Falls prevention. Stay steady on your feet
Have you noticed that you are less steady on your feet than you were a few years ago?
Good balance is something that we overlook…until we notice that we are getting wobbly on our feet or even worse have a fall.
Our balance is a complex interplay between our vision, our inner ear and the messages that the brain gets from joints and muscles.
Our eyes tell our brain where we are in relation to our surroundings, the fluid in the inner ear tells the brain where we are in space and our joints and muscles tell the brain where the rest of the body is positioned.
The impact of aging
As we age, the sensors in the inner ear become less reliable. The receptors that work with the inner ear fluid become less sensitive. In some cases, the fluid can become disrupted by infection or a build-up of crystal deposits, which tells our brain we are tilted and as a result we feel dizzy – this is vertigo.
Ageing makes our joints and muscles stiffer and they send less detailed information to the brain. If the muscles are weak, we feel less steady. As a result, the body relies heavily on the eyes to tell us whether we are upright, laying down, moving or still.
Strong muscles are a good start and getting eyesight corrected is very important. To maintain good balance, we need to make sure that our brain is not over-reliant on the eyes.
A good test of how much our body is relying on the eyesight for balance is to stand still with your eyes closed. Do you feel dizzy? Do you feel as if you are swaying? Do you feel as if you will fall? This is the brain asking for information from the inner ear and joints, but not receiving it! Without these messages the brain can’t tell where we are and it feels disorientated.
Challenging your balance
So how can we improve the reliance of the inner ear and joints? We have to challenge them… Balance is easy to improve, but you have to challenge your balance to get the gains. So, it’s time for more tests:
Work your way through the following… when you get to the move that you find hard, you’ve found your exercise! Once you find the exercise easy (it can take a few weeks), you can progress to the next move.
Stand with feet shoulder width apart, then look up then down then left then right.
Stand with feet shoulder width apart with eyes closed.
Stand with feet together (very close so that they are touching) without holding on to anything.
Stand with feet together, then look up then down then left then right.
Stand with feet together with eyes closed.
Stand with one foot directly in front of the other (heel to toe) without holding on to anything.
Stand with one foot directly in front of the other, then look up then down then left then right.
Stand with one foot directly in front of the other with eyes closed.
Stand on one leg for ten seconds.
If you are struggling with your balance or suffering from vertigo, there are many different causes.
Here at Embody Movement, we hold a Balance and Bones group class targeting improved balance and bone density. Call us for more information on 07 5336 9853
Come and see us at Embody Movement to get your balance assessed and help find solutions to your problems.