In a corner of a very orange and heavily mirrored room full of state-of-the-art fitness equipment at the Forza athletic club, The Fixed Position Multi sits in a corner, conspicuous in its simplicity.
Made by , it is essentially a two-part machine — a 6-foot-tall-plus column piece and a rotating bar attached to it. And yet it stands poised to not only reshape how athletes train, but provide medical benefits that extend far beyond the stadium or arena.
But first, the athletes.
Nuggets strength and conditioning coach Steve Hess has one of the two in public existence to this point. The other is owned by former Atlanta Braves pitcher John Smoltz. Hess, who hunts fitness solutions at a dizzying rate, has the players work on the machine to increase speed, power and explosiveness.
“That’s a huge component of any conditioning coach’s outlook,” Hess said. “You’ve got to increase power.”
The Fixed Position Multi does it isokinetically, which is movement rooted in variable resistance. Most people train isocentrically, which is a single poundage throughout the exercise, like curling a dumbbell where 15 pounds is 15 pounds from start to finish.
This machine constantly records the force the person is placing on it and adjusts the resistance accordingly. It means a person is working at maximum output throughout the exercise. It also provides a safer workout than free weights.
The machine was developed by Dr. Jim Silliman, president of the Steadman Hawkins Clinic of the Carolinas, and former Rockies pitcher Darren Holmes.
Holmes became a believer in isokinetic exercise during his playing career.
“The resistance that is created is based on the force you apply,” Speedflex president Sanjeev Javia said. “Every 0.2 inches of movement, it’s recording the force that you’re placing on it, and it’s providing a resistance back to you. Not only is it doing that, but it’s providing the resistance back to you at an increment of 0.8 pounds.”
While Speedflex has developed a line that will be commercially sold in April, perhaps its greatest benefit is in the medical community. Speedflex machines are a staple at the Steadman Hawkins clinics.
“Variable resistance has been shown in research to build neuroconductivity,” Javia said. “We have a traumatic brain-injury study. We have a Parkinson’s study, we have a child obesity study and we’ve got a breast cancer study. We believe exercise is medicine, but it’s not just any exercise, it’s this specific, high-velocity variable resistance training.”
Javia says the clinic’s work with Parkinson’s and traumatic brain-injury patients has resulted in some of them regaining a portion of their reflexive and spastic movements. In addition, the U.S. Department of Defense has begun work with Speedflex.
But in the world of basketball and helping his team gain a competitive edge, Hess is happy to be the first in the NBA to incorporate Speedflex technology.
“The cream always rises,” Hess said. “When you have an apparatus that works, everyone comes on to it. I know this is a piece that is going to do incredibly well in a lot of different places.”
Chris Dempsey: 303-954-1279 or cdempsey@denverpost.com
