One Daily Balance Practice
Every single one of my clients over 50, at one point, has asked me to work with them on balance. So, I thought I’d spend some time in this new year focusing on just that — exercises and practices to create more confidence in movement and improve awareness of where your body is in relationship to outside objects — specifically, the ground.
Balance isn’t about being able to stand on one foot without moving. That’s a pretty cool thing to be able to do, buy we don’t need to do it much in real life.
Balance is a negotiation.
Illuminate me.
Where does my weight have to be for me to sit down on that really low couch? How far can I reach my hand before I have to come onto my tiptoes? Can I lift that heavy bowl off the high shelf without falling backwards?
These are all negotiations -- between weight shifting and anchoring, stabilizing and releasing.
You may have heard about the Standing-On-One-Foot-While-You-Brush-Your-Teeth Balance Exercise.
You brush your teeth for two minutes (per your dentist ;)) So, while you’re brushing your teeth, you stand on one foot for one minute, then on the other foot for the other minute. That helps train your body to balance.
And it does help.
But you’re not doing much while you’re standing still in one spot brushing your teeth.
So, while it’s probably challenging, it’s not very applicable to real life. Here’s a different challenge. It’s the Standing-On-One-Foot-Before-And-After-You-Brush-Your-Teeth Balance Exercise.
Try it…
If you’re like me, you brush your teeth and wash your face in the same routine before you go to bed.
Stand on one foot while you wash your face. Bend over the sink to wash. Stand back up to dry your face.
Move your arms and torso as much as you usually would.
Then, stay on that foot as you get the toothpaste and toothbrush out of the medicine cabinet and get ready to brush your teeth.
When you finish brushing your teeth, stand on the other foot while you put the toothpaste and toothbrush back in their place, while you take out the various creams and serums and wonderful products for your face, while you put them on your face and while you put them back in the cabinet.
Don’t be afraid to sway or tip to one side or the other. It’s a negotiation. The goal is not to fall.
And, don’t worry if you need to grab the sink to keep from falling.
This still creates a routine to practice. But it’s routine that’s more practical in terms of how we use balance in real life.
In our daily lives we have to reach for things.
We have to move around.
That’s when we need balance.
Try this for two weeks and see how you do. Do you feel more confident in your daily movements?
Let us know what you think. Contact us here. We’d love to hear from you
Wishing you happy hips!