Copyright © Françoise Herrmann
Designed to prevent slipping on a contact surface, during the varying shifts, or hold in position, of a yoga pose, YogaPaws® also provide cushioning. Thus, YogaPaws® are variously marketed as: mini yoga mats, wearable yoga mats, or the practitioner’s mat away from home, considering how bulky a mat might be to pack (YogaPaws®). Conceived by expert yoga professionals in every detail, YogaPaws® are a patented invention. The US utility patent, US7383591, titled Exercise mitt, was granted on June 10, 2008, to Gail Getzwiller and Regina Igini.
Below, two of the patent figure drawings. The patent figures respectively depict a perspective view of the YogaPaws® invention on a practitioner’s hand (FIG. 1a), and on a practitioner’s foot (FIG. 1B).
In particular, the patent Figure 1a depicts a YogaPaw® hand mitt 10, comprising a sleeve 12. The sleeve 12 has a rear opening 15, enabling the practitioner to insert his/her/their hand. The sleeve 12 is designed to enable the practitioner’s fingers to extend outside of the sleeve. Accordingly, the sleeve comprises an opening for the thumb and another opening for the remaining four fingers, at the front 21 of the sleeve 12. In this way, practitioners retain the feel of working with bare hands. This aspect of the invention also reduces the bulk and weight of the YogaPaw®.
The hand sleeve 12 in Figure 1a, otherwise comprises a stretch component 11, and a perforated foam component 13. The stretch component, made of a woven blend of cotton and/or polyester, is designed to provide a snug fit, stretching and tightening around the practitioner’s hand. The perforated foam component 13 is coupled (stitched) to the stretch component 11. The perforated foam component 13 comprises both inner 14 (not shown) and outer surfaces. The outer surface 16 of the perforated foam component 13 is designed to come in contact with support surfaces, invoked for the positions of particular yoga poses, in view of preventing slipping, whereas the inner surface is designed to prevent the palm of a hand from slipping inside the mitt. The hand YogaPaws® also comprise, preferably a Velcro wrist flap (not shown), enabling to widen and tighten the opening of the mitt 15, for ease of putting on, or taking off, the mitt.
Likewise, the Figure 1b depicts the YogaPaw® invention foot mitt 30, configured for a practitioner's foot, with a construction similar to the YogaPaw® hand mitt 10, configured for a practitioner’s hand. The foot YogaPaw® comprises a sleeve 32, with stretch material 31, coupled (stitched) to a perforated foam component 33, made of the same types of materials, as those of the hand YogaPaw®. A construction designed to enable a snug fit around the ball of a foot, and to prevent slipping, both inside the foot sleeve 32, and on the outside of the foot sleeve, in contact with the support surfaces for yoga poses.
The front end of the YogaPaw® foot sleeve 32 also has an opening, through which the practitioner’s toes extend. An aspect of the invention designed to contribute to the feel of working barefoot in yoga, analogous to the YogaPaws® bare hands feel. A strap separates toes from the big toe.
Without departing from the specification of the invention, variations exist in the marketed embodiments of the YogaPaws®. Such variations, for example, as an additional back strap in the YogaPaws® Elite model, further securing the YogaPaw® foot sleeve to the practitioner's foot, or absorbant material added on the inside of the foot sleeve.
Below, the abstract of the invention.
An exercise mitt is provided for a hand or foot, and which is particularly useful in an exercise form such as yoga in which a practitioner maintains a pose or shifts body position while his/her hand or foot is in contact with a support surface. The exercise mitt is specially configured to address the problem of slippage when the practitioner is practicing an exercise form such as yoga, where the practitioner exerts pressure on a support surface in both downward and outward directions as the practitioner is practicing the exercise form. The mitt comprises a sleeve configured to fit snugly about a portion of a human extremity while permitting portions of the human extremity to extend out of the sleeve. The sleeve has inner and outer surface portions with the outer surface portion configured to contact the support surface as the wearer takes predetermined positions relative to the support surface, the outer surface portion being further configured to resist the human extremity from sliding against the support surface, and the inner surface portion being configured to resist relative movement between the human extremity and the sleeve as the wearer applies pressure against the surface and takes predetermined positions relative to the support surface. [Abstract US7383591]
YogaPaws®
https://www.yogapaws.com/
YogaPaws® : Do they really work?
https://www.yogamatreviews.net/yoga-paws-review/
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