Advice For Improving Balance??

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chloecola
chloecola Posts: 104 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hiya, good morning 🌞💕
I'm kind of starting from square one with my fitness goals.
1) I'm out of shape
2) I'm interested taking up new sports I've never tried before
3) I would really like to get serious about calisthenics

I knew my balance was bad before but I never noticed exactly how awful it was til I kept toppling over this morning during yoga and currently trying to do stretches to get my splits down. 😅😅

Any advice for improving balance?? Are their any tips or tricks?? Or is it just something that is strictly a matter of time and practice??

Replies

  • chloecola
    chloecola Posts: 104 Member
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    **are there
  • Maxxitt
    Maxxitt Posts: 1,281 Member
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    yirara wrote: »
    For balancing: balance! Build it into your day: every time you cook a cup of tea stand on one leg until the tea is done. Continue doing yoga. Your balance will also get better as your muscles get stronger as your whole body is involved in that.

    This^^ My balance improved significantly when I started weight training. It was a combination of building a more solid core, a lot of single-leg full body movements and split squat variations, and just a better general awareness of where my body is in space (proprioception).
  • SnifterPug
    SnifterPug Posts: 746 Member
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    I also find my balance is better now that I am stronger. If you can get access to a TRX suspension trainer, or even rig up some other way of supporting your body weight then you can gradually build strength in moves that require balance without having to deal with your whole body weight. I found lunges very difficult but they are OK now and I am currently practising curtsey lunges on the TRX. It also helps with getting deeper into a squat.
  • DancingMoosie
    DancingMoosie Posts: 8,619 Member
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    You just have to practice. Maybe do an easier routine. Practice balancing on one leg for a few seconds and then add as you get better. Focus on a spot when you balance, looking around can throw you off.
  • Chieflrg
    Chieflrg Posts: 9,097 Member
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    Balance will come with specificity to what you actually want to do.

    Want balance during a yoga invert, then peace inverts.

    Want balance skate boarding, then practice skate boarding more.

    Whatever you are novel to, have patience and start what with what you are capable of now. Slowly add variation and volumebas you become better at it.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,737 Member
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    I agree with the above advice, but would add this:

    I think it helped me to start balancing on one leg anytime I was standing in line somewhere, like at the grocery store. I'm not talking about full-on yoga tree pose, just suggesting raising one foot subtly, like half an inch. No one notices. As that got easier, and I could do it longer, I started making it harder: move the foot back and forth or side to side a bit, shift my purse or a grocery item from one hand to the other, or move an arm out to the magazine rack & back again, or really any body movement to create a little bit of stability challenge.

    This is not a substitute for doing other more profound things (like keeping up with your yoga ;) ), but something that can be done as an add-on, in what otherwise would've been wasted time.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
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    I lost my balance skills quite suddenly due a couple of major knee injuries which meant I only had one foot on the floor for 3 months plus massive muscle loss including the fine control muscles that contribute to balance.
    Balance is a function of many things including ears, eyes, muscles and even ligaments (as I discovered!).

    The solution is simply use all the component parts that contribute to balance and practise, practise, practise.
    (As an example of not using everything I was showing a friend how to use a gym ball and she kept either shutting her eyes or looking up and to the side - not surprisingly that didn't help!)

    And then as you improve increase the difficulty - stand on one foot with a straight leg until that's easy, alternate between up on your toes and heels, bend your knee slightly until that's easy, close your eyes, move during your balance, wobble boards....
  • Djproulx
    Djproulx Posts: 3,084 Member
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    I worked on improving my balance by standing on one leg frequently during the day, as others have suggested. As you've already learned, yoga is also a great place to practice.

    A couple tips may help if you are just starting out. For standing poses, start on a hard floor, not the yoga mat. If you are doing a pose (like tree pose) where you are going to raise your right leg, first shift your weight onto your left side before lifting the right foot. Then, as you try to hold your balance, find an object or point in the room to focus on, (this is called a "drishte" in yoga parlance). As your balance improves, begin to move your leg into different positions: straight out front, lean forward and extend arms and one leg to the rear (airplane pose) , etc. If you practice Tree Pose, you'll eventually be able to not only raise your arms, but allow them to sway back and forth. This takes some time to learn, but it's fun. Lots of variations, including closing your eyes!

    Finally, there are a number of ballet warmup movements that are great for balance as well. One of the yoga instructors at my studio is a ballet teacher. She showed us many great exercises to improve balance, so you may look at ballet for additional movements to help.

    And if you're nervous about starting out, remember that there's nothing funnier (and more ridiculous) than watching a 62yr old guy trying to learn basic ballet movements. :)


  • springlering62
    springlering62 Posts: 7,811 Member
    edited April 2020
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    I am infamous for falling out of balance poses, even though I’ve been practicing yoga for ten years. I’ve had to teach myself to learn to laugh rather than beat myself up for falling, so classmates have gotten used to me giggling, or laughing maniacally, depending on the severity of topple.

    What helps me:

    * weight training and Pilates, to build a strong core
    * Adding balance practice to my morning slow stretch routine. Practice truly does make, uh, well it helps anyway
    * I add 50 heel lifts to my morning stretch to build ankle strength
    * Find a drishti. That’s a spot on the wall or floor, a doorknob, a light switch, something that does not move, to focus on. Start with one on the floor til you are comfortable, then eye level, and then ceiling as you improve
    * Relax your breath, face and chest. For those of us who balance poorly, we hold our breath and tense up. A big old silent sigh and release of shoulders can do wonders for balance.
    * Spread your toes out, feel all four corners of your standing foot. They tell us this, but if you’re like me, you’re so preoccupied with what’s coming up you fail to do it. Do it.
    * For tree pose, it helps me to really reach for the sky and stretch higher. The more length I get, the better my balance
    * if you struggle with balance, don’t feel like you have to take the hardest most advanced option the teacher gives. While I’d love to do a challenging garudasana archer aiming to one side with my eyes closed, I have to be at peace with something about three steps back.
    * Fool your brain into looking forward to balance sequences. I used to live in dread of one coming up during practice. Now I’ve convinced myself it’s a game to see if I can be better than I was the last time. If I make it through a side without falling out, I give the instructor a thumbs up and a great big sloppy smile.
    * The most important one? Be able and willing to laugh at yourself. The tension in the room is all in your head. No one else cares.

    One other thing, most yogis excel in different areas. I’m strong in standing and stretching poses, I can drop my head to the ground easily in Humble Warrior, and strangely enough, I can do arm balances pretty darn good. But those standing balances....ay yi yi. But if we were perfect at everything, it would no longer be a “practice”, now would it?
  • estherdragonbat
    estherdragonbat Posts: 5,283 Member
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    I use a stability ball for a lot of my strength-training exercises. And during my rests-between-sets, I sit on it. It's a mild core-strengthener.

    I can't point to any one specific exercise, but I know my balance has improved since I started.
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,464 Member
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    One legged anything will
    Help with balance. Balance is largely a function of your core, so work on core strengthening. There is also a lot of form/technique involved with balance so pay attention to any cues from your instructor. Like engaging core and glutes, foot and hip position, etc.
    If you’re truly a beginner, I wouldn’t worry too much about doing splits!🤪

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