Because the removable top  11  and padding  14  allow access to the vitals or interior of the bag  10 , the centerpiece container  16  and its contents can be removed after a workout at the gym and the bag made lighter for the tote home. However, as a practical matter, removal of the container  16  will only be necessary during longer journeys when even a little extra weight can become a burden. But, after protracted pounding by the blows, jabs and kicks of the practitioner, the materials of the bag, and its components, may wear and weaken. Over time, the padding  14  may become compressed and it can be removed and replaced with new padding by simply removing the top  11  and making the exchange. Furthermore, the resilient centerpiece  16  may also weaken after hours of hard use and develop small cracks, which will ultimately leak the contents of the container. The eventual failure of the centerpiece container  16  is not seen as a design flaw. To the contrary, the concern is not if the container will fail, but when it fails. The centerpiece container  16 , when filled with water to the recommended level  15  will compress and flex with each blow. Over time, the repeated compression will take its toll. And when it fails, the container  16  will it be easy and inexpensive to replace. After prolonged hard use, it is recommended and easy for the centerpiece container  16  to be removed and cursorily and routinely examined. When breaches are discerned, the availability and cost of a replacement centerpiece container  16  is not an issue and a “new” one can be readily inserted by removing convenient sections of the padding, e.g.  14   a  and  14   b , and replacing them after the centerpiece container has been positioned. 
     Bear in mind that the shapes and locations of padding pieces  14   a  and  14   b  (and however many additional pieces of padding might be needed) are not important. All of the padding material  14  could be irregular and amorphous, but for purposes of aesthetics and ease of manufacturing assembly, regular, defined pieces of padding  14  are preferred, and, accordingly, are depicted in the drawing. 
     FIGS. 2 and 4 should certainly remove all doubt as to the simple purpose and relationship of the padding  14 ,  14   a , and  14   b  to the centerpiece container  16 . At the risk of belaboring the painfully apparent, padding  14  can be shaped to accommodate the largest portion of the container  16 , padding  14   b  can be shaped to accommodate the neck and padding  14   b  can be shaped to provide additional padding between the container  16  and the top  11  of the bag  10 . And, again, this invention disclosure is not confined to placing particular pieces of padding in predetermined locations within the bag. The padding is intended to protect the hands and feet of the practitioner; and, of course, cushion the impact on the resilient centerpiece container  16 . Clearly, the purposes of the padding  14 , in this instance, far outweigh its form. 
     While the foregoing is a complete and detailed description of the preferred embodiment of the disclosed exercise bag, it should be apparent that numerous variations and modifications can be made and employed to implement the all-important purpose of the uniquely constituted bag without departing from the spirit of the invention, which is fairly defined by the appended claims.