2011-2018
Our Story
Since our first prototype in 2011 in what would later be trademarked the CerviFit® (Cervical Fitness) to today, we have been driven by a passion, even an obsession with the importance of neck exercise and strengthening. From our early days meeting with neurosurgeons and human performance professionals for input into the challenges they have and continue to deal with, the CerviFit found it’s place initially in the Durable Medical Equipment (DME) space. Initially a 10- week physician prescribed home exercise and therapy program deemed so effective that Worker’s Comp (WC), Personal Injury (PI) and Tri-Care
for active-duty military covered the full expense of the program.
While originally leased for thousands of dollars, when the time came to return the devices, the patient’s elected to keep them. In May 2021, an audit consisting of all the patient’s previously prescribed the home exercise program was conducted. The findings of that audit revealed that 95% of the patient’s previously prescribed the program still used their CerviFit to maintain their level of fitness and mitigate future injury.
2018-2023
Having been asked to sit on a CEO panel, Founder Alan Philipson had the honor of sharing the stage with former Naval Aviator and Top Gun graduate (2012) Lt .Cmdr. Rob “Rocco” Ceravalo. Having suffered from disabling neck pain from his years of carrier duty, Rocco after training with the CerviFit soon was getting back in the cockpit of an F-5. Based on his success, Rocco made an introduction to one of his former squadron mates, Cmdr. Scott “Flake” Snow. Armed with both the patient and Rocco’s testimonials, Alan Philipson and Cmdr. Snow approached the Air Force human performance Athletic trainers (ATs), Physical therapists (PT) and the Operational Support Teams (OST). The first order to the Air Force was shipped to 4th operations group at Seymore Johnson Air Force base in December 2019.
Air Force Optimizing Human Weapons Systems (OHWS)
Based on the positive feedback from both the fighter pilots, their PT’s and AT’s, Alan Philipson and Cmdr. Snow were asked to respond to the Air Force’s Optimizing Human Weapons Systems (OHWS) Request For Proposal (RFP). Through their combined efforts, CerviFit was added to the Air Force’s OHWS approved contractor’s product’s list. In 2022, Mr. Philipson’s mother was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer and while CerviFit continued to be sold to both physician’s and the military, the price was still out of reach for the average consumer. When the cancer metastasized to her brain, she would spend long hours in bed and as a result would suffer from what she would define as “excruciating neck pain”. As Mr. Philipson’s mother was a staunch opponent to opioid’s, she used the CerviFit to stretch her neck and relieve the pain.
2024-
There are those moments in your life when someone you love is suffering and there is a fundamental shift in your perspectives. “Alan promise me you will make the CerviFit affordable so average people can purchase it” this was what his mom said as she sat half-awake in her chair stretching her neck and almost asleep.
In February 2024, Mr. Philipson’s mother passed peacefully after a long and brave fight. The promise she asked of her son is taped on his
monitor as a reminder of what he initially set out to do. The inside of the CerviFit's carrying case are the initials CTP (Cervical Training Program). While sharing the same initials as Mr. Philipson’s late mother those initials are a tangible touchstone and testament to her belief in the CerviFit and her love for those who supported her son’s dreams.
Insight which could only be collected from years of user feedback from fighter pilot's, athlete's, patient's, F1 drivers, PT’s and AT’s culminated into the CerviFit MX, a product that is competitively priced for the consumer market.
On September 1st, 2024, an independent study entitled “Performance Optimization and Injury Mitigation for Air Force Student Fighter Pilots” was published in the Oxford Military Medicine journal (Military
Medicine, Volume 189, Issue Supplement_3, September/October 2024, Pages 465–470). The CerviFit was tested at Eglin AFB with the student F-35 pilots while the ring weight was used at Lucas AFB with their F-16 pilot population as part of the Spine Training Program (STP). Testing Cervical Endurance Hold (CEH) (a timed approach of keeping the head in a state of flexion without allowing it to fall), the study concluded that “males from Luke AFB exhibited a significant 34.5% increase (P < 0.001, d = 1.09), and males from Eglin AFB demonstrated a significant increase of 55.7% in CEH (P < 0.001, d = 1.97).”
The CerviFit story continues….