System and method for preparing workouts for a plurality of individuals and monitoring individual compliance

• US 20040229729A1
• Filed: 06/18/2002
• Published: 11/18/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 06/18/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Activ Trax
• Original Assignee: Activ Trax
• Inventors: Razzaque, Brian, Westbrook, Eric, Walton, Lewie, Albert, Gary
• Granted Patent: US 7,063,644 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 482/8
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2024/0065 Evaluating the fitness, e.g. fitness level or fitness index
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 24/0062 Monitoring athletic performances, e.g. for determining the work of a user on an exercise apparatus, the completed jogging or cycling distance
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 24/0075 Means for generating exercise programs or schemes, e.g. computerized virtual trainer, e.g. using expert databases
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 482/90 Ergometer with feedback to load or with feedback comparison

Abstract

A method of developing a workout comprising a series of exercises and communicating the workout to a user is disclosed that involves identifying a muscle group to use during a workout, selecting an intensity level for exercising the muscle group, selecting an exercise from a plurality of exercises for exercising the muscle group, selecting a routine from a plurality of routines for performing each of the plurality of exercises at the selected intensity level, each of the plurality of routines comprising a number of repetitions, selecting a resistance level related to the maximum resistance the user was able to manipulate on a first exercise machine, selecting a second exercise machine for performing the selected exercise, and displaying a workout comprising an identification of the second exercise machine, a name of an exercise to be performed on the second exercise machine, a resistance level to be used in performing the named exercise on the second exercise machine, and information relating to the number of repetitions and sets to be performed. A system for carrying out the method is also disclosed.

Claims

1. A system for automatically generating a workout comprising:

a processor having an input and an output;

a memory device operably connected to said processor;

an input device operably connected to said processor input; and

a display device operably connected to said processor output;

wherein said system is configured to display a set of workout instructions based on input comprising;

a plurality of physical characteristics of an individual, the results of a physical assessment of the individual on a series of test exercises, and a list of exercise equipment available to the individual.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein said input further comprises an identification of at least one muscle group to be exercised during a workout.

3. The system of claim 2 wherein said input further comprises a workout intensity associated with each of said at least one muscle group.

4. The system of claim 2 wherein said set of workout instructions comprises an identification of a first set of exercises for performance on a first day and a second set of exercises for performance on a second day.

5. The system of claim 2 wherein said set of workout instructions comprises an identification of a plurality of exercises and at least one variable associated with each of said plurality of exercises.

6. The system of claim 5 wherein said at least one variable comprises an amount of resistance.

8. The system of claim 5 wherein said at least one variable comprises a number of repetitions.

9. The system of claim 5 wherein said plurality of exercises are selected from the group consisting of aerobic exercises, resistance exercises, and abdominal exercises.

10. The system of claim 5 wherein said plurality of exercises include a series of exercises intended to familiarize a user with an exercise machine.

11. The system of claim 2 wherein said plurality of physical characteristics are selected from the group consisting of:

height, weight, age, sex, blood pressure, body fat percentage, VO₂, calf circumference, thigh circumference, waist circumference and chest circumference.

12. The system of claim 2 wherein said input comprises an exercise goal selected from the group consisting of:

reducing stress, increasing strength, improving flexibility, improving posture, losing weight, improving cardio health, maintaining weight and improving self-image.

13. The system of claim 12 wherein an importance level is associated with each of said at least one exercise goal.

14. The system of claim 2 wherein the series of test exercises are selected from the group consisting of:

seated chest press, wide grip front pulldown, 45 degree leg press, seated shoulder press, seated back extension, and crunch.

15. The system of claim 2 wherein the exercise equipment on the list of exercise equipment includes resistance machines, cardio machines and free weights.

16. The system of claim 2 wherein said input further comprises data representing a user'"'"'s past performance on a workout.

7. The system of claim 7 wherein said at least one variable comprises a period of time.

17. A method of automatically generating a workout for a user comprising the steps of:

obtaining health information of the user;

measuring a performance of the user on a series of test exercises;

identifying a plurality of exercise devices available to the user; and

preparing a workout plan for the user based on the heath information and the plurality of exercise devices available to the user and automatically generating workouts based on the workout plan and the performance of the individual on the series of test exercises.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein the step of preparing a workout plan comprises the step of determining at least one muscle or group of muscles to be affected by the workout.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein the step of automatically generating a workout comprises the step of selecting at least one exercise from a database of exercises.

20. The method of claim 18 wherein the step of automatically generating a workout comprises the step of selecting a first exercise comprising a first number of repetitions to be performed using a first exercise device at a first setting.

21. The method of claim 18 wherein the step of automatically generating a workout comprises the step of selecting a first exercise comprising a first period of time for using a first exercise device at a first setting.

22. A method of monitoring compliance by a plurality of individuals with a personal exercise program assigned to each of the plurality of individuals comprising the steps of:

providing in a database a record for each of the plurality of individuals, each record including an individual identifier field, a goal number of workouts per unit time period field, and an actual number of workouts per unit time period field;

entering a numerical value representing a goal number of workouts per unit time into the goal number of workouts per unit time field of each record;

entering a numerical value representing an actual number of workouts completed into the actual number of workouts per unit time field of each record;

for each record for each time period, comparing said actual number of workouts with said goal number of workouts; and

for each time period, identifying each record in which the actual number of workouts differs from the goal number of workouts.

23. The method of claim 22 including the additional step of preparing from said database a list of individuals associated with records in which the actual number of workouts differs from the goal number of workouts.

24. The method of claim 22 including the additional step of preparing from said database a list of individuals associated with records in which the actual number of workouts differs from the goal number of workouts and associating with each of the individuals in the list a first graphic symbol when said actual number of workouts is greater than said goal number of workouts and a second graphic symbol when said actual number of workouts is less than said goal number of workouts.

25. The method of claims 22 including the additional step of providing for each record a message field and generating a message in said message field based on the value of the actual number of workouts field.

26. The method of claim 22 including the additional step of providing for each record an attendance field and storing in said attendance field of each record information concerning actual attendance for a plurality of time periods.

27. The method of claim 22 including the additional step of preparing from said database a list of individuals associated with records in which the actual number of workouts differs from the goal number of workouts and associating with each of the individuals in the list a first graphic symbol representative of a status of the individual.

28. A method of preparing an exercise program for an individual comprising the steps of:

providing a computer having a processor, a memory operably connected to said processor, an input device operably connected to said processor and an output device operably connected to said processor;

storing in said memory data relating to a physical condition of an individual;

measuring the performance of the individual on a series of physical tests;

entering the data related to the performance of the individual on the series of tests into said memory device;

developing an exercise program for the individual based on the data in the memory device;

automatically generating a first workout for the individual to follow at a first time;

printing the first workout;

entering into the memory data concerning the performance of the individual during the first workout; and

printing a second workout for the individual to follow at a second time subsequent to said first time, said second workout being based in part on the data concerning the performance of the individual during the first workout at the first time.

29. A method of determining an appropriate resistance for an individual to use in exercising in a given manner comprising the steps of:

determining the maximum resistance a user can manipulate during a first exercise;

determining a function that relates said first exercise to at least one given exercise;

from said function, predicting a maximum resistance with which the user will be able to exercise during said at least one given exercise; and

displaying an indication of said maximum resistance or a function of said maximum resistance.

30. The method of claim 29 wherein the step of displaying an indication of said maximum resistance or a function of said maximum resistance comprises the step of displaying a predetermined fraction of said maximum resistance.

31. A method of establishing an appropriate resistance for an individual to use in performing an exercise comprising the steps of:

determining the maximum resistance a user can manipulate during a first exercise performed with a first exercise device;

determining a function that relates said first exercise to at least a second exercise;

from said function, predicting a maximum resistance the user will be able to manipulate during said second exercise performed on a second exercise device;

setting a resistance level on a second exercise device to a level related to said second exercise maximum resistance.

32. A method of establishing an appropriate resistance for an individual to use in performing an exercise comprising the steps of:

determining the maximum resistance a user can manipulate during a first exercise performed with a first exercise device;

determining a plurality of functions that relate said first exercise to a plurality of second exercises;

from a selected one of said plurality of functions, predicting a maximum resistance the user will be able to manipulate during a selected one of said plurality of second exercises;

selecting a second exercise device from the group consisting of exercise devices for performing said second exercise;

determining a relationship among the exercise devices in said group consisting of exercise devices for performing said second exercise; and

setting a resistance level on the selected second exercise device to a level related to said second exercise maximum resistance and to said relationship among the exercise devices in said group consisting of exercise devices for performing said second exercise.

33. A method of developing a workout comprising a series of exercises and communicating said workout to a user comprising the steps of:

identifying a muscle group to use during a workout;

selecting an intensity level for exercising said muscle group;

selecting an exercise from a plurality of exercises for exercising said muscle group;

selecting a routine from a plurality of routines for performing each of said plurality of exercises at said selected intensity level, each of said plurality of routines comprising a number of repetitions;

selecting a resistance level related to the maximum resistance the user was able to manipulate on a first exercise machine;

selecting a second exercise machine for performing the selected exercise; and

displaying a workout comprising an identification of the second exercise machine, a name of an exercise to be performed on the second exercise machine, a resistance level to be used in performing the named exercise on the second exercise machine, and information relating to the number of repetitions and sets of the exercise to be performed.

34. A method of generating workouts for a person comprising the steps of:

developing a workout routine comprising a series of muscles to be used, an intensity level for working each muscle in the series of muscles and a number of sets of exercises to be performed with each muscle;

measuring a maximum resistance against which a person performs a baseline exercise on a first exercise machine;

automatically selecting an exercise for one of the muscles in said series of muscles;

automatically selecting a second exercise machine for performing the selected exercise;

selecting a workout resistance for said second exercise as a function of the selected exercise and said maximum resistance; and

displaying a workout comprising an identification of the second exercise, the second exercise machine and the working resistance.

35. The method of claim 34 wherein the step of selecting a workout resistance comprises the steps of selecting a workout resistance as a function of the selected exercise, said maximum resistance, and a characteristic of said second exercise machine.

36. The method of claim 35 wherein the step of selecting a workout resistance comprises the step of selecting a workout resistance based on a characteristic of the person.

37. The method of claim 35 wherein the step of selecting a workout resistance comprises the step of selecting a workout resistance based on a performance of the person during a prior workout.

38. The method of claim 34 wherein the step of displaying a workout comprising the additional step of displaying a number of repetitions of the second exercise.

39. The method of claim 35 including the additional step of displaying a number of sets of said number of repetitions.

40. The method of claim 39 including the additional step of displaying a number representing the length of a rest period between the sets of said number of sets.

41. The method of claim 34 including the step of consulting a database of conditions before automatically selecting an exercise for one of the muscles in said series of muscles and not selecting an exercise or an exercise machine prohibited by a condition in said database of conditions.

42. A system for generating a workout for a person comprising:

a processor having an input and an output;

a memory device operably connected to said processor;

an input device operably connected to said processor input;

a display device operably connected to said processor output;

a workout routine stored in said memory and comprising a list of a series of muscles to be used, an intensity level for working each muscle in the series of muscles and a number of sets of exercises to be performed with each muscle;

a first value representing a maximum resistance against which a person performs a baseline exercise on a first exercise machine stored in said memory;

an identification of an exercise for one of the muscles in said list of a series of muscles stored in the memory;

an identification of a second exercise machine for performing the selected exercise stored in the memory;

an identification of a workout resistance for said second exercise stored in said memory wherein said workout resistance for said second exercise is a function of the selected exercise and said maximum resistance; and

a display of a workout comprising an identification of the second exercise, the second exercise machine and the working resistance.

43. A method of generating workouts comprising the steps of:

developing a workout routine comprising at least one muscle to be worked, an intensity level for working said at least one muscle and a number of sets of exercises to be performed with said at least one muscle;

selecting an exercise for said at least one muscle;

selecting a resistance level for performing the exercise;

selecting a weight rule for performing the exercise;

displaying a workout comprising an identification of the selected exercise, the selected resistance level, a number of repetitions and a number of sets.

44. The method of claim 43 wherein said weight rule specifies the length of a rest period between sets.

45. The method of claim 44 wherein said weigh rule includes an increase threshold.

46. The method of claim 45 including the additional step of recording the number of repetitions performed during each set in said number of sets.

47. The method of claim 46 including the additional step of incrementing a counter each time said number of repetitions performed during a set of said number of sets exceeds said increase threshold.

48. The method of claim 47 including the additional step of increasing the resistance level for the selected exercise each time said counter is incremented a predetermined number of times.

49. The method of claim 48 including the additional step of consulting a table to determine the amount of resistance by which to increase said resistance level.

50. The method of claim 47 including the additional step of increasing the resistance level of at least one exercise related to the selected exercise each time said counter is incremented by a predetermined amount.

51. The method of claim 47 including the additional step of increasing the resistance level of the selected exercise and the at least one exercise related to the selected exercise each time said counter is incremented by a predetermined amount.

52. The method of claim 50 wherein the step of increasing the resistance level of at least one exercise related to the selected exercise each time said counter is incremented by a predetermined amount comprises the steps of identifying at least one exercise related to the selected exercise and displaying a gender-specific resistance increase amount.

53. The method of claim 50 wherein the step of increasing the resistance level of at least one exercise related to the selected exercise each time said counter is incremented by a predetermined amount comprises the steps of identifying at least one exercise related to the selected exercise, a coefficient associated with said at least one exercise, and a male increase amount and a female increase amount associated with said at least one exercise and increasing said resistance level by a function of said coefficient and said male increase amount or of said coefficient and said female increase amount.