Patent ID: 8157712

Claim:
A resistance exercise and physical therapy apparatus comprising: an elongate resilient member having a proximal end and a distal end, wherein the elongate resilient member comprises an elastically flexible material; a first enlarged portion of the elongate resilient member that is located at the proximal ends; a second enlarged portion of the elongate resilient member that is located at the distal end; and one or more spaced-apart third enlarged portions along the length of the elongate resilient member wherein the first enlarged portion comprises: a first generally flat surface facing oppositely away from the second enlarged portion, and a second generally flat surface that is parallel to the first generally flat surface and facing oppositely away from the first generally flat surface, wherein the elongate resilient member extends axially away from the second generally flat surface in a direction opposite from the first generally flat surface, wherein the first enlarged portion has a height defined by a distance between the first generally flat surface and the second generally flat surface, the height of the first enlarged portion being configured so that, when the first enlarged portion is placed in a cavity between a user's big toe and adjacent second toe so that the second generally flat surface engages a bottom of the user's foot, the first generally flat surface does not extend beyond a plane defined by portions of the user's foot that contact a surface when the user is standing on the surface, and wherein the second generally flat surface has a shape and size configured to be anchored by one or more bones of the user's foot when the second generally flat surface engages a bottom of the user's foot.