What is Balance?

Balance is your ability to control your body in space, distributing your weight evenly in a way that allows you to remain upright. Balance is divided into two types: static and dynamic.

  • Dynamic balance: The ability to move outside the body’s base of support while maintaining posture control.

  • Static balance: The ability to maintain the body’s centre of mass within its base of support.

Both types of balance are essential, and you can improve both with targeted exercises.

The Benefits of Balance

We already know that having good balancing skills can reduce your risk of an ankle sprain, but it also has other benefits:

  • It works more than just balance. Balancing exercises inadvertently tone the obliques, hips, thighs, glutes and lower back.

  • It improves your coordination. Good overall balance can make you more coordinated and reduce your reaction time.

  • It improves your running technique. Both walking and running require the body to constantly control its centre of gravity.

What is Proprioception?

The ability to move through space without the need to see or feel every aspect of that movement is called proprioception.

Proprioception, also known as kinesthesia, is the sense of knowing your body's relative position in space. Often referred to as our sixth sense, proprioception allows us to move and navigate environments as we inherently "know" where our limbs, weight, and centre of gravity are at any moment in time. While vision and hearing also contribute to movement and balance, those senses are not considered proprioception components since you don't necessarily need them to be oriented in space.

Different people have different levels of proprioception in the same way that some people have better eye-hand coordination, making them better at typing or playing video games. Another such example is standing on one foot with your eyes shut. Some people can do this without impediment; others fall immediately.

You can improve proprioception—up to 52% in some cases9—by training it in specific ways. This applies to any activity for which you may be less coordinated, such as catching a ball or playing tennis. With practice, your body can adapt and expand its proprioceptive response to specific tasks.

Kinesthetic awareness (or the ability to know where your body parts are in three-dimensional space – which is what proprioception give you) is required for every move we make. Without it, we wouldn't be able to type, dance, jump rope, or steer a bicycle or car.

Proprioceptive training is with athletes all the time to both rehab and prevent injuries. Simply put, proprioception is a sense of joint position. By practicing balance exercises, the athlete gains a sense of control and awareness of their joints and how they function when the body is in motion.

Balance For Athletes

Balance can be learned, challenged, and improved. Balance training aids come in a variety of forms, but equipment is an option. You can just as easily improve your balance with little or no fancy gear. We can train our bodies to improve proprioception within the muscles just by creating balance challenges for ourselves.

Think about ankles. Ankle injuries are common in athletes due to all the twisting, turning, stopping, and starting. Even the most robust ankle can be injured if the athlete hasn’t trained the neuromuscular system to react correctly on various surfaces.

Balance training also gives athletes more power and force because they learn to use their centre of gravity more efficiently. A stronger, more connected core helps you jump higher, throw farther, and run faster.

Balance Exercises

Below, you will find instructions and benefits for the following balance exercises:

Tree Pose

Tree pose is great on the floor, a folded mat, or a balance training aid BOSU. It strengthens your ankles, improves your balance, and engages your core.

  • Stand with feet together, spine tall, and arms outstretched.

  • Slowly lift your left foot up to the side of your calf and balance on the right foot only.

  • Slowly lift arms overhead to make the branches of the tree. Hold for 30 seconds, then switch legs.

Single Leg Dead Lift

With or without dumbbells, this move not only strengthens your hamstrings and glutes, but it also challenges your balance and activates your abdominal wall.

  • Stand with feet close together and put most of your weight onto your right foot.

  • Stare at a focal point on the floor in front of you and slowly lower your torso to the ground while lifting your left leg behind you. Keep your spine neutral and reach your hands toward the floor.

  • Stop when your back is parallel to the floor. Keep your right knee soft.

  • Squeeze your hamstrings, glutes, and abs as you slowly raise back up and return your back foot to the floor.

  • Switch sides. Try for 8 deadlifts on each side.

Dead Bug

This is one of the best core exercises around. It challenges the transverse abdominus (your deep core muscles) and improves core stability.

  • Lie flat on the floor.

  • To get into the starting position, lift your hands so your elbows are above your shoulders with your fists facing in toward each other.

  • Lift your legs so your knees are directly over your hips.

  • On an exhale, slowly lower your right arm and left leg until they’re just above the floor.

  • On an inhale, bring them back to the starting position.

  • Repeat on the opposite side.

  • This is 1 rep.

Balancing Reverse Lunges

Lunges are naturally a balance activity because you are ending up on one leg at a time. Standing on a BOSU or a folded mat will make them even more of a challenge.

  • Stand on the top of the ball side of the BOSU with feet close together.

  • Bending the right knee, slowly stretch the left leg behind you onto the floor until both knees are bent.

  • Press straight up through your right leg as you return the left foot to the top of the BOSU. Switch legs. Try for 8 to 10 lunges per leg.

Balance Walk

This balance exercise adds another challenge as there is a pause while on one foot throughout the walk.

  • Start with your arms stretched out from your sides, at about shoulder height.

  • Focus on a spot several feet ahead of you, with your chin up and not looking at the ground.

  • Begin to walk. As you lift your rear leg and bring it forward, pause with your knee up for three second before placing your foot on the ground, stepping forward.

  • Now do the same with the other leg. As you bring it forward, pause for three second with your knee up before placing that foot ahead of you.

  • Repeat for 20 steps.