Floery Mahoney, of Sante Fe, NM, is just a few years from turning FOF and says she’s in better shape than ever, thanks to an exercise tool she developed, called the Da Vinci Body Board (retail value: $495), named after Leonardo da Vinci’s “Vitruvian Man” drawing. “I’ve always admired the way in which Da Vinci viewed the body as a work of art, focusing on its beauty and the symmetry in nature,” says Floery. FOF talked to Floery about what motivated her to create the product and how it works.
To win a Body Board, answer this question by commenting below: What exercises have you tried that haven’t worked?
How old are you?
I’m 47 and I try to maintain a body that is capable of performing like it did when I was in my thirties. I still want to hike mountains with my son, play tennis and wake up in the morning without body aches.
Why did you want to develop a fitness product?
I was a Pilates instructor years ago and I started the first Pilates studio in Vermont, so I have a good base knowledge in fitness. I was finding it harder and harder to stay in shape after hitting my mid-forties. I’ve always been a runner, but I noticed that I was losing muscle tone and strength. I’ve never really been a gym person so I started piecing together an in-home exercise regime, using fitness tubes tied to furniture legs all around the house.
What were you doing before?
You might say I’m a serial entrepreneur. I’ve owned a Pilates studio, two high-end restaurants, a clothing store, and most recently, two chocolate shops. I really enjoy the creative process involved with starting a business.
How and when did you get started with your current business?
I started working on the Body Board about three years ago. I’m a single mom and I was a chocolatier at the time. One day, I happened to use my ankle straps and my handle straps while doing some crunches; that was the “aha” moment! I realized that this “opposing tension” system made it impossible for my abs to ‘cheat.’ I started working on a prototype and then developed this full-body workout regime.
Where are you based?
We currently produce the Body Board in Fairfax, VT. I travel back and forth between Vermont and New Mexico.
What is a typical workday like for you?
There’s no real typical day for me right now. I do everything related to the business, as most start-up businesses require. I shoot and prepare video, work on website design, travel for demonstrations and fitness expos, train instructors. It’s really endless but never dull.
What is The Body Board and how does it work?
The Da Vinci Body Board is made of Baltic birch and isn’t an eyesore when it’s out, like most bulky piece of fitness equipment, yet it can be popped under the bed and out of the way. Stretch bands for the arms and legs, positioned at both ends of the board, are used simultaneously for strength training and cardio and work for any fitness level. They also can be used for rehab on certain injuries. Designed to build long, lean, muscles without tearing the muscle, the Body Board can be used daily, and requires about 15 to 20 minutes of your time. It also reaches the smaller muscles that support your joints, creating a body with a more complete and balanced muscle structure
The online or DVD instructional routines are fun and easy to follow. The “Opposing Tension” exercises, which allow you to work the upper and lower portions of your body at once, are unique and the system offers an endless variety of workout routines that deliver results in half the time of conventional fitness systems. The dancing routines that are used with the bands are a blast and help tone twice as fast as any other dance fitness routines.
Is The Body Board used with other exercise devices?
The Body Board can replace all other strength training and cardio exercise regimes. Since the exercise routine is so short, it gives you more time for to do “fun exercises,” like walking, tennis, golf, or hiking.
Why is The Body Board effective for FOFs?
As we age, it’s important to keep our muscles strong and supple. The Body Board supports bone strength and agility. Traditional weight training doesn’t reach the smaller muscles and tends to build bulky or sinewy muscles in women over forty. The Body Board is fun, fits into a busy schedule and will help keep your body strong, beautiful and injury free.
Why won’t this product end up in the garage after three workouts?
There are three things I focused on when designing the Body Board system to help keep it from gathering dust under the bed once purchased. First, I combined muscle groups and added cardio to create a short 20-minute workout. This makes it almost impossible to use the “no time” excuse. Second, I tried to make it fun and interesting. The different routines are designed to work slightly different muscle groups each day to keep your body guessing and your mind engaged. Third, the design facilitates a quick setup and easy storage, both of which facilitate regular use.
To win a Body Board, answer this question by commenting below: What exercises have you tried that haven’t worked?
P.S. Want a Body Board today? Click to learn more and receive $50 off, only for FOFs!
1 FOF will win. (See official rules, here.) Contest closes August 22, 2013 at midnight E.S.T. Contest limited to residents of the continental U.S.
0 Responses to “{Giveaway} Da Vinci Body Board”
sandy williams says:
I’ve tried several things over the years and end up not sticking to it. I’ve been in three different car accidents(not my fault each time thank goodness) and as a result I have several bulges with a bad back and neck. With the work I’m in I’m on my feet anywhere from 8-12 hrs a day, so sometimes my knee swells and gets so painful that I have to get steroid shots once our twice a yr. After researching I believe this is exactly what I need. I have very little time to exercise and with this body board there should be no excuses and I know I can do this on a daily basis. I would really love to have one of these to get myself back in shape and tin make myself feel and look better.
disqus_2BIGXYinzR says:
I have 4 chronic diseasesw no cure. I NEED THIS DESPERATELY!!!!! Plzzz! I would
be EVER so GRATEFUL!!!!!
Gail says:
Alll of them except for yoga/Tai Chi.
Noreen LaVallo says:
I have tried the Gazelle glider, Fluidity, various fitness CD’s, weights, bands, gym memberships, walking, swimming and all have gotten boring and fallen by the wayside…..I am in my 60’s and want to stay fit….this looks like it might be just the ticket!
Jen Lahmann says:
Have tried many, currently using treadmill. With no results
DeDe Gross says:
I have gone to Curves for years, but haven’t seen the results I dewanted. I had had a knee relacement several years ago and have l
Elizabeth says:
I used to take pilaties classes and loved it, and saw great results. Hopefully I win this so I can get back into it.
Carolyn Wade says:
It’s hard to do anything that isn’t at a set time (like a class) or that doesn’t have instant results (like those miracles we keep praying for!). The Body Board looks like it will keep my interest long enough to show some results!
rae says:
Lolo… like so many others I have done about everything; Nordic track(my favorite clothes rack Lolo) gym memberships etc.This is a rather long post but would like my past 7 months to let other women know how important it is not to put off taking care of yourselves. I am the master at blowing off my health.
Longest program I stuck with was yoga in my 30’s. Still love it but I have problems sticking with anything. Loved pilates resistant bands great results for upper arms. But alas… my biggest problem, like so many women… I let life interfer with taking care of myself, raising daughter, putting her through college, teaching as a special education teacher, etc… Everyone else came first. Oh I heard over and over from everyone; family, friends and doctors you have to take care of yourself first. But as usual just blew it off. However, over the past 7 months I have paid the price. Body just craved, I have never been seriously ill. In November I had to go the emergency room from school with what turned out turned out to be a lower GI tract hemorrhage. Eight days later, 2 hemorrhagess, 6 units of blood got to go home but was out of School for 7 weeks. Just when I thought I was on the road back to being well I was diagnosed with early stage breast cancer. Had surgery, radiation and will be on anti hormonal drugs for minimum of 5 years. Getting to go back to school for last month of the year, yea! I am very blessed and fortunate that with everything that has gone on recovery is excellent. I am determine at 61 years young that from now on my body and health come first. I am convinced that stress and the fact I haven’t taken care of my body caused the medical crisis. I am determined to be in better shape then before all this happened. I am doing well losing the weight and but getting my excerise in is harder. Doing it but not at level I should be. Just plodding along. My biggest problem… I get bored easily with excerise and am most successful when it’s fun. Bring more of a a cerebral person than physical doesn’t help either. But believe me I am working on having lots of fun and health in my life. The da vinic board is perfect for someone like me. But most importantly, ladies please take care of yourselves! You are very important people!
Karen Obrien says:
Ive tried countless exercises, its not that they didnt work, its that my body was not exerting natural laws of physics, meaning, if you brake down our body in shapes it will produce the perfect shape exercises that will perfectly shape us..
Michelle Cao says:
I have tried running, zumba, yoga, pilates, but the first time I have tried the Da Vinci body board I love it! It was very worth my time trying it for the first time. It kicks my butt, I love pushing myself. I run for an hour and I feel all the energy going through me. I would love to win the Da Vinci board to start keeping myself in shape and feel good for myself.
Evelyn Chuter says:
I am 56 years old. I am about 50 pounds over weight, so I joined The BeachBody Fitness on-line. I have a wonderful coach and just finished a squat challenge in November. Now we are doing a plank challenge. I lost 15 pounds last month so I have to say that I know squats work.
Tom Bedford says:
exercising friendships judgement
Tom Bedford says:
We’ll; they have all mostly worked.
kathleen Nation says:
I’ve tried almost everything there is, curves, gyms, weights, pilates, zumba…the gym membership gave the best results but the I cannot justify the expense. I need something at home that actually works. Could this be it?
mar galvik says:
i would love to work my chubby legs. tried about everything and can’t get them skinny.
Rachel G says:
I work out at Snap Fitness and I have done Curves for Women before they closed up shop here. I just keep plugging away and whatever I can do, just trying to get in the best shape possible to keep up with my four granddaughters! The Body Board would be something I could do at home and keep plugging away! 🙂
Donna says:
I would love to try this, I’m 54 and have always thought you needed to lift weights to look good.
lo says:
HHHMMMM what haven’t I tried. Yoga, resistance, weight training, walking.
The only thing that really works for me is running, but I’ve had a very slow healing injury to
knee and ankle for the last 9 nine months. It’s killing me not to be running, and i’ve gained about
20lbs. in the interim.
Jana Hayes says:
Zumba did not work for me. Old ankle injury keeps me from going all out during a zumba class.
Mandy Charpentier says:
Tried just about everything, expensive gyms, a full basement full of eguipment, running , biking, kayak. And they all seem to work for a while, and then I lose interest. Would love to try some thing new and unique like this!
Kim D. says:
Hiking and Wii Fit are the only real exercises I’ve tried in years and neither do enough for my thighs.
lisa m says:
I had a training class where we used a step and it was set up too high for me…I could do it but I guess I wasn’t doing it properly because I ended up with Plantar fasciitis in both feet and a heel spur in one…talk about painful!!! I had to go to the foot dr for cortizone shots, weekly check ups and physical therapy!
Jerrilynn Atherton says:
I think I’ve tried everything at one point or another…but the biggest disaster had to have been the step routine!!
Katie Contests says:
Ohh any exercise that requires a lot of flexibility! A lot of yoga poses don’t work out so well for me!
srasmoo says:
In my twenties I lost a great deal of weight and toned up everywhere except my upper arms. They are disproportionately large in scale compared to the rest of my body. No bicep exercises have helped and now I have the dreaded “batwings”. I am now 61 years old, extremely overweight and diabetic but am working toward getting healthier and would love to try the DaVinci Body Board because it doesn’t look like it would be too stressful on my joints. Thank you for your consideration.
Dani says:
I tried a “beginner’s” yoga DVD and I couldn’t do the poses. I was not good at that one at all.
Inez Harrison says:
This Ozark Farm Chick was doin’ a full hour of high impact aerobic every blessed mornin’ ’till Jan. That’s when I flew outta the door and an ankle that I’d previously broke in three places turned sideways, totally a way an ankle should NOT turn. Dang, if it hasn’t put me outta the exercise scene too sinkin’ long.
The poor foot was black for a whole month, bruised and swollen for the next six weeks then it turned so many colors that it looked like a bad art project. I’m rarin’ at the bits to get started with somethin’ again and this looks like it might just be what the Dr. ordered!!!
Woohoo….I’m feelin’ luckier than a lonely heifer in the bull pen! Heeehehehee!
From the sunshiny hills and hollers of the magnificent Missouri Ponderosa, ya’ll have a wonderfully blessed and beautiful day now, ya hear??? :o)
Linda says:
I can’t always get to the gym for a class and am never quite sure what to do at home-this sounds easy to use and in a short time frame 🙂
Tami Hayes says:
Pretty much everything! Elliptical, videos, classes, the list goes on and on. This looks so fun.
Michele says:
What have I tried that hasn’t worked? Bought a used Soloflex back when they first came out, seemed like a great device but I am very petite and it seemed made for a bigger person, so never felt like I got a good workout; couldn’t get anyone to buy it from me, so off to the dump it went! Loved my Pilates Reformer, but it was big and bulky for my small place, and if I tried to store it out of the way so it didn’t overpower the living room area, it was too hard to drag it back out to use it; it’s gone now too. The Body Board looks like something that would keep me interested and challenged, while also suiting my size of body and being easy to store and set up…a win!
Tee says:
I’ve tried boot camp(presently). Also alternating the gym workouts with boot camp.
Use a personal trainer periodically to get a boost.
I am consistent. Lifestyle change with diet.
Have to be careful because of joint problems as I have aged and also medications that cause weight gain.
Would love to give the board a try.
Elyse says:
This is a fabulous idea! Very creative and it totally makes sense. I would love to have this – it looks like fun and I know it works. I am in need of a home fitness system that I will actually enjoy. I believe this is it!
Cathy Wardlaw says:
I have had almost every exercise machine, including “the Hellrider” and all to no avail! I have had many abdominal surgeries and have a very hard time exercising. Even with a personal trainer I haven’t found an exercise routine that has had any results in any amount of time! I would love to see if this would work. I have thought about doing Pilates, but I am in a small town and there is nothing anywhere close!
Barb says:
I have fallen off the fitness wagon and need to get back on! Used to walk, used to do yoga, used to dance… I stayed really fit till about 50, then everything went downhill. I am getting back to a more comfortable weight, but the extra body fat I thought I would never have is still hanging on. I know that means there is less lean muscle and want to reverse that. I really like the concept of working a combination of muscle groups together. It just makes sense because in real life that’s how the body works. Kudos to Floery Mahoney for being so innovative!
Debbie Chaney says:
Any exercise I try doesn’t work, because I can never stick with it long enough for it to work…but I have heard that anything that causes resistance is suppose to burn calories and make the weight drop off!
aceekaywa says:
Wow – this sounds like something even I could stick with. I particularly like that it doesn’t require electricity and is easy to setup and store. Plus the necessary exercise time seems very reasonable. A great add to my walking and biking routine. It IS true that keeping the flab at bay and/or staying fit is harder after 50 – or in my case, 60… I’d think I’d love this board.
jean palamar says:
You name it. Cracked a tooth with the thigh master…. don’t ask. Pulled a hamstring on a pilates chair at home. I love the PIlates reformer, but unfortunately have to drive almost an hour to get to a class, as I live in a small town. I have tried several dvd’s at home, but with little success other than Zumba-ing over a stool in my family room. This looks as if it might help with strength as well as hitting difficult areas for women to hit…
Debbie Phillips says:
I’ve tried several different types of exercise routines at home, but the one that I absolutely did not stick to was the Nordic Trac that I got at a garage sale. It took up too much room, so there it sits in the basement to this day.
Ann Marie Feitt says:
I did Body Boot Camp and although I got in great shape, my knee pain was exacerbated.
Kat Knowles says:
After losing my only child and then both breasts to cancer my workout routine went right down the drain this past year. I would love to win the Body Board as I know it would be major motivation to stop feeling down and to start living again!
donnarp1 says:
I do a lot of squats and dead lifts to help maintain my bones and metabolism. This looks like it is easier on your joints. I find that at age 55 my joints seem to hurt more after vigorous workout.
katieQ says:
The only exercises that haven’t worked for me are the ones that I did not do consistently. This looks like a great device. I like that it does not take up a huge amount of space.
Tina A says:
I love the variety of exercises this offers – I would never get bored! I tried running, but all I got was a headache from all the pounding! Didn’t work for me.
Rita says:
I would say that most types of exercise will work, if you put at least some effort into them and try and maintain some consistency! This Body board is very innovative 🙂
Janet Tyrrell Keyser says:
I would like to know the correct sit-ups routine.
AJB says:
I can’t think of an exercise that hasn’t worked as long as I stuck to doing it!
Julie VanSickle says:
Looks like this will provide excellent work for the core muscles, but without putting strain on any area. Certainly need the core muscles strengthened to fit that middle area that sees to have developed a life of its own. Would love to try.
Sandii Rittenhouse says:
The regular gym routine with a trainer just didn’t work…I do have some health issues which make losing weight more difficult…so I have to focus on staying strong and not losing muscle to fat..
Cindy says:
I’ve been doing leg lifts to firm my belly a bit. I haven’t noticed any results yet.
debra lander says:
trx-but couldn’t stay with it due to an injury
beth says:
ha, everything, although I must admit, I’m not good with consistency, maybe this board will help!!