Standing Posture And Senior Balance Exercises

Senior Balance Exercises For Postural Alignment

By Suzanne Stoke, Physical Therapist @ Exercise For Balance via www.exerciseforbalance.com

     Having good upright posture is an essential component of performing senior balance exercises   Please see   http://www.exerciseforbalance.com/buy-now Good posture, however, does not always come easy as we age. For many individuals over the age of sixty years old, maintaining a  straight, upright posture of the trunk is a simple thing that gets harder and harder to do with every passing year. The first thing you should know is that what parents, teachers, old school physical therapists and drill sergeants have always said would fix it – pull your shoulders back! – doesn’t work. It sometimes even makes matters worse by moving the weight of your arms so far back that you have to poke your head forward to compensate, ending up even more stooped.  The position of pulling your shoulders back always increases the level of tension in your body, making you feel stiffer and move more slowly. In contrast, a more effective way to solve the postural problem is to trace the problem to its origin – literally look to see where the bending forward begins in the body . As you look at the body as a whole, you will nearly always see that the hips are the most flexed, tilting the trunk forward from the tailbone up. As a result, we tend to assume a forward bent posture. This this forward positioning occurs because most of us spend a majority of the day sitting, and our muscles and nervous system adjust to hip joints bent roughly 90 degrees as the “normal” state. Consequently, straightening them out to stand gets more and more difficult, and we end up more and more bent forward when we’re on our feet. A secondary consequence of the forward bent posture is that it throws our body weight forward and puts us at a greater risk for falling.

Senior Balance Exercises

     Rehearsing senior balance exercises can  be an important part of learning to maintain a proper posture. Before tackling equilibrium exercises, however, there is a handy technique that can help improve trunk alignment and posture. The first step towards better posture, allowing you to stand up straighter,  is to fully straighten up at the hips. with your hips in proper alignment Your shoulders will generally take care of themselves once this becomes natural. The first senior balance exercises to practice to compliment postural training is to stand with your feet shoulder width a part and center your body weight in the middle of your arches. Hold this position, first with your eyes open and then with your eyes closed, to concentrate on your posture and body alignment. You can learn this stability technique and other senior balance exercises by following along with the Exercise For Balance DVD.

Senior Balance Exercises In The Exercise For Balance DVD

    To get started on appropriate posture and the best balance exercises, get the Exercise For Balance DVD. The professionally filmed Exercise For Balance DVD is an exceptional instructional DVD to use at home or in a group setting. The step by step Exercise For Balance DVD comes filled with the best balance and strength exercises needed to enhance senior fitness and to perform basic activities like walking, grocery shopping, standing, stair climbing or to advance to high level activities like skiing, dancing and hiking. In the comprehensive Exercise For Balance DVD, you will learn how to improve balance, steadiness techniques and stability routines from a balance trainer ---licensed Physical Therapist--- who has worked with balance and dizziness disorders for over 20 years. Get your copy of the Exercise For Balance DVD by clicking on the BUY NOW button

   Start balance exercises and posture training  today with the Exercise For Balance DVD to improve balance and prevent falls.
For more information see http://www.mayoclinic.com/health-information/