By Coach Nadia Popova
You lift weights, schedule time for cardio, and do your best to include movement in your everyday routine. But are you balanced? Aside from its ability to improve posture, increase joint stability, and strengthen muscles, balance training can help prevent injury and is a key component for longevity.
Balance training is often neglected when people are developing their fitness regime. This may be because they don’t understand the benefits of balance training. Balance is the ability to control your body’s position, whether stationary or while moving.
Let’s look at why training balance is good for the human body. A few of the benefits listed bellow:
1) Body Awareness
2) Coordination
3) Joint Stability
4) Reaction Time
5) Injury prevention.
Thinking ahead of time I know you are probably wondering what exact balance exercises would I recommend doing. There are many ways to train your balance. I will list three of my favorite Balance exercises that I had my clients doing and saw awesome results:
Bulgarian Split Squat
Here’s how to do a Bulgarian split squat:
Place your rear foot on top of a padded bar or bench, while your front foot is on the ground
Make sure both feet are in line with their individual hips
Your front foot should be far enough forward that you can comfortably bend the knee as your hips descend
Try to get at least parallel to the ground with your front thigh, if not slightly lower
Push the floor away to lift your hips up to a full stand; make sure your torso is straight
Walking Lunge
Another common unilateral exercise, a walking lunge forces your body to stabilize dynamically while carrying weight. The act of switching legs creates a huge stability demand on the pelvis, especially when carrying heavier weights.
Lunges are similar to split squats as the stance is virtually identical. The difference is that your hips travel in a lunge, which in this case, is forward.
Tightrope walk
To perform the tightrope walk, a person should follow these steps:
Place a piece of string or ribbon on the floor.
Hold the arms out to the sides.
Walk along the string, placing the feet directly on it.
Walk at least 15 steps.
Repeat the exercise as desired.
Here’s How To Test Your Balance in 30 Seconds
To get started, find a safe space with some light cushioning (like a yoga mat) where you can stand. Try to avoid placing yourself near glass tables, sharp furniture, etc—just in case! If you’re at all worried about your safety, have a friend or family member nearby to spot you.
Once you’ve found your testing zone, stand on one leg, cross your arms across your chest, and close your eyes. You can set a timer (voice-activated might be easiest for this one), or simply count. Try to remain in this position for as long as possible, without dropping your foot, without uncrossing your arms, and, of course, without opening up your eyes.
If you can last for over 30 seconds, you can probably last for a very long time. That means you have excellent balance. But what if you don’t make it to 30?
Here is the RANGE FOR REFERENCE:
5 seconds: below average
10 seconds: average
15 seconds: above average
20 seconds: very good
25 seconds: great
30 seconds: excellent
Lower than 30 seconds isn’t inherently bad, but depending on where you’re at with your balance, you may want to work on improving your score. After all, better balance can lead to easier everyday movements, reduced risk of injury and pain, and improved athleticism (yes, better workouts!). You’ll move through life more comfortably and confidently; think about getting out of the car, walking on trails or uneven city sidewalks.
Training Your Balance at Home
So how do you get started? Fortunately, most balance training doesn’t have to require any special equipment, and you can start at home.
Fortunately training balance does not require particular equipment. All you need is to hire a knowledgeable Trainer that can help you with Balance Training.
To schedule your Free Balance Assessment / Consultation text or call (760)880-9904 or visit our website for more information www.cvsendmeatrainer.com
