Patent Publication Number: US-2010130335-A1

Title: Bench press

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     Not applicable. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention generally relates to exercise equipment, and more particularly, to an exercise apparatus for use during a resistance exercise, such as the bench press, squat, and curl exercises. 
     When bench pressing, a person lies on his back which is pressed against a bench, while his feet are on the floor. With two spaced apart hands grasping a horizontal bar, optionally supporting weights proximate the ends thereof, the person raises and lowers the bar over his chest. The counterbalanced weights at the end thereof are typically changeable weights which may provide a combined weight of several hundred pounds. At the end of the exercise, the person elevates the bar one last time to place it on support members provided on a frame that extends vertically with respect to the bench. 
     In some cases, the person is unable to raise the bar the last time to place it on the support members. In this case, the person typically uses the assistance of a separate spotter to assist in lifting the bar. Depending on the bench press apparatus, the person may alternatively let the weight down onto spaced apart horizontal supports and then extract himself from under the bar. 
     Unfortunately, most persons performing free weight exercises tend to perform the exercises in a non-optimal manner. For example, during the bench press exercise most people tend to move the bar in a curved plane which tends to work the chest considerably less than if the bar was moved in a more vertically perpendicular direction with respect to the bench. In addition, most people tend to move the bar up and down far too quickly which tends to work the chest considerably less and increase injury risk than if the bar was moved slower. 
     Some exercise apparatuses include a pair of vertical rails to which the bar is slidably engaged, generally referred to as a smith machine. For example, a person lays on a bench and presses against the bar which slides up and down on the rails to perform a bench press exercise. The bar will only move in a vertical path since it is slidably engaged with the vertical rails and unable to move in a different path. Unfortunately, the user simply needs to apply a vertical pressure on the bar to cause it to go up and down, although the amount of work performed by the person is limited because the user does not need to exert force to maintain the position of the bar, other than simply from sliding up and down the rails in a single plane of motor control. 
     The foregoing and other objectives, features, and advantages of the invention will be more readily understood upon consideration of the following detailed description of the invention, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The FIGURE illustrates a bench press apparatus. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring to the FIGURE, a bench press apparatus  10  is preferably constructed from steel. The bench press apparatus  10  includes a horizontal bench  12 , typically with a pad  14  thereon. The bench  12  is maintained off the floor by a set of legs  16 . The bench includes a pair of first vertical uprights  18 . Supported by each of the first vertical uprights  18  is an angled support  20 . An elongate bar  22  may be supported by the angled supports  20  and extends beyond the first vertical uprights  18 . A set of weights  24 , typically arranged as cylindrical disks, are selectively added to the ends of the bar  22 . In this manner, the person may select the desired amount of weight to lift during the exercise. 
     In some cases, the person may not have an available spotter to assist with lifting the weights in the event the person becomes to tired to replace the bar  22  to a height suitable for being supported by the supports  20  during the exercise. In this case, it is desirable to include a pair of supports  30  upon which the person may lower the bar  22  onto. The supports  30  are supported between the first pair of vertical uprights  18  and another pair of second vertical uprights  32 . The first vertical support  18  and second vertical support  32  preferably have matching openings therein  34 , through which the pair of supports  30  may be inserted. The supports  30  each preferably include a ring on an end thereof that is larger than the openings  34  so that the supports do not freely fall out of the openings. The supports  30  may include a hole therein through which a pin may be secured, thus preventing the supports  30  from becoming detached. In this manner, the pins  30  may be adjusted in elevation to prevent injury to the person, while also being readily detachable without the use of special tools. 
     The first vertical uprights  18  and second vertical uprights  32  extend above the openings  34 . The first vertical uprights  18  and second vertical uprights  32  are preferably substantially parallel to one another and spaced apart from one another. In this manner, the person presses the bar  22  in a vertical direction between the first and second vertical uprights  18 ,  32 . With the person centered between the first and second vertical uprights  18 ,  32 , it maintains the bar  22  from being moved in a non-perpendicular direction that is too far forward or too far backward. In this manner, the person presses the bar in a vertical orientation where the bar is loosely constrained by the pair of uprights. Also, since the user can readily observe the spacing between the bar  22  and the uprights, the person is more likely to maintain the bar  22  centered between the uprights. This immediate visual feedback as to the location of the bar  22  helps the person press the bar up and lower the bar down in a vertical orientation during the entire exercise, thereby increasing work of the chest muscles. 
     Without having the bar  22  slidably engaged with the uprights, the person still needs to maintain bar  22  in a vertical orientation during the exercise between the uprights. By requiring the person to maintain the bar  22  in the proper orientation, it increases the neural activity and thus the muscle tension while raising and lowering the bar. This increase in muscle tension thus results in a net increase in the energy being expended by the person thus increasing the effectiveness of the exercise. Furthermore, requiring the person to stabilize the bar in space builds strength more effectively than if the exercise is performed in a more haphazard manner. Moreover, having a pair of spaced apart uprights restrains the horizontal motion of the bar and tends to reduce the speed at which the person raises and lowers the bar, thus further encouraging the person to perform the exercise safely and effectively. 
     Preferably the spacing between the pairs of uprights  18  and  32  is less than 12 inches, more preferably less than 8 inches, approximately 4 inches, and more preferably less than 4 inches. With the bar and uprights  18  and  32  both being made of conductive material, an audio and/or visual indicator may be included that is activated when the bar touches one of the uprights  18 ,  32  indicating the person has let the bar travel too far off course. The indicator may be designed such that it only provides the indication when the bar and one of the uprights are in contact with one another. Also, the indicator may be designed such that it provides an indication that persists for some time after the bar and one of the uprights are no longer in contact with one another. 
     In another embodiment the angled supports  20  may be on the opposite side of the first vertical uprights  18 , preferably at the same elevation as shown in  FIG. 1 . In this manner, the angled supports do not interfere with the exercise. In another embodiment, the angled supports  20  may be on both sides of the first vertical uprights  18 , preferably at the same elevation as shown in  FIG. 1 . 
     The terms and expressions which have been employed in the foregoing specification are used therein as terms of description and not of limitation, and there is no intention, in the use of such terms and expressions, of excluding equivalents of the features shown and described or portions thereof, it being recognized that the scope of the invention is defined and limited only by the claims which follow.