Patent ID: 7946971

Claim:
An apparatus for stretching at least a hamstring muscle of a leg of a user, the leg of the user comprising an upper leg portion extending between a hip and a knee of the user and a lower leg portion extending from the knee and away from the upper leg portion, the stretching apparatus comprising: a lower leg support moving relative to a torso of the user and positioned to engage the lower leg portion during stretching, wherein the lower leg support moves to extend the lower leg portion relative to the upper leg portion, resultantly moving both the lower leg portion and the upper leg portion toward an upper torso of the of the user during stretching; wherein the lower leg support is constrained to move, independently of engagement of the lower leg portion, in a predetermined path during stretching; wherein the lower leg support moves the upper leg portion to form a stretching angle between longitudinal axes of both the upper leg portion and the torso of the user less than about ninety degrees; an actuator coupled to the lower leg support and operable by the user, the actuator configured to move the lower leg support along the predetermined path toward the upper torso of the user and configured to move both the lower leg support and the lower leg portion in at least a portion of an area between the hip of the user and the upper torso of the user such that the lower leg support has an angular displacement toward the upper torso and relative to the hip of the user greater than the concurrent angular displacement of the upper leg portion relative to the hip of the user, to cause stretching of at least a hamstring muscle of the leg of the user; and wherein actuation of the lower leg support along the predetermined path to move the upper leg portion towards the upper torso of the user during stretching does not inhibit movement of the upper leg portion toward the upper torso.