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September Balance Challenge

Sept. 9th to Sept. 20th

Do you think you can balance on one leg? Many of us take balance for granted, but everyone can benefit from improving it. Often, we are not fully aware that we may have weak balance until we try balance exercises. So, lets do this challenge and see if you can balance. Try easy or hard level! ​​​​​​​


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Challenge your balance in the fitness center or virtual by trying out both levels listed below: 

You Could Win A Prize!

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Virtual Participants

  • We can set up a 10-minute virtual meeting to time your performance.                       ​​​​​​​
  • You can record yourself completing the challenge and send the video to lauren.dufrene@bp.com.                                                                                                       ​​​​​​​
  • Complete the challenge at your convenience and log your times using this 2024 Balance Challenge .
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  • ​​​​​​​Download the PDF File right below, for all virtual balance challenge details!​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​
File

Virtual Balance Challenge

Download File

Pop in and test your balance on our Zibrio Board—it takes just a minute! By doing so, not only will you receive your balance score, but you'll also secure a spot in our raffle prize.

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Level 1: How long can you balance on one leg at 90°?

(bp Fitness Center and Virtual Only)

Stand upright with feet hip distance apart. Stabilize the core and focus your eyes on a focal point on the wall or floor in front of you. Lift one of the legs at 90 degrees in front of you and keep the foot flexed. Extend the arms and place them at shoulder height. If you need balance support, place one hand on a wall or chair while practicing. Repeat on other leg.



Level 2: How long can you single leg lateral jump?

(bp Fitness Center Only)

Jump side to side over a line on one leg, landing within designated boxes on each side. The goal is to keep moving without stalling, immediately jumping back to the other side upon landing. Time stops if you stall or touch the ground with the other leg.  Remember if you need balance support, place one hand on a wall or chair while practicing. Repeat on other leg.




Level 3: How long can you balance on one leg at 90° with eyes closed?

(Virtual Only)

Same stance as level one, but with eyes closed. Remember if you need balance support, place one hand on a wall or chair while practicing. Repeat on other leg.

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How long should I be able to balance for?

What are the best ways to improve balance?

What are some conditions that affect balance?

How long should I be able to balance?

The following numbers are based on a study where American researchers asked people from diffeent age groups to balance on one leg so they could tell what 'normal' looks like.

As you can see, ablility to do the one-legged test with eyes closed tends to fall off rapidly with age...

People under 40 with eyes open averaged 45 seconds. With eyes closed: 15 seconds

Aged 40-49 with eyes open averaged 42 seconds. With eyes closed:13 seconds

Aged 50-59 with eyes open averaged 41 seconds. With eyes closed:8 seconds

Aged 60-69 with eyes open averaged 32 seconds. With eyes closed: 4 seconds

Aged 60-69 with eyes open averaged 22 seconds. With eyes closed: 3 seconds


For more details, please use the following link:

How Long Should I Be Able To Balance on One Leg? | Posture Movement Pain

Here are the best ways to improve balance:


Stretching:

Improving your flexibility can result in better balance. Stretches can also help improve your posture and lead to better stability and balance. Tight muscles can throw off your center of balance and make you more susceptible to trips and falls. Doing stretches that target key muscles will increase the range of motion (ROM) and improve your balance.

Top 4 Stretches to improve balance:

Standing Calf Stretch

Hip Stretch

Hamstring stretch

Standing Quad Stretch

For more details on these stretches please use the following link:

4 Essential Stretches That Improve Your Balance | Prevention

Mobility Training:

Joint stiffness can lead to poor mobility, which you’ve probably noticed when you been getting out of bed or even getting up and down from a chair. Better mobility can lead to improve balance and coordination which allows us to stay more active.

Top 6 Mobility Exercises to improve Longevity:

Tightrope Walking

Tree Pose

Lying Down Marches

Lateral Toe Taps

Standing Marches

Single-Leg Stance


For more details on these mobility exercises please use the following link:

The 6 Best Mobility Exercises for Longevity | Well+Good (wellandgood.com)

Want to Age Well? Improve Your Balance With This 5-Minute Foot-Mobility Sequence | livestrong

Exercising:

Strengthening the muscles in your legs, core, and arms can lead to improvements in your balance. A general progression to get more challenging starts at a hard surface progress to carpet, or a thin yoga mat, a thick mat and finally an unstable surface such as a BOSU. A tennis shoe provides more stability thus making barefoot more challenging.

There are many different types of exercises you can do to help improve your balance. Ask a qualified fitness professional if you need help putting together a training program.


Below are some clinically approved educational sources for balance exercises:

5 Exercises to Train Balance in Motion (acefitness.org)

5 TRX Exercises to Improve Balance (acefitness.org)

5 Ways to Progress Traditional Balance Exercises (acefitness.org)

BOSU Balance Exercises | 7 Basic BOSU Exercises to Try (acefitness.org)

Balance Exercises: 5 Core Exercises to Improve Balance | ACE Blog (acefitness.org)

Top 8 conditions that affect balance:

Inner Ear Problems

Vision Problems

Muscle & Joint Problems

Nervous System Problems

Heart Problems

Anxiety & Stress

Diabetes

Medications


For more details on these conditions please use the following link:

8 Health Conditions That Can Affect Your Balance (healthgrades.com)


File

Print Version of all this Balance Information

Download File

Balance is a vital component of health and is essential for activities of daily living. Balance is especially important for older adults in the hope to reduce the risk of falls and injuries. Visual cues from our eyes give us information about where we are in a space. Therefore, it can be difficult to keep your balance with your eyes closed. Your eyes also send signals to your brain, telling your joints and muscles where and how to move. Remember when doing balancing exercises always use precaution and have a chair or wall near you in case you fall.