The body’s balance depends on several senses working together.
These include signals from the inner ear, vision, and sensory cells in the body that tell the brain where the body is positioned.
Personal trainer Harry Cox explains to Parade that these functions often weaken with age.
Vision may decline, muscles can become weaker, and the brain may find it harder to combine information from the senses.
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When these functions change, it can become more difficult to maintain balance in everyday life.
Small exercises can help
According to Parade, there are several simple exercises that can train balance.
These can include standing on one leg, changing your foot position, or doing exercises that strengthen the small muscles in the feet.
Physiotherapist Milica McDowell also sometimes recommends doing the exercises without shoes, she tells Parade. This allows the feet to better sense the ground and send signals to the brain.
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The advice comes against the backdrop of a major health concern.
The World Health Organization states that around 684,000 people die each year after falls.
For that reason, experts point to a simple solution: a few minutes of daily balance exercises can help reduce the risk of falls later in life.
A short daily effort
Improving the body’s balance does not require long training sessions. According to Parade, just a few minutes of daily practice can make a difference.
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Milica McDowell explains that about five to ten minutes of balance exercises a day can help the body react better if you lose your balance.
The most important factor is not intense training, but consistency. Small exercises performed every day can strengthen the body’s stability over time.
Sources: Parade, and World Health Organization.
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This article is made and published by Ida-Marie Palm Varbæk, who may have used AI in the preparation.