Abstract:
An exercise mitt removably wearable on a person&#39;s hand or foot extremity during fitness activity of the kind involving the exertion of pressure by a portion of such an extremity on an external support surface. The mitt includes an expanse of compressible, elastomeric, frictioning fabric material possessing resistance to slippage, and having opposite, inner and outer surface portions. The inner surface portion is adapted to contact such an extremity portion with the mitt worn by a person for use, and the outer surface portion, under the same worn-for-use condition, is adapted to contact such an external support surface. The inner and outer surface portions are defined by evenly contoured, continuity surfaces which are interrupted by a distribution of plural, spaced, through-expanse apertures which open to the expanse&#39;s opposite surface portions, and which have full perimeters to which the associated, adjacent continuity surfaces fully extend.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application is a continuation of currently co-pending, predecessor application Ser. No. 10/356,828, filed Feb. 3, 2003, for “Exercise Mitt”, which predecessor application claims priority to Provisional U.S. Patent Application Ser. No. 60/354,448, filed Feb. 4, 2002, for “Exercise Mitt”. The entire disclosure contents of these two, prior-filed patent applications, are hereby incorporated herein by reference. 
     
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
       [0002]    The present invention relates to an exercise mitt for a hand or foot, which is particularly useful in an exercise form, or a fitness activity, such as yoga in which a practitioner maintains a pose or shifts body position while his/her hand and/or foot is in contact with a support surface. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0003]    The key to success in yoga is the ability to relax in the yoga poses, so that one&#39;s muscles are both strengthened and lengthened, even as one relaxes, breathes deeply, and meditates. Sometimes a pose is held for a considerable length of time, up to ten, or even thirty, minutes. What makes this challenging is the difficulty of the various poses, many of which require the student to exert pressure on the floor (though several different body parts) in both downward and outward directions. Slipping, which can result in failure to properly perform the posture, is a concern, and the control that one must exert to avoid slipping can interfere with one&#39;s ability to relax while holding the pose. This can, of course, be a particular problem for beginners. 
         [0004]    One product that has been designed to address this problem is referred to as a “yoga mat;” a thin flexible pad, usually around two-and-a-half by six feet, with a rubbery, non-slip surface both on the top and the bottom. The student does the poses on top of the mat, which helps to keep him or her from slipping and also provides some padding for the poses in which the student is sitting or lying on the floor. Yoga practitioners now commonly use this type of mat. 
         [0005]    Yoga has, in recent years, expanded dramatically in popularity. Yoga studios have cropped up seemingly everywhere and there are dozens of instructional videos on the market. Displays of these videos, along with yoga props (including, of course, the yoga mat) can be found not only in video and exercise stores but also in health food stores, up-scale supermarkets, department stores, and bookstores. 
         [0006]    In applicants&#39; experience, there are some drawbacks to yoga mats. For example, if a yoga practitioner is traveling, and wants to practice yoga, the practitioner may find it necessary to carry the mat. Moreover, if a practitioner wants to practice in a room that is already carpeted, the practitioner may not feel the need or desire to use a mat. Still further, the aesthetic setting for the practitioner may be important, and the practitioner may prefer a setting that does not use a mat. For example, a yoga practitioner may find it important to practice yoga in a setting that includes beautiful woven wool rugs and may prefer to perform the yoga postures directly on those rugs, but the use of mats may detract from the aesthetics of the setting. In such circumstances, if a mat is not used, slippage can still be an issue for the practitioner. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0007]    The present invention provides a specially configured, removably wearable exercise mitt for a practitioner&#39;s hands and/or feet designed to address the problem of slippage when the practitioner is practicing an exercise form such as yoga, where the practitioner exerts pressure on a support surface such as the floor or a carpet or rug in both downward and outward directions as the practitioner is practicing the exercise form. The mitt includes a sleeve configured to fit snugly about a portion of a human extremity (hand or foot) while permitting portions of that extremity to extend out of the sleeve. The sleeve has inner and outer, frictioning surface portions, with the outer surface portion being configured to contact the support surface as the wearer takes predetermined positions relative to the support surface. The outer surface portion is configured to resist the human extremity from sliding against the support surface, and the inner surface portion is configured to resist relative movement between the human extremity and the sleeve as the wearer applies pressure against the surface and takes predetermined positions relative to the support surface. 
         [0008]    An exercise mitt according to the present invention is also designed to address a particular problem for yoga practitioners identified by the applicants in designing the mitt. Specifically, applicants determined that to be effective in an exercise form such as yoga, the mitt had to prevent slippage between the mitt and a support surface, and also prevent slippage between the mitt and the wearer&#39;s hand/foot, as the wearer exerts pressure in both downward and outward directions on a surface during the exercise form. In their research, applicants examined existing gloves such as weight lifting gloves, fishing gloves, batting gloves, even gardening gloves, but found that such products tended to be bulky and heavy and, more importantly, the applicants found that their hands inevitably slipped around inside these gloves, so that the skin between their fingers was jammed up against the material of the glove, which was very uncomfortable, or even painful. In other words, although some of the products stuck to the floor, they did not stick to the hand. Applicants found nothing for feet that even came close to what they envisioned. 
         [0009]    Thus, in designing the exercise mitts of the present invention, the inventors effectively started from scratch, and sought to incorporate all the features they wanted in the mitts—comfort and lightweightness, with a sleeve having a snug fit (enhancing both comfort and resistance to slippage), covering only part of the extremity (yoga students are used to having bare hands and feet, and a partial coverage is more comfortable), with both an inside and outside, non-slip, frictioning surface. Although partial finger coverage can be incorporated into the exercise mitts, and is not inconsistent with their basic design, the inventors found that effective, comfortable mitts for the hands, and for the feet, can be made with no fingers at all. This enhances comfort and reduces bulk. The non-slip surface on the inside prevents the extremity from slipping out of the sleeve as downward and outward pressure is applied to a support surface. 
         [0010]    The present invention is believed to have advantages over the yoga mat. Exercise mitts according to the invention are small (with a tiny fraction of the bulk of a yoga mat) and can thus be easily transported in a gym-bag, a suitcase (for travelers), or even a purse. They can also be easily stored at home, in a convenient drawer or niche wherever the user exercises—a much smaller niche than a mat requires. If one is wearing a cropped exercise top (or, in the case of a man, doing yoga without a shirt on), the skin of one&#39;s back tends to stick to a yoga mat when doing poses in the supine position. When one then moves from that position, the mat can shift and become wrinkled. Even ones&#39; hands and feet can stick, causing the same problem. The mitts of the present invention, however, don&#39;t “bunch up” or shift, like a mat, and they don&#39;t cause a user&#39;s back to stick to the floor. The mitts also do not define and limit a user&#39;s workout space, as a mat does. Therefore, a user does not need to adjust his/her position simply to stay on the mat. 
         [0011]    Additional features of the present invention will become further apparent from the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings. 
     
    
     
       DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0012]      FIG. 1   a  is a perspective view of an exercise mitt according to the present invention on a practitioner&#39;s hand. 
           [0013]      FIG. 1   b  is a perspective view of an exercise mitt according to the present invention on a practitioner&#39;s foot. 
           [0014]      FIG. 2   a  is a view of the right side of the exercise mitt of  FIG. 1   a.    
           [0015]      FIG. 2   b  is an enlarged, fragmentary, cutaway section of the perforated component of the exercise mitt of  FIG. 1   a , showing the inside face, or surface portion, of the perforated component, and showing part of the material of the perforated component in section. 
           [0016]      FIG. 2   c  is a front view of the exercise mitt of  FIG. 1   a.    
           [0017]      FIG. 2   d  is a rear view of the exercise mitt of  FIG. 1   a.    
           [0018]      FIG. 2   e  is a left side view of the exercise mitt of  FIG. 1   a.    
           [0019]      FIG. 2   f  is a top view of the exercise mitt of  FIG. 1   a.    
           [0020]      FIG. 2   g  is a bottom view of the exercise mitt of  FIG. 1   a.    
           [0021]      FIG. 3   a  is a view of the right side of the exercise mitt of  FIG. 1   b.    
           [0022]      FIG. 3   b  is an enlarged, fragmentary, cutaway section of the perforated component of the exercise mitt of  FIG. 1   b , showing the inside face, or surface portion, of the perforated component, and showing part of the material of the perforated component in section. 
           [0023]      FIG. 3   c  is a front view of the exercise mitt of  FIG. 1   b.    
           [0024]      FIG. 3   d  is a rear view of the exercise mitt of  FIG. 1   b.    
           [0025]      FIG. 3   e  is a left side view of the exercise mitt of  FIG. 1   b.    
           [0026]      FIG. 3   f  is a top view of the exercise mitt of  FIG. 1   b.    
           [0027]      FIG. 3   g  is a bottom view of the exercise mitt of  FIG. 1   b.    
           [0028]      FIG. 4   a  is a top view of a left hand mitt according to the present invention, and showing an alternative way of securing the mitt to a practitioner&#39;s hand. 
           [0029]      FIG. 4   b  is a top view of a left hand mitt according to the present invention, and showing another alternative way of securing the mitt to a practitioner&#39;s hand. 
           [0030]      FIGS. 5 and 6  are schematic illustrations of a yoga practitioner&#39;s hand and foot, while the practitioner is in yoga poses on a support surface and showing how hand and foot mitts according to the present invention resist slippage of the practitioner&#39;s hand and foot as the practitioner puts pressure in downward and outward directions relative to the support surface. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0031]    As set forth above, the present invention provides an exercise mitt which is particularly useful in the practice of an exercise form such as yoga. The present invention is described below in connection with mitts designed and useful in the practice of yoga, but it will be clear to those in the art that the principles of the invention are useful in the configuration of mitts that are designed for similar exercise forms (e.g. pilates) where the practitioner is required to apply pressure in both downward and outward directions against a support surface as the practitioner shifts positions relative to the support surface. 
         [0032]      FIGS. 1   a ,  2   a - 2   g  illustrate one version of a hand mitt  10  according to the principles of the present invention. The mitt includes a sleeve  12  configured to fit snugly about a portion of a wearer&#39;s hand while permitting portions of the hand to extend out of the sleeve. A wearer&#39;s hand is inserted into the sleeve through a rear opening  15  of the sleeve. As the wearer&#39;s hand is properly fitted into the sleeve, the wearer&#39;s thumb extends through a thumb opening  17  in the sleeve, and the remaining fingers of the wearer extend through an opening  19  in the front end  21  of the sleeve  12 . 
         [0033]    Sleeve  12  is formed by a stretch component  11  and a perforated frictioning component, or expanse,  13  that are coupled together (e.g. they are sewn together). Component  13  includes a distribution of plural openings, or through-expanse apertures,  13   a  (see  FIG. 2   b ) which open to opposite sides, or faces, or surface portions,  14 ,  16  in the component. The stretch component  11  is formed e.g. of material such as a woven blend of cotton, nylon and/or polyester, which will stretch to enable a wearer to insert a hand into the sleeve, and then contract the sleeve to a snug fit against the wearer&#39;s hand. The perforated component  13  is formed e.g. of a compressible, frictioning, elastomeric foam fabric material that is a poly vinyl chloride blend (of a type distributed by Bheka Yoga Supplies Co., Ashland, Oreg., as “XT-PERFORATED (a.k.a. the Holy Mat)” and “CODE=XTPERF”), and has inner and outer frictioning surface portions  14 ,  16 , respectively (previously mentioned). The inner and outer surface portions  14 ,  16 , also referred to herein as evenly contoured continuity surfaces, are configured to contact the wearer&#39;s hand and an external support surface (e.g. a rug, a floor, etc.), respectively, as the wearer takes predetermined positions relative to the support surface. 
         [0034]    In the mitt of  FIGS. 1 ,  2   a - 2   g , and because of material frictioning (non-slip) characteristics, the outer surface portion  16  is configured to resist the wearer&#39;s hand from sliding against the support surface and the inner surface portion  14  is configured to resist relative movement between the wearer&#39;s hand and the sleeve  12  as the wearer applies pressure in downward and outward directions against the support surface. As illustrated in  FIG. 5 , when a practitioner applies force on the surface  18  (e.g. in the direction  20   a ), the mitt resists slippage of the practitioner&#39;s hand in directions parallel to the surface (e.g. in directions  20   b ,  20   c ). 
         [0035]    The stretch component  11  of the sleeve  12  enables the sleeve to fit snugly about the portion of the human extremity. Specifically, the stretch component enables the rear opening  15  to widen as a wearer inserts a hand into the sleeve, and then causes the sleeve to contract to a snug fit about the wearer&#39;s hand. The sleeve  12  may be designed in standard sizes (e.g. small, medium, large, etc.) in accordance with conventional glove or mitten sizing. Also, the sleeve is made as thin as possible to enable the wearer (e.g. a yoga practitioner) to more effectively “feel” the support surface through the covered portion of the practitioner&#39;s hand/foot. 
         [0036]      FIGS. 1   b ,  3   a - 3   g  show a mitt  30  configured for a practitioner&#39;s foot. The construction of the mitt  30  is generally similar to the hand mitt  10  of  FIG. 1   a , in that it includes a sleeve  32  formed by a stretch component  31  coupled to a perforated frictioning component, or expanse,  33 . The stretch component  31  and the perforated component  33  are formed of the same types of materials described in connection with the hand mitt of  FIG. 1   a . The stretch component  31  enables a rear opening  35  in the mitt to stretch to enable a wearer to insert a foot into the sleeve, and then contract the mitt to a snug fit against the wearer&#39;s foot. The front end  41  has an opening  39 , through which the wearer&#39;s toes extend when the mitt is properly fitted on the wearer&#39;s foot. Component  33  is similar to previously mentioned component  13  in that it also includes a distribution of plural openings, or through-expanse apertures,  33   a  (see  FIGS. 3   a - 3   c , inclusive, and  FIG. 3   g ) which open to its opposite sides, or faces, or surface portions,  34 ,  36 . Additionally, component  33 &#39;s inner and outer frictioning surface portions  34 ,  36 , respectively, have the same function as the inner and outer frictioning surface portions of the hand mitt. Inner and outer surface portions  34 ,  36 , respectively, are also referred to herein as evenly contoured continuity surfaces. 
         [0037]    As illustrated in  FIG. 6 , when a practitioner who is wearing the foot mitt takes positions in which the practitioner applies downward pressure to a support surface  38  (e.g. in the direction shown by arrow  38   a ), the outer surface portion  36  resists movement of a practitioner&#39;s foot relative to the support surface (e.g. in directions  38   b ,  38   c ). The inner surface portion,  34 , of the perforated component resists relative movement between the practitioner&#39;s foot and the mitt. 
         [0038]    In the foot mitt of  FIGS. 1   b ,  3   a - 3   g , sleeve  32  is configured to fit snugly about the ball (and possibly part of the arch) of a human foot, and the wearer&#39;s toes extend through the front opening  39  in the mitt. A segment of material  42  extends across the front opening  39 , divides the front opening and provides the front opening with a comfortable separation of the wearer&#39;s big toe from the remainder of the toes. Moreover, it is contemplated that it may also be useful to provide a similar segment of material in a hand mitt, oriented so as to be located across the front opening in the hand mitt and between the first and second fingers of the wearer. For example, in the version of the left hand mitt shown in  FIG. 4   b , a segment of material  60  extends across the front opening of the mitt, and is designed to be located between the first and second fingers of a wearer. 
         [0039]    In the version of the mitt shown in  FIGS. 4   a  and  4   b , a sleeve  50  is formed by a fabric component  52  coupled to a perforated frictioning component  54 . The perforated frictioning component  54  is similar to the perforated frictioning component of  FIGS. 1   a ,  2   a - 2   g . It includes a distribution of plural openings, or through-expanse apertures,  54   a  which are like previously mentioned apertures  13   a ,  33   a . Additionally, it includes inner and outer surface portions which are like those described above in components  13 ,  33 . The fabric component  52  has a pair of flaps  52   a ,  52   b  that can separate to widen the rear opening  56  through which a hand can be inserted into the mitt. The flaps  52   a ,  52   b  have respective coupling portions  58   a ,  58   b , that can be coupled together to tighten the sleeve to a snug fit about a wearer&#39;s hand. For example, in the mitt of  FIG. 4   a , the flap  52   a  has a strap  60  and the coupling portion  58   a  is a piece of Velcro® material fixed to the strap  60 . The flap  52   b  has a mating piece of Velcro® material that forms the coupling portion  58   b . The Velcro®-material couplings on the strap  60  and the flap  52   b  enable a wearer to tighten the sleeve  50  to a snug fit about the wearer&#39;s hand. In the mitt of  FIG. 4   b , the flap  52   a  has a Velcro®-material coupling portion  58   a  on its inside surface, so that by overlapping the flaps  52   a ,  52   b  and coupling the Velcro-material portions  58   a ,  58   b , the sleeve  50  can be tightened to a snug fit about a wearer&#39;s hand. The versions of the mitts shown in  FIGS. 4   a ,  4   b , provides some flexibility in the selection of the fabric component  52 , since it may not be necessary to rely exclusively on capability of that component to stretch and then contract, to cause the sleeve to fit snugly about a wearer&#39;s hand. Moreover, the type of coupling illustrated in  FIGS. 4   a  and  4   b  allows a single mitt structure for a hand to be snugly fit to a variety of hand sizes. Specifically, the flaps  52   a ,  52   b  allow the rear opening  56  to be selectively widened, to accommodate hands of different sizes. In addition, it will be clear that similar alternative types of couplings can be applied to a foot mitt, to enable and a single version of mitt for a foot to be snugly fit to a variety of foot sizes. 
         [0040]    In the mitts shown in the drawing figures, the outer surface portions of the perforated components resist the human extremity from sliding against a support surface, and the inner surface portions of the perforated components resist relative movement between the human extremity and the sleeve  12  as the wearer applies pressure downward and outward against the surface and takes predetermined positions relative to the support surface. By outward, applicants mean pressure that would tend to cause a hand/foot to move in direction(s) parallel to the support surface (i.e., in any or all of the directions shown by arrows  20   b ,  20   c  in  FIGS. 5 and 38   b ,  38   c  in  FIG. 6 ). 
         [0041]    In each of the foregoing embodiments, the perforated component, or expanse, (e.g.  13 ,  33 ,  54 ) has openings, or through-expanse apertures, ( 13   a ,  33   a ,  54   a , respectively) that allow air to communicate with the wearer&#39;s hand or foot. In each of expanses  13 ,  33 ,  54 , and as can clearly be seen in the drawings, the through-expanse apertures open to the opposite (inner and outer) faces, or surface portions, of the expanse. In a hand mitt ( FIGS. 1   a ,  2   a - 2   g ), the perforated component  13  covers the palm of the wearer&#39;s hand, and in a foot mitt ( FIGS. 1   b ,  3   a - 3   g ), the perforated component  33  covers the ball (and possibly a small part of the arch) of the wearer&#39;s foot. In each mitt, the perforated component has an outer, frictioning surface portion (e.g.  16 ,  36 ) that resists the human extremity from sliding against the support surface. The perforated component also has an inner surface portion (e.g.  14 ,  34 ) that resists relative movement between the human extremity and the sleeve as the wearer applies pressure against a surface and takes predetermined positions relative to the surface. 
         [0042]    With further reference to the mentioned elastomeric, frictioning, perforated expanses, the associated inner and outer, evenly contoured continuity surfaces are interrupted by a distribution of plural, spaced, through-expanse apertures. And, relative to each such aperture, the associated continuity surfaces are seen to be continuous to the full perimeter of the aperture. In other words, other than for the presences of the surface-interrupted apertures, the identified continuity surfaces include no other discontinuities, such as surface projections. 
         [0043]    Although not as preferred, it is contemplated that the sleeve may be formed by a fabric portion that covers the appropriate portions of a hand or foot, and has coatings on its inner and outer sides, the coatings designed to cause the outer surface of the mitt to resist sliding movement against a support surface and to cause the mitt to resist movement relative of the wearer&#39;s hand/foot relative to the mitt as the wearer applies downward and outward pressure against a support surface. The coatings can be formed of material (e.g. rubber, rubber/silicon) that resist relative movement between the mitt and a support surface and between the mitt and the wearer&#39;s hand/foot as the wearer applies pressure in downward and outward directions against a support surface during an exercise form such as yoga. 
         [0044]    Reflecting now on the invention-disclosure text presented above, a very interesting performance feature of the exercise mitt of the present invention, given the above-described construction of the included elastomeric, anti-slip, perforate component, or expanse, and making the cooperative relationship which exists between reference here for a moment specifically to  FIG. 3   b  in the drawings, relates specially to the apertures in this expanse and the surrounding continuity surfaces. When the exercise mitt of the invention is in use, there is a region—a perimeter-bounded, nominal surface area—of compression within the perforate component (at whatever compression level then exists between, say, the user&#39;s hand and some external support surface) which is in “opposite-side” pressure-contact both with the hand and with that support surface, except, of course, where apertures exists. This pressure-contact area, of course, is actually the “nominal”, perimeter-bounded area minus the cumulative areas of the included apertures. This “actual” pressure contact area furnishes frictional, anti-slip resistance in relation to (a) its actual, instantaneous size, (b) the coefficient of friction of the perforate expanse material, and (c) the instantaneous level of pressure. 
         [0045]    Uniquely, as pressure (compression) is increased and reduced (in a normal fashion) during an exercise event, compressibility and elastomericity in the perforate component causes its physical configuration to change in a manner which effectively tends to close and open the transverse areas of the apertures, and thus to increase and decrease, respectively, the effective, or actual, anti-slip, frictional contact areas, and thus the anti-slip resistances, that are associated with the hand and the external support surface. Accordingly, during an exercise event, while the perforate component in the exercise mitt of this invention clearly, and generally, under all circumstances, provides cooling ventilation and continuous, opposite-side frictional contact at some level, it actually increases and decreases its frictional-contact performance in relation directly to the amount of compressive force exerted through it. In other words, the more or less that frictional contact is actually required to prevent a slip event from occurring, as dictated by exercise “compression level”, the proportionately more or less is the actual frictional resistance to such slippage which takes place, or is provided by the mitt of this invention—such occurring in direct proportion to the amount of compressive exercise force involved. 
         [0046]    Thus, the unique mitt of this invention directly adapts its anti-slip behavior to a user&#39;s actual exercise behavior, insofar as that behavior is characterized with varying needs for anti-slip performance. 
         [0047]    This behavior, of course, is quite different from that which one would experience if the subject perforations did not exist, and if these perforations did not open to true continuity surfaces (as described herein) whose actual contact surface areas tend to grow and shrink accordingly with increased and decreased levels, respectively, of through-pressure in the anti-slip material. 
         [0048]    Accordingly, from the foregoing description, applicants have provided an exercise mitt which is particularly useful to a yoga practitioner, but it will be clear to those in the art that the principles of the present invention can be used to provide an exercise mitt for exercise practitioners whose exercise forms require the same type of features as the mitts of the present invention.