$h!* you should know...Balance: It doesn't have to get worse with age (Part 1)
Balance is an even distribution of weight enabling someone or something to remain upright and steady.
It is a common misconception that our balance gets worse with age. I'm here to tell you that it does not have to. Balance is like other aspects of our physical fitness, in that it requires maintenance and attention. Just like strength, flexibility, and cardiovascular endurance, our balance is something that we can maintain and even improve through practice.
A little background on balance:
Our brain received information from three different sources to help make adjustments and modifications in order to prevent us from falling. Vision, proprioception, and vestibular input comprise our balance.
Vision (sight):
This may be obvious, but our brain relies heavily on visual input of our surroundings to make adjustments to our balance. If you close your eyes or walk down a dark hallway, you may notice it becomes more difficult to maintain your balance. For most of us, vision is our dominant sensory input for balance.
Proprioception (touch):
The unconscious perception of movement and spatial orientation arising from stimuli within the body itself. Receptors, aptly named proprioceptors, are located in our muscles, tendons, joints, and our inner ear. The proprioceptors provide information to our brain regarding muscle length, muscle tension, and joint angle. This information is integrated to give information about our limb position in space.
Vestibular system/ Inner ear (spatial awareness, rotation, equilibrium, linear movement):
The vestibular system is a collection of structures in our inner ear which help provide information about your spatial awareness or whether you are right-side up or upside down.
Together our brain takes information from these three sources and makes the necessary adjustments to our body in order to maintain balance.
What can you do to improve your balance? PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE. Next week I will share some simple exercises you can incorporate into your daily routine.