About the Step

What is a Corrective Exercise step?

Well...in my head it is a step that does not need the same amount of surface area as a traditional aerobics/exercise step because the demands on the step are not the same as with corrective exercise (which is much slower and more focused on control). That is all; It is just a smaller step.

 

The design and a brief history:

I wanted to be able to store it easily in my bag; travel on the train; pop it in the car; while travelling to clients homes or taking it into a work place. I wanted to be able to have access to a step that didn’t take up so much space when not using it and be able to use it in "small spaces". 

Even though the step is smaller, it has still been tested and certified to the Industry standards and has been safety rated for Consumer Use only (Class H) and for a Maximum load of 100kg.

"My Many Steps" is a play with words. The step has many heights which is obvious. But the real reason for it is to do with what I can see being involved in making things happen. Making things happen is a series of many steps and the details of each step are often not known; but we know that they need to be taken...especially if we want something to change towards what we want rather than what we don't want. This is often the biggest challenge that I see us facing...thinking that there are less steps than there are and thinking that there is a straight line from one step to the other...it would appear that nothing could be further from the truth...Thankfully :)

With regards to the design of the step, the final version is 2.0. I managed to get Version 1.0 and 1.1 down from 29 parts to 8. I found myself able to design a new way of stacking walls to be able to vary the heights; they made good use of the space that they occupied and were surprisingly strong (Registered Design).

The design company used CAD to help it get to the next step and test it's behaviour when subjected to the industry required loading specifications. It was looking good so it was 3D printed to see whether it actually worked (which it did)! Then it was on to tooling and production. Once out of that it went off to see if it met the Industry Standards (which it did) and now it is here and you are reading this...

 

"The sum of all my parts makes me whole" - Rumi

The Step:

There are many quirks to the step; for example, it has no locking mechanism. There is some lateral sway in it which is why it is NOT SUITABLE for fitness based exercise. What holds the walls together when stacked is each other, the lid and base and the compressive forces of the person standing on it. The downward forces compress it all together into a study step to perform slow, controlled corrective exercise on.

It is also not finished to be shiny and pretty...I have left the production scuffs on, left the sanding marks on and also left one of the Injection Port scar visible (although, sanded and tidied). The reason for this is that I remember looking at it and thinking about our bodies and how hard people work to cover up the marks and scars from life; even thinking about our belly buttons and seeing what is left from the connection that filled us to be able to take shape.

Manufactured in the West Midlands (England) - made from ABS plastic which is recyclable

The Mat:

Closes it and holds it together is the non slip matt that is also need to stop the step from slipping and sliding. 

Supplied by a company in Blackburn (England), - made from a Polymer Environmental Resin that is bio-degrageable.

The Bag:

The bag provides some covering while transporting but more importantly, it makes it easier to slide in and out of where it is being stored! It also provides some covering in the box and if you chose not to use the bag with the step, it is still a great little bag; I currently use mine as a book bag :)

Manufactured in Llanymynech (Wales) - made from a natural cotton which is compostable.

Packaging:

The product box is also the delivery box. I chose to do this because I really like boxes and I dislike throwing them away! If you do throw it away at least it only the one box and it is fully recyclable (Including the tape).

Manufactured in Lincolnshire (England) - the card is recyclable and you will also notice that the parcel table is also paper based and recyclable. 

 

Including the 4 companies above, I have needed the work of 17 companies in total (16 UK companies / UK based companies) helping with everything from Velcro to Legal to make this happen...

  • Design Company - Peterborough (England)
  • 3D Print Company - Stone (England)
  • Printed Labels - Bristol (England)
  • Parcel Tape - Coventry (England)
  • Printed Manuals - London (England)
  • Velcro - Biggleswade (England)
  • Photography - South London (England)
  • Accountants - London (England)
  • Insurance Broker - Southampton (England)
  • Distribution - Aylesbury (England)
  • Testing - UK Office
  • Law Firm - UK Office