5 Exercises to Improve Balance and Stability
Have you ever felt clumsy, tripped over your own feet, or actually fallen to the ground? Clumsiness is not something permanent, it’s something you can solve. Did you know that you can improve balance at any age, just by doing simple exercises?
Start with these 5 exercises to improve balance and stability. These exercises are general and will help for most types of balance problems, but they might not be the right fit for your individual condition. If they cause additional pain or you feel you are in danger of falling, please stop until you talk one-on-one with us or another medical professional.
1. Single Leg Stance
Stand with a chair or countertop in front of you. Pick 1 foot up off the ground and try to remain standing in place. Use the chair or counter to regain balance if needed. Engage your core muscles to improve your stability.
Goal: hold 30 sec without touching the chair or counter. If this becomes easy, try it with your eyes closed.
2. Squats
Stand with a chair or countertop in front of you. Stick your bottom back and bend your knees into a partial squat position. You may lean forward slightly but keep your back straight (bend at the waist). Don’t allow your knees to come in front of your toes, and keep your heels in contact with the floor at all times. Return to standing and repeat 10 times.
3. Tandem Walking (Walking the Line)
Walk in a straight line, heel to toe. Place one foot directly in front of the other in line so that the heel of the front foot touches the toes of the back foot. Make sure you are maintaining an upright posture.
Goal: 10 steps without losing balance.
4. Ambulation with High Knees
Walk forward bringing one knee up and alternating. If it looks like you’re marching, you’re doing it right! Maintain good posture and engage your core to get the full benefit and improve balance. Start out slowly and perform faster as tolerated.
5. Sit to Stand
Start by sitting on a stable chair (no swivel chairs or recliners! Try a kitchen chair). Rise to stand and then slowly lower back to a seated position. Perform 10 times.
If this becomes too easy, perform with a single leg to improve balance even further. Start in a standing position with a stable chair behind you. Keep one foot where it is placed for the regular sit to stand, and stick the other leg slightly out in front of you (knee straight). Slowly sit back to lower yourself to a seated position. Rise back to starting position and repeat.
Perform these exercises twice a day and you should start to see an improvement in your balance.
Improve faster and better with physical therapy!
The sooner you get physical therapy to improve balance and stability, the better. While it’s easy to brush off balance problems as “just clumsiness,” if left untreated, poor balance can lead to falls and serious injury.
No matter how long you have been struggling with balance and stability, it’s never too late to take advantage of physical therapy. Please contact our physical therapist in Lawrence, KS to get started!