It’s the rest of the week—what would you like to rest from right now?
One out of every five falls causes a serious injury.
There are basic changes you can make to your environment to reduce your risk of falling, but your best prevention starts with improving your balance.
How is your balance?
If you like quizzes and tests, you can evaluate your balance with the Berg Balance Test (click on the top link to Brandeis University).
And if you’d like to improve your balance, here’s my #1 favorite exercise. Notice it’s one exercise—not a whole list for you to stick up on the refrigerator and forget about.
It is easy and, if you watch TV at all, you can do it during advertisements. That way, you make a new habit without upending your current life by trying to carve out one more slot in your schedule (while fighting overwhelm as you dig around for a little more self-discipline).
Here it is:
Stand with your feet shoulder width apart.
If you cannot stand without losing your balance, start out doing this in a sitting position. If you feel unsteady, check with your medical practitioner, and when doing this exercise, stand in front of a sturdy chair (that you can safely fall back onto) with a countertop or sturdy assistive device (such as a walker( in front of you (in case you need to grab something for support).
Keeping shoulders relaxed, tighten your torso and buttocks as if your torso is made of marble—rock solid. Look straight ahead.
Feel your full body weight, as evenly as possible, over both legs and feel your feet in contact with the floor/ground, imagining/visualizing that your feet are rooted to the ground. Imagine that if you were a tree, you might sway, but you would not fall over.
Lift both arms straight out in front of you. With a controlled movement, punch arms back and forth as if punching an imaginary boxing bag. DO NOT twist your upper body—be still like a tree trunk that doesn’t move, your arms moving like branches.
Keep shoulders relaxed and punch back and forth, stopping before you develop pain or fatigue (you should be able to talk and do this exercise without feeling short of breath).
Your starting point, be it 30 seconds or 3 minutes, is good. It’s yours. Build from there.
I like this exercise because it is simple, functional, and helps you do several things all at once:
You are challenging (and improving) your balance.
You are strengthening your core which is critical to good balance (and efficient movement).
You are getting a cardio workout which improves your endurance.
You are strengthening your legs (in standing).
You are improving your shoulder mobility
You are becoming more aware of your body and how you are connected to the environment—and more apt to adapt to balance disturbances more quickly.
So, where is the invitation to rest in all this?
It’s hard to feel safe, it’s hard to rest, when your balance is off.
How is your life balance?
And, of course, I’m not talking about all of the external things that help create balance.
Do you ever feel like you’re hanging on for dear life? Do you sometimes feel like it’s 2 steps forward and 1.75 steps back when you lose your traction and fall backwards?
What would it feel like to put your weight down into this moment right now and feel the sturdiness of the good beliefs that have formed the foundation of your life?
What would it feel like to look straight ahead and engage your core—your heart and soul—in such a way that you find your sturdiness to stay standing (or sitting)?
May you be like that tree the prophet Jeremiah wrote about—
“…planted by the water
that sends out its roots by the stream.
It does not fear when heat comes;
its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought
and never fails to bear fruit.”Jeremiah 17:7-8
And may your rest be sweet.
Alicia