Recently Why do senior balance exercises? Let me tell you a story…

I asked a physical therapist at the hospital where I teach to instruct me in the best way to fall.

He made me smile when he said, “the best advice I can give on that one is DON’T FALL! Practice balance techniques five minutes minimum a day every day.”

So there you have it–even if we are very active, balance is something that can catch us off guard.

In fact, the morning we shot this video, my feet were very stiff with my arthritis so I felt a bit unsteady.

As much as I move, I still find practicing balance exercises a challenge at times (making me wish I had done my foot stretches before this shoot… live and learn).

Case in point, while you are practicing balance, if you do feel unsteady, try to pinpoint the underlying cause.

Is it a bad hip, knee, back, ankle or foot problem?If so, go back to flexibility and strengthening exercises for those weaknesses. You can bet that when I returned home from the vacation during which we shot this video, I had to return to my foot exercises!

The reason for balance exercises is to stimulate those reflexes so that they can kick in when we stumble. Broken hips are a big concern for folks of the senior population.

Being unable to remain mobile while healing from a hip injury can lead to extreme atrophy to many muscles and set us up for a declining immune system from lack of activity leaving us vulnerable to other diseases or infections. A downward spiral!

So make it a habit to do a few of these senior balance exercises every day that challenge you so you “DON’T FALL!”

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Here’s to FEELING GOOD!