Intake regulating container for fitness activities

Abstract

An intake regulating container for fitness activities is shown and described. The container has volume indicators such that adjacent pairs of the volume indicators define a volume of food or beverage contained between the volume indicators. A physical activity descriptor describing an amount of a physical activity (e.g., sets and repetitions of weightlifting exercises or distance traveled for running or jogging) is provided and is located to correspond to an indicator and/or an adjacent pair of the volume indicators, thereby providing a container that relates a physical activity and amount of the activity to a volume of contained food or beverage consumed.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An container, comprising:
 a vessel having a volume, wherein the vessel is selectively fillable with varying volumes of a food or a beverage;   at least one volume indicator and at least one physical activity descriptor arranged along the vessel, wherein the at least one volume indicator corresponds to a volume within the container and to a one of the at least one physical activity descriptor.   
     
     
         2 . The container of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one volume indicator is a plurality of volume indicators defining a plurality of volume indicator adjacent pairs arranged along a dimension of the vessel, the at least one physical activity descriptor is a plurality of physical activity descriptors arranged along the dimension of the vessel, and each volume indicator adjacent pair corresponds to a one of the volume indicator adjacent pairs in the plurality of volume indicator adjacent pairs. 
     
     
         3 . The container of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one volume indicator is a visual marking that defines a position along the dimension. 
     
     
         4 . The container of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one volume indicator is a tactile feature that defines a position along the dimension. 
     
     
         5 . The container of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one physical activity descriptor is a graphic depicting a type of physical activity. 
     
     
         6 . The container of  claim 5 , wherein the type of physical activity is one selected from the group consisting of running, bicycling, weightlifting, and stretching. 
     
     
         7 . The container of  claim 5 , wherein the type of physical activity is weightlifting, and each physical activity descriptor further describes a weightlifting exercise. 
     
     
         8 . The container of  claim 7 , wherein the physical activity descriptors describe a plurality of weightlifting exercises each of which are different from one another. 
     
     
         9 . The container of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one physical activity descriptor comprises text describing an amount of physical activity. 
     
     
         10 . The container of  claim 9 , wherein the amount of physical activity comprises at least one of a number of repetitions and a number of sets of repetitions of a weightlifting exercise. 
     
     
         11 . The container of  claim 9 , wherein the amount of physical activity comprises a distance traveled. 
     
     
         12 . The container of  claim 2 , wherein each physical activity descriptor in the plurality of physical activity descriptors comprises a graphic positioned between an adjacent pair of volume indicators in the plurality of volume indicators. 
     
     
         13 . The container of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one physical activity descriptor is a graphic depicting a portion of the body to be exercised. 
     
     
         14 . The container of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one volume indicator comprises a textual description of a volume. 
     
     
         15 . The container of  claim 1 , further comprising a textual indicator of whether the physical activity is intended to build muscle or enhance leanness. 
     
     
         16 . The container of  claim 1 , wherein the vessel has a closed bottom and a selectively openable top defining a length from the closed bottom to the selectively openable top, and wherein the at least one physical activity descriptor comprises a plurality of physical activity descriptors arranged in a performance sequence along the length of the container with a physical activity descriptor proximate the selectively openable top corresponding to a first part of the performance sequence to be performed and a physical activity descriptor proximate the closed bottom corresponding to a last part of the performance sequence to be performed in the exercise routine. 
     
     
         17 . The container of  claim 16 , wherein the performance sequence corresponds to an exercise routine, and the first part of the performance sequence is a first exercise to be performed in the exercise routine, and the last part of the performance sequence is a last exercise to be performed in the exercise routine. 
     
     
         18 . A method of regulating an intake of food or beverage while performing an exercise, the method comprising:
 providing the container of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one volume indicator is a plurality of volume indicators spaced apart along a dimension of the vessel, and the at least one physical activity descriptor is a plurality of physical activity descriptors spaced apart along the dimension;   filling the container with a food or beverage such that the food or beverage extends along the dimension past a pair of adjacent volume indicators from among the plurality of volume indicators;   consuming a volume of food or beverage defined by the pair of adjacent volume indicators, such that the food or beverage extends to a one of the pair of adjacent volume indicators but not another of the pair of adjacent volume indicators; and   performing the physical activity described by the physical activity descriptor corresponding to the adjacent pair of volume indicators.   
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein the physical activity descriptor describes an amount of the physical activity, and the step of performing the physical activity comprises performing the amount of the physical activity. 
     
     
         20 . A method of regulating an intake of food or beverage while performing an exercise, the method comprising:
 providing the container of  claim 17 , wherein the vessel includes an upper edge along the vessel length axis;   filling the container with a food or beverage to the upper edge, the upper edge defining a volume indicator and the closed bottom defining a volume indicator;   performing each exercise in the exercise sequence starting with the first exercise and ending with the last exercise, and   consuming a volume of the food or beverage in the container following or preceding the performing of each exercise in the exercise sequence, wherein the volume of food or beverage consumed following or preceding each exercise is defined by an adjacent pair of volume indicators from among the plurality of volume indicators, and corresponds to a physical activity descriptor describing the performed exercise from among the plurality of physical activity descriptors.