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Quick Start Guide
Level Belt Pro Version 1.0 July 1, 2012
©2012 Perfect Practice, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Welcome to Perfect Practice. The Level Belt is an easy to operate tool and should only take a few minutes to master. This quick start guide will cover: What’s Included Minimum Requirements General Principles Functions & Set Up Putting It On Finding your neutral position Stabilizing your pelvis Contacting Customer Support What’s Included The complete Level Belt Pro system from Perfect Practice includes the Perfect Practice Pro neoprene belt featuring extra stabilizing straps and an easy-‐to-‐control mounting clip for an iPod, an iPod Touch pre-‐programmed with the Level Belt Pro App, a power charger, and a set of headphones. You may also have purchased the App on the App Store and the Pro neoprene belt to be used with your own iPod or iPhone. Minimum Requirements The Level Belt Pro App requires an iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, or iPod Touch 4th generation device (later model devices will also work as well). For best performance, we strongly recommend purchasing the Perfect Practice Pro or Perfect Practice AtHome neoprene belt. You can also try another belt or clip for holding a smart phone, but be sure that it holds your iOS device securely to your waist. If your device twists or flops around, the biofeedback you receive from the Level Belt Pro App will be severely degraded. General Principles The Level Belt Pro was designed by a Physical Therapist and a Biomechanical Engineer to make core stability training more functional, more quantitative, and more effective. Other products either limit you to training in a specific position (like lying on your back or flat against a wall) or they don’t give you the numbers to let you know exactly where you stand and how you are improving (like a mirror or someone watching you). The device is designed to be portable and versatile, so we welcome you to try it out with any exercise where you are attempting to maintain a stable core. In a study performed at The Ohio State University, the device was proven to predict performance of professional baseball pitchers,* and since then it has been used successfully with athletes in all sports from basketball to figure skating, football to swimming. Physical therapists, strength & conditioning coaches and other health professionals continue to find new uses for it with different exercises and with different populations including youth, seniors, healthy and injured. We’d love to hear your feedback about how you are using it—please fill out the contact form at http://www.perfectpracticeusa.com or email us at [email protected].
* See Chaudhari AM, McKenzie CS, Borchers JR, Best TM. 2011. Lumbopelvic control and pitching performance of professional baseball pitchers. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. Vol. 25, no. 8. (August): 2127-‐2132.
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Functions & Set Up If you have not started the App, push the HOME button, slide to unlock and find the icon for the Level Belt Pro App.
Before you begin, be sure to choose an exercise. This choice tells the App where on your body you are placing the device so it can calculate tilt appropriately.
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Within the Exercises selection screen, use the Picker wheels to pick which exercise you are doing. You can also tap the Details button to enter specifics of your exercise (i.e. what weights or equipment, how many reps, etc.).
Back at the Main screen, you can also change the Level by pressing the Level button. This changes how much motion is allowed before an alarm is sounded.
Once you are in the Level screen, you can either pick a standard Level or press Other to pick any level from 1-‐20°.
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If you like, you can also set the User name. This name shows at the top of the Main screen (red arrow, below). It is also attached to the recorded data, so if you are working with multiple clients you can figure out which data goes with whom.
Now you are ready to begin! Just stabilize your pelvis in your neutral position, then press the big green Zero and Start button to start getting biofeedback and recording the results. The Level Belt Pro App records Anterior/Posterior tilt (A/P Tilt) & Side-‐to-‐Side tilt (Lateral Tilt). In real time, the red bars and the numbers show you how much you are tilting from your starting position. The numbers at the end of the horizontal bars tell you the maximum tilt in either direction. When finished, hit stop to end recording.
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Putting It On For the low back (sacrum) application of the belt, place the belt around the low back (sacrum). Apply the straps crossing the posterior superior iliac spines in back (shown below) and the anterior superior iliac spines in the front (on most people you can feel their “hip bone” at the front right at waist level). Now, secure the belt into position and then tighten it up with the stabilizing straps.
For side application to the waist, place the device over the side aspect of the iliac crest. Apply the straps crossing the posterior superior iliac spines in back and the anterior superior iliac spines in the front. Secure the belt into position and tighten it using the stabilizing straps.
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Finding neutral position Finding a neutral pelvic and spine position is critical to getting the most effective workout. This is the posture we want the body to stay in while we do other activities, so we want all of our biofeedback to encourage the wearer to stay in this position. Performing the steps outlined below will allow you to find a position where you are using your muscles to stabilize your pelvis and lumbar spine, allowing forces to press straight through the bones, cartilage and vertebral discs the way they were designed to rather than forcing the ligaments to carry the load. While this position may not represent your true absolute neutral posture as determined by your health professional, it allows the biofeedback to keep you within an optimal range for performing exercises. As with any exercise program, consult your health or medical professional before beginning use of this new way of training. Supine: Anterior Tilt-‐ Tip your pelvis forward allowing your back to gently arch or curve. Posterior Tilt-‐ Tip your pelvis under your spine (tuck your tail) pressing your low back into the ground. Avoid substitution by keeping your upper abdominal muscles relaxed and using only the lower abs. Now find the middle of these two positions, which will be your neutral position.
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Quadruped Anterior Tilt-‐ Tip your pelvis downward (dog position) allowing your back to gently arch or curve. Posterior Tilt-‐ Tip your pelvis upward (cat position) rounding your low back. Now find the middle of these two positions which will be your neutral position.
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Sitting Anterior Tilt-‐ Tip your pelvis forward allowing your back to gently arch or curve. Posterior Tilt-‐ Tip your pelvis under your spine (tuck your tail) flattening your back. Now find the middle of these two positions, which will be your neutral position. Avoid substitution during each movement, as shown in the red inset boxes.
Standing Anterior Pelvic Tilt-‐ Tip your pelvis forward allowing your back to gently arch or curve. Posterior Pelvic Tilt-‐ Tip your pelvis under your spine (tuck your tail) flattening your back. Now find the middle of these two positions, which will be your neutral position. Avoid substitution during each movement, as shown in the red inset boxes.
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Stabilizing your pelvis When we say “Stabilize your pelvis,” we mean that you should maintain your neutral position and hold it throughout an exercise. The primary purpose of the Level Belt Pro app from Perfect Practice is to give you the external biofeedback you need to learn to stabilize your pelvis in a neutral position during exercises, both for optimal performance and for safety. Contacting Customer Support Please feel free to email us with your questions, concerns, comments and suggestions at [email protected] We’d love to hear how you are using the Level Belt and about your successes with our device! Conclusion Thank you for reading this brief description of how to get started with the Level Belt Pro from Perfect Practice. For more information, demonstration videos and a complete description of all the features of the device, please go to http://www.perfectpracticeusa.com.