Finding Balance
How often do you hear the phrase “finding balance?”
Finding balance in your life means so many things now. Perhaps it’s work-life balance. Maybe it’s mental balance. We need to balance exercise and recovery. What about a balanced diet? The list goes on and on…
While I do believe that we should all be striving to find balance in our lives, today I want to bring balance back to its original meaning in the health and fitness world: the physical ability to balance.
When was the last time you stood on one leg? How did it go? Can you remember a time when it was better?
Last week I wrote to you about how it feels when you move like you were young. You can turn back the clock on your movement skills, but a big factor in your ability to do so is your balance.
Think about it. Even something as simple as walking requires you to be on one leg. When you’re running, you’re never on two feet at the same time. Going up stairs is a single-leg activity. These are real-world, everyday activities that help determine your quality of life.
But here is the thing. Your ability to balance is even more than your ability to stand on one foot. It’s also your ability to stabilize when carrying something. It comes into play when something moves across your field of vision. Have you ever lost your balance from turning your head to quickly?
If you don’t want to feel limited in your life, working on your balance is a great place to start training. Here are a few key aspects to assess and ways to work on them:
Do you feel well? I’m not referring to being sick. I mean how well you can feel with your feet. If your foot has ever fallen asleep, you know how important sensation is to balance. Check out this video to test and train your ability to feel.
Hip stability is crucial for balance. Your center of gravity generally lies within your pelvis. So, if the movement of your pelvis is out of control, you’re likely going to fall. There are a lot of exercises out there to help with hip stability, but here is one simple, but very targeted exercise for you to try.
How much harder is it to move about in the dark? That’s because your eyes affect your balance, too. You can get more comfortable with this by closing your eyes when trying to balance. Just be sure you pick a safe location and an easier position that you do with your eyes open!
Remember, life is a journey and it’s never too late to get better at things. Use the ideas above to test where you are now with your balance and work on making progress from there.
If you need more specific help, I am always here to help. At MATRIX, we offer a specific balance screening that looks at these areas and more, so you’ll know exactly to get more balanced!!