Weighted apparel systems and methods for use in personal fitness

Abstract

A system for use in personal fitness can include an article of clothing configured to be worn by a user during a personal fitness session. The article of clothing can have a designated portion that includes a coupling mechanism. The article of clothing can also have a weighted unit having a coupling mechanism configured to interact with the coupling mechanism of the portion of the article of clothing to cause the weighted unit to remain substantially in place at the portion of the article of clothing during the personal fitness session.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A system for use in personal fitness, comprising:
 an article of clothing configured to be worn by a user during a personal fitness session, the article of clothing having a designated portion that includes a coupling mechanism; and   a first weighted unit having a coupling mechanism configured to interact with the coupling mechanism of the portion of the article of clothing to cause the first weighted unit to remain substantially in place at the portion of the article of clothing during the personal fitness session.   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the coupling mechanism of the portion of the article of clothing includes a plurality of metal units. 
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 2 , wherein the coupling mechanism of the first weighted unit includes a plurality of magnetic units that are arranged and configured to magnetically couple with the plurality of metal units. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 2 , wherein the plurality of metal units includes a plurality of ball bearings that include enclosed spherical-shaped weights positioned between two layers of PU-coated textiles by way of any or all of the following: compression, RF welding, and ultrasonic methods. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 2 , wherein the plurality of metal units are embedded within the article of clothing at the designated portion thereof. 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the coupling mechanism of the first weighted unit includes a plurality of metal units. 
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 6 , wherein the coupling mechanism of the portion of the article of clothing includes a plurality of magnetic units that are arranged and configured to magnetically couple with the plurality of metal units. 
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 6 , wherein the plurality of metal units includes a plurality of ball bearings. 
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein the first weighted unit is made of thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) and the plurality of metal units are embedded within the TPU. 
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a second weighted unit having a coupling mechanism configured to interact with the coupling mechanism of the portion of the article of clothing to cause the second weighted unit to remain substantially in place at the portion of the article of clothing during the personal fitness session. 
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein the second weighted unit has a weight that is greater than a weight of the first weighted unit to allow the user to progressively increase the weight during the personal fitness session by replacing the first weighted unit with the second weighted unit. 
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a second weighted unit having a coupling mechanism configured to interact with a coupling mechanism of another portion of the article of clothing to cause the second weighted unit to remain substantially in place at the other portion of the article of clothing during the personal fitness session. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 12 , wherein the first and second weighted units are both coupled with the article of clothing during the personal fitness session. 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a second weighted unit having a coupling mechanism configured to interact with the coupling mechanism of the first weighted unit to cause the first and second weighted units to both remain substantially in place at the portion of the article of clothing during the personal fitness session. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 14 , wherein the first and second weighted units are configured to allow the user to progressively increase the weight during the personal fitness session by effectively adding the first weighted unit to the second weighted unit. 
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the article of clothing is selected from the following group: a vest, a shirt, a compression shirt, a pair of pants, a pair of shorts, a jacket, a piece of footwear, and a piece of headwear. 
     
     
         17 . An article of clothing configured to be worn by a user during a personal fitness session, the article of clothing comprising:
 a fabric layer; and   at least one weighted portion formed by either or both polyurethane (PU) and thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) printed on the fabric layer.   
     
     
         18 . The article of clothing of  claim 17 , wherein the at least one weighted portion covers a majority of the surface area of the fabric layer and further wherein the PU/TPU is printed such that the weight of the at least one weighted portion is distributed substantially evenly over the fabric. 
     
     
         19 . A system for use in personal fitness, comprising:
 an article of clothing configured to be worn by a user during a personal fitness session, the article of clothing having a fabric layer;   at least one weighted portion formed by either or both polyurethane (PU) and thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) printed on the fabric layer; and   a communication unit integrated with the article of clothing and configured to interact with an electronic device, wherein the communication unit is a near field communication (NFC) device or a QR code.   
     
     
         20 . The system of  claim 19 , wherein the electronic device is configured to launch at least one selected from a group consisting of the following: real-time coaching, a training program, and a connection with at least one other user.