Does this Kickstarter campaign spell the end of the gym spotter?
POSTED 16 Jul 2015 . BY Jak Phillips
The company says Maxx Bench provides the perfect solution for an age when 24 hour gymsmean more and more people are working out alone and unsupervised Credit: Kickstarter.com / Maxx Bench
A US-based equipment company is bidding to banish the fear of being crushed – either by weights or the embarrassment of being rescued – when bench-pressing without a spotter, by launching a Kickstarter campaign for its innovative Maxx Bench.
Billed as the “first safe free weight exercise bench in the world that does not compromise the integrity of the exercise,” the Maxx Bench is designed to enable gymgoers to push their limits without having to worry about the potentially dangerous consequences of an overambitious bench press.
The product is an attachable bench which uses hydraulics controlled by a foot pedal to drop its height, allowing the weight to be taken by safety bars when a lifter reaches their maximum. In terms of catching the bar, it offers a similar function to using a Smith Machine or benching in a power rack, but works with a free weight bench press which is typically cheaper to buy.
Maxx Bench company ‘leader’ Dave Vorozilchak says the invention provides the perfect solution for safety and legal challenges in an age when the emergence of low-cost 24 hour gyms is leading to more and more people working out alone and unsupervised.
The concept has certainly found initial support from backers. The Maxx Bench Kickstarter is 95 per cent of the way towards raising its US$50,000 (€46,000, £32,000) target, with more than 21 days to go. the company is targeting both the home and commercial markets with the product, which it hopes to begin shipping in February 2016.
The team behind an ambitious New York design project to create the ‘world's first
underground park’ have turned to Kickstarter to raise US$200,000 (€179,000, £127,000)
for technical development for the complex scheme.
New Zealand’s award-winning haunted theme park Spookers wants to bring the
fright to Australia after launching a NZ$200,000 (US$171,250, €126,000,
£102,000) Kickstarter campaign to rent an Aussie location.
Improving physical strength and fitness, mental health and confidence are the main reasons
for joining a health club, while cost, time and motivation are the main reasons for leaving.
Planet Fitness has announced the repurchase of 314,000 shares at a rate of US$20
million. The
Class A common stocks were repurchased and retired, using cash.
Xponential Fitness today indefinitely suspended founder and CEO, Anthony Geisler, saying it
had been notified on 7 May that the company is facing a legal challenge by the United States
Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California.
Phil Heath, professional athlete, bodybuilder and 7x Mr. Olympia, has fielded a lot of
questions about bodybuilding without machines. Should bodybuilders be limited to just free
weights? Why? [more...]
Complaints about group exercise have become a thing of the past for the Reynolds Group
thanks to its partnership with CoverMe, a digital platform that simplifies group exercise
and PT management for clubs and instructors. [more...]
Does this Kickstarter campaign spell the end of the gym spotter?
POSTED 16 Jul 2015 . BY Jak Phillips
The company says Maxx Bench provides the perfect solution for an age when 24 hour gymsmean more and more people are working out alone and unsupervised Credit: Kickstarter.com / Maxx Bench
A US-based equipment company is bidding to banish the fear of being crushed – either by weights or the embarrassment of being rescued – when bench-pressing without a spotter, by launching a Kickstarter campaign for its innovative Maxx Bench.
Billed as the “first safe free weight exercise bench in the world that does not compromise the integrity of the exercise,” the Maxx Bench is designed to enable gymgoers to push their limits without having to worry about the potentially dangerous consequences of an overambitious bench press.
The product is an attachable bench which uses hydraulics controlled by a foot pedal to drop its height, allowing the weight to be taken by safety bars when a lifter reaches their maximum. In terms of catching the bar, it offers a similar function to using a Smith Machine or benching in a power rack, but works with a free weight bench press which is typically cheaper to buy.
Maxx Bench company ‘leader’ Dave Vorozilchak says the invention provides the perfect solution for safety and legal challenges in an age when the emergence of low-cost 24 hour gyms is leading to more and more people working out alone and unsupervised.
The concept has certainly found initial support from backers. The Maxx Bench Kickstarter is 95 per cent of the way towards raising its US$50,000 (€46,000, £32,000) target, with more than 21 days to go. the company is targeting both the home and commercial markets with the product, which it hopes to begin shipping in February 2016.
The team behind an ambitious New York design project to create the ‘world's first
underground park’ have turned to Kickstarter to raise US$200,000 (€179,000, £127,000)
for technical development for the complex scheme.
New Zealand’s award-winning haunted theme park Spookers wants to bring the
fright to Australia after launching a NZ$200,000 (US$171,250, €126,000,
£102,000) Kickstarter campaign to rent an Aussie location.
Improving physical strength and fitness, mental health and confidence are the main reasons
for joining a health club, while cost, time and motivation are the main reasons for leaving.
Planet Fitness has announced the repurchase of 314,000 shares at a rate of US$20
million. The
Class A common stocks were repurchased and retired, using cash.
Xponential Fitness today indefinitely suspended founder and CEO, Anthony Geisler, saying it
had been notified on 7 May that the company is facing a legal challenge by the United States
Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California.
Fast Fitness Japan, master franchisee of Anytime Fitness in Japan, has acquired Eighty-8
Health
& Fitness, giving the company master franchisee rights to Anytime Fitness in Germany.
Phil Heath, professional athlete, bodybuilder and 7x Mr. Olympia, has fielded a lot of
questions about bodybuilding without machines. Should bodybuilders be limited to just free
weights? Why? [more...]
Complaints about group exercise have become a thing of the past for the Reynolds Group
thanks to its partnership with CoverMe, a digital platform that simplifies group exercise
and PT management for clubs and instructors. [more...]