Are you taking balance for granted?

How important is balance to you? Is it a part of your exercise regimen or is it something you never really think about and kinda take it for granted? Balance is very important; in fact it’s a skill that could save your life. Balance training should be taken seriously and be a part of your exercise routine. As we age, it becomes a skill that is more and more challenging. A recent article I read said, declining balance skills is said to be a “major factor in the 450,000 hospitalizations” that occur in the US annually. That means a lot of these hospitalizations could have been prevented, by doing exercises to help improve balance.

Here are a few things to keep in mind in terms of balance. Core, resistance and agility training with some stretching, is a great start to help improve balance. Having strong core muscles will help keep your body more stable and capable of doing activities that may be a little more challenging. In addition, having good leg strength and ankle flexibility will allow you to have a better range of motion, thus reduce your chance of falling.

To improve the flexibility in your hamstrings (back of the legs) you can simply sit on the floor and touch your legs (ankles) or toes and hold that position for a count of 15 to 30 and release. Abdominal crunches are a great simple beginner exercise to help strengthen your core. Tightrope walking is a balance exercise that will help improve balance and mental focus. It can be done by walking heal to toe with your arms extended shoulder length at your sides so your hands are parallel to the floor. This exercise can be made more advanced by lifting your leg out in front of you, keeping it straight and counting to 10 then releasing and extending it backwards while holding your balance for a count of 10, then switching legs. Doing exercises such as squats or even jump roping will help increase leg strength. An exercise that can be done to improve agility is “side to sides.” Sides to sides are done by jumping to your right and left (at a slow pace) then gradually picking up speed. This exercise will help strengthen your ankles as well has your calf muscles.