Can you stand on one leg? How improving your balance could save your life!

Balance is something that can deteriorate as we get older. This can be due to lots of reasons. Some of these are related to the normal process of ageing. Others are related to the fact that we often challenge our balance less as we get older. It’s the “use it or lose it” phenomenon! I can’t remember the last time I ice-skated or put on roller skates. The very thought fills me with anxiety! We expect that such a deterioration in balance may increase our risk of falling, but do we associate it with anything that we consider to be serious?

A recent study, published in the British Journal of Sports medicine, which involved more that 1700 middle aged participants over a decade concluded that inability to balance was associated with an almost twofold increase in risk of death. In this study, being unable to stand on one leg for longer than ten seconds was associated with an 84% heightened risk of death from any cause. Now these results do confuse me slightly. I mean, we will all die at some point! However, its quite clear that poor balance is serious!

There is good news though as we can often improve our balance. Some aspects of it are difficult to improve, for example if the cause of poor balance is a blood pressure drop or poor vision. However, the poor balance caused by e.g. weak glutes (the muscles in your buttocks) can be addressed by exercise. It's much easier to work on your balance now than work later. Prevention is better than cure. Once you start falling, it can start a downward spiral of loss of confidence and reduced physical activity. So, what are you doing now to help your future self-stay fit active and well?

Pilates exercises have been shown in scientific studies to improve both our static and dynamic balance. I make sure that in each class, I include exercises designed to improve balance, as it is so closely associated with living well now and in the future. Even active runners or cyclists will benefit from improving their balance in terms of reducing the risk of injury and improving overall fitness. Improving your balance will help you to keep on running, into older age.

So, think through how you are going to include a balance component in your fitness regime? Why not give Pilates a go?